Author: crciorba

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Reflections on OMEA 2016

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I am now in my seventh year as a faculty member at the University of Oklahoma, and this past week, I was able to break away from the daily grind of academia to engage with the music community in a celebratory fashion at the yearly OMEA conference in Tulsa, OK. Working the OU booth is always a pleasure. I enjoy meeting music educators from across the state, catching up with alumni, and discussing OU’s graduate music education programs (MME and Ph.D.) with potential students.  I’m always recruiting! 🙂

At the Thursday night awards ceremony, I had a chance to hear Dr. Glenn Nierman, who is the Glenn Korff Chair of Music Education at the University of Nebraska. He is also President of the National Association for Music Education (NAfME) and a member of the Board of Directors of the International Society of Music Education (ISME). Dr. Nierman told us how the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) can positively impact the state of music education. I know many of us have strong opinions on this issue, and I look forward to hearing about them in future blogs. Generally speaking, I am quite optimistic.

For me, the highlight of the conference was watching Mr. Chris Barber, one of our Ph.D. candidates, being named the 2015-16 Exemplary Music Educator by the Oklahoma Music Educators Association. Chris invited me to sit at the front of hall with his friends and family during the ceremony.  To say the least, I was honored by the invitation.  Mr. Barber has been a member of the music faculty at Owasso High School since 1996. The Owasso band program has a long history of excellence, including numerous appearances at the Bands of America Grand Nationals in Indianapolis, in which the PRIDE of Owasso was a Semi-finalist in 2001, 2002, and 2009. The band reached the finals in 2005 (12th) and 2011 (7th). These are just a few of the many great accomplishments in which Chris has been professionally involved.  For more details, I suggest you visit the following link http://owassobands.com/owassobands/about.html. I look forward to working with Mr. Barber as he completes his dissertation, which is titled, The Creation and Validation of a Multi-Dimensional Rating Scale for High School Instrumental Honor Band Auditions. I advise my colleagues across the nation to keep an eye on Chris Barber.  He’s going places!

I give thanks to the OMEA leadership for their successful efforts in Tulsa. I am already looking forward to next year.

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What Did I Learn?


Over the past two days, I’ve participated in a mobile blogging and scholarship workshop at the University of Oklahoma. It has been an amazing experience.  A website has been created, I’ve stared blogging, and I am now marketing my knowledge with the rest of the world.  There is so much left to learn, but I have been given the tools to carry on with these activities for years to come. Thank you, Keegan for sharing your knowledge!

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How Am I Doing?

Educational testing has taken quite a hit over the past decade and a half.  Regardless of the reasons for this negative phenomenon (i.e., political influence in the standardized testing process), people who are in a learning situation want to know how they are doing. As such, making judgments about a performance is not easy.  Let’s face it, I’m sure most of us have received an inaccurate judgment based on a previous performance.  In addition, we all have previous educational experiences and corresponding opinions based on these experiences. Such opinions are worthy of discussion, but first, let’s get our definitions straight.  According to Payne (2003):

  • Measurement: The means to provide data for assessment.  It involves the collection of information.
  • Testing: A specific type of measurement (the method for gathering data).
  • Evaluation: Judgments and decisions which are made based on the testing data.
  • Assessment: The systematic appraisal of one’s ability or performance.

Assessment subsumes measurement and evaluation.  Here is an example:

  • Testing: A student scored 35 out of 100 on a music theory test.
  • Evaluation: The student failed the exam.
  • Assessment: The student must retake the theory course

So…

  • Testing provided the measurement (35/100)
  • Evaluation involved a judgment (The student failed)
  • Assessment involved an appraisal (The student must retake the course)

Payne, David A. (2003). Applied Educational Assessment (2nd ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. ISBN 0-534-60282-7.

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Ziggy Played Guitar

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I woke up this morning to learn the music world lost a truly innovative artist. Sadly, David Bowie succumbed to an 18-month battle with cancer. The media reported he died peacefully, but this comes as no comfort to a life long fan such as myself. He thought outside the box in every essence. His musical styles changed constantly as he immersed himself in jazz, dance, rock, etc. The same was true for his image. A virtual chameleon, his fashion sense was revolutionary (and very brave) for the era in which he lived. My parents generation would never understand him, but I did, mainly through his music. Space Oddity was a personal favorite, as was Heroes, Aladdin Sane, and his work with Tin Machine.

David Bowie’s music moved me. His musical style was refreshing, and today, I feel a bit empty. Rest in peace, Mr. Bowie. You will be missed.

“There’s a starman waiting in the sky.”