1. Teaching Philosophy and Grading Policy

1. Teaching at a Liberal Arts College

   [Excerpted from the Music Major Handbook.]

   The Carleton College Catalog defines the goal of liberal arts education as "to liberate individuals from the constraints imposed by ignorance or complacency and equip them broadly to lead re­warding, creative, and useful lives. At its simplest, a liberal education teaches the basic skills upon which all higher achievements rest: to read perceptively, to write and speak clearly, and to think analytically. Carleton draws upon these skills to foster a critical appreciation of our intellectual, aesthetic, and moral heritage and to encourage original thought." A four-year lib­eral arts program is traditionally divided into two parts: a broad range of introductory classes in a variety of fields, and a study in depth in one field, that is, the major. A major is a fundamentally different kind of experience from a collection of introductory classes. In the words of a recent report on higher education:

   "Depth requires sequential learning, building on blocks of knowledge that lead to more sophisticated understanding and encourage leaps of the imagination and effort at syn­thesis. Depth is achieved through a variety of experiences that broaden the student's knowledge of a discipline, strengthening analytical power while leading to a deeper, fresher, more complex perspective. Depth requires the kind of focused inquiry that takes time; it releases students to the testing of their own skill; it should not be hurried. The year-long essay, the senior thesis, the artistic project, undertaken after a sound grasp of the fundamentals of the discipline or art has been established, provides an ex­perience in which two great lessons are learned: the joy of mastery, the thrill of moving forward in a formal body of knowl­edge and gaining some effective control over it; and the lesson that no matter how deeply and widely students dig, no matter how much they know, they cannot know enough, they cannot know everything. Depth is an enemy of arrogance." (Integrity in the College Curriculum: A Report to the Academic Community. Washington, D.C.: Association of American Colleges, 1985, p. 24)

2. The Study of Music at a Liberal Arts College

   Given the wide variety of institutional settings in which music is taught in the United States--from conservatories and large conservatory-styled music departments to small liberal arts colleges like Carleton--there are, not surprisingly, a wide variety of teaching styles and expectations regarding the teaching of music exemplified in American higher education. Neither Carleton College, nor its Music Department, endorse any one specific teaching style or method. Indeed, perhaps more than most types of institutions, liberal arts colleges such as Carleton encourage a variety of teaching styles and, in particular, encourage efforts on the part of faculty to focus attention on teaching, experiment with new ideas about teaching, and grow and improve as teachers.

   Nonetheless, several general characteristics of teaching at liberal arts colleges can be discerned. First, perhaps, is that teaching tends to be more student-centered than faculty- or discipline-centered. Liberal arts colleges, and most particularly residential liberal arts colleges such as Carleton, seek to take the whole of a student into consideration in the educational process (to be sure, applied music study is rich with such opportunities.) Second, teaching tends to be collegial rather than adversarial. This is true both for faculty-student relationships and also for faculty-faculty relationships. Community standards, at least in part because of the typically small size of such institutions, focus attention on mutual respect and quality of character. Indeed, the liberal arts college in the United States has been since its inception devoted--and, historically, devoted above all else--to building the qualities of fine character and good citizenship in its students. Integral in this process remains a faculty which can model for students these qualities.

   Music, like any other discipline, provides a rich array of material for study in depth; in addition, music's status as a performed art makes necessary the consideration of the interplay of the tradi­tional modes of humanistic scholarship (history, theory, and criticism) and creative performance. Moreover, the creation of musical compositions themselves is not only within reach of the music major but an integral aspect of the curriculum.

   The music major addresses the goals of liberal arts education through courses which not only teach music, but do so in a way which calls upon students to develop their skills of critical analysis through the careful examination of music's primary source materials -- music itself and writing about music -- through their own writing about music and through writing their own music. Musical performance can also address the goals of liberal arts education, once proficiency reaches that level of mastery where performers can think analytically and critically about how to interpret compositions; indeed, the complex web of historical, theoretical, emo­tional, and technical consid­erations which attend informed interpretation can profoundly challenge a student's power of critical analysis. The music major, then, despite the non-verbal essence of music itself, is really much like other majors because it focuses on such standard aspects of liberal arts education as logical think­ing, critical analysis, literacy, historical con­sciousness, and values. As a measure of this commonality, students who major in music are awarded, like other students in the College, the B.A. (Bachelor of Arts) degree, rather than a B.M. (Bachelor of Music) degree, although majors may elect additional courses and perfor­mance study beyond the core requirements of the B.A. music major.

   Undergraduate music major programs are of two types and award different degrees. The B.A. (or A.B.) degree signifies a broad, general background in music, focused primarily on academic music (composition, theory, history), while the B.M. degree signifies more specifically technical, pre-professional training. The B.A. is traditionally associated with Departments of Music, while the B.M. is traditionally associated with Conservatories of Music. While at one time there was a Carleton Conservatory of Music, at present the study of music at Carleton is organized as a Department, not as a Conservatory.

   What, then, are the "higher achievements" for which the Carleton music major prepares a student? Like any other major, it provides the basic skills which professional schools look for in their appli­cants. Again, from the Carleton Catalog (section on professional preparation, in this case, for law school):

   "Most important for law school admission is the development of skills of expression, understanding, and verbal and quantitative analysis. What major the student chooses in order to acquire and improve these skills is unimportant."

   In fact, many Carleton music majors have gone on to law schools and other professional programs outside music.

   The music major also specifically prepares the student to pursue further work in music at the graduate level, in history, theory, or composition, depending on the particular interest of the student and the amount of specialized work undertaken in those areas while at Carleton. Music majors with interests in musical performance, and significant background prior to Carleton, can also continue intensive study in their performance medium as an emphasis within the broader major and/or as preparation for graduate study. Students interested in a career in teaching music at the elementary and high school levels can use the music major to prepare for graduate work leading to the Master of Arts in Teaching (see the Catalog). Finally, in the broadest terms, the Carleton music major, like any major, contributes to the student's capacity to lead a "rewarding, creative, and useful" life.

   The study and practice of music, both inside and outside academia, reflect a wide vari­ety of inter­ests and talents. The most basic categories, namely performance and academic areas, and more specifically the subdivisions of academic study into theory and history (with further specializations in composition, ethnomusicology, etc.), can be seen in the structure of the professional organiza­tions which serve the musical community; they also provide the rationale for the basic requirements of the music major.

3. Grades and Grading Standards for Music Lessons at Carleton

   1.3.1 General Assessment

   Applied music at Carleton is not an extra-curricular activity but a credit course. The credits earned should represent not only the weekly lessons (and, in some cases, weekly or occasional classes) but also the required hours of practice preparing for each lesson, as well as the progress which could be expected from the student's weekly time commitment. Mere attendance at the lessons and enthusiasm for music should not earn a student an A grade and the integrity of the credits received is undermined when that happens. It is a misconception that a high grade will always encourage students. It may indeed encourage laziness in some students, and actually discourage the hard-working students who are aware that some students are receiving the same grade that they have honestly earned. There has never been a question of too-low grades in applied music, but the question of too-high grades does arise when an applied music instructor gives nothing but A grades to all of his or her students year after year. An A grade should mean excellent progress, and both qual­itative and quantitative factors might enter into that judgment. Plusses and minuses (A-, B+, B, B-, C+, etc.) give further refinements to the grades and are factored into the student's grade point average accordingly. Note that A+ grades are not given at Carleton.

   It is left to the individual adjunct faculty member to assess the student's progress. Setting some requirement for "completion" by the end of each term is often appropriate. This might include any or all of the following: that some piece(s), sonata movement(s), etude(s), etc., is finished to the best of the student's ability, perhaps memorized; a performance opportunity in a class setting (or, if appropriate, on a student recital) or by way of students with adjacent lesson times playing for each other; some review of technique acquired during the term; the assignment of a short excerpt several weeks before the end of the term, similar in style to something the student has played before, to see how well the student can apply what has been learned to something new. Particular requirements might vary from one instrument to another and from beginning to advanced levels. A final grade would then reflect the level of work throughout the term as well as the achievements by the end of the term.

   1.3.2 S/Cr/NC or “Scrunch”

   Students who have missed four or more lessons, or do not seem to be working between lessons have the option of dropping the course up to the last day of classes to avoid getting an F. As is noted in your contract, a "late drop" does not affect an applied music teacher's teaching load calcu­lation or payment. Students also have the option of taking applied music S/Cr/NC (Satisfactory A through C-, Credit D, No Credit--known as "SCRuNCh" on campus), and in many cases this may be a more appropriate grading rubric than a letter grade. Students need not, however, inform their instructor that they have opted to "scrunch" their course. In these cases the student must be given a letter grade, and the Registrar's Office will then make the appropriate changes.

   1.3.3 D or F Grades
   

   If a student is given a D or F grade, the instructor must provide an explanation as to why the stu­dent received a low grade in the class. These students often end up before Carleton's Academic Standing Committee, and we want to know why students are having difficulty in their courses. Adjunct faculty giving a grade of D or F should contact the Department Administrative Assistant, who will assist them in getting this information accurately reported to the Registrar.
   

   1.3.4 Incomplete or W Grades
   

   Carleton does not allow its instructors to give incomplete grades. It is the standing policy of the College that a student's grade reflect the work completed within a given term. While students in music will often work on a piece or set of etudes over several terms, one cannot base a grade or make other allowances for work "to be completed the following term."
   

4. Teaching Improvement and Faculty Development

   Carleton is very supportive of its faculty who want to become even better teachers. The Perlman Learning and Teaching Center, located in Willis Hall 207, is available to all faculty and offers a variety of resources and programs related to teaching. One example is the Student Observer Program in which a student is assigned to observe a faculty member's teaching and to offer feed­back regarding that teaching. In addi­tion to the Student Observer Program, adjunct faculty are encouraged to invite a full-time faculty member in the Department of Music to observe their teaching. You may also wish to design and distribute course evaluations to students at the end of the term in which students can make suggestions or comments about their study. The Learning and Teaching center has a number of good resources on designing effective course evaluations.