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Date Posted: 06:57:01 04/27/04 Tue
Author: Derek
Subject: Time Management

I've seen teachers stay after school so many times, it's unbelievable. I could never understand why they stayed so late until I started thinking about becoming a teacher myself and realized how much time it took... Now my problem is finding enough time. I've got this feeling that I won't have enough time to accomplish whatever needs to be done. I'm also worried that I won't be able to use the time I have effectively. Hopefully someday I'll have a symphonic band, a couple jazz bands, and a big ol' marching band - a choir would be nice too. How do I balance a load like that? Would an "adequate" teacher spend time workin on each of those ensembles every day outside of class (such as creating lesson plans, etc), or would it be better to work on Jazz stuff Monday, symphonic band on Tuesday, etc...? That's what I'd like to have someday, but I'm not sure how to manage it all. Any suggestions?

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Replies:

[> Re: Time Management -- Brittany, 10:49:41 05/03/04 Mon [1]

Being in any situation the uses a good amount of your time, you need to prioritize. (Sorry if my spelling is bad) Although you may want to be incharge of many ensembles, remember, there will most likely be more the one director. If that is the case, then you two can sit down and decide which you and he/she will take. If you're the only director and you have concert band, jazz band, marching band and choir then in my opinion, I think it would be easier to have like Jazz either after school or before school or during lunch or something. Also, marching band would be after school and then your concert band and choir would take up a period during the day.
You have to stay organized and plan ahead, those will be the things that will help you in the long run. You would also be taking on a big commitement with all these activities, so make sure YOU know that you won't have a lot of time for extra things. This is where your priorities come it to play. What's more important?
Well, I hope this helps! Just try not to stress yourself out...Have fun!


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[> Re: Time Management -- Devin Bramel, 05:09:02 05/04/04 Tue [1]

Well, you're inevitably going to have to do some work after 3 p.m. You'll have to be planning the next day's activities or perhaps, if you're an overachiever, you'll be planning a few weeks in advance. Whether or not you do it at home or at school is really up to you. In many cases, it might be advantageous to stay at school for a few hours so you can talk with the administration if you need to or even to other teachers.
As far as time management, we all need to be prepared for the possibility that we might be the only music teacher, yet be responsible for the marching band, symphonic band, choir, jazz band, and possibly orchestra or show choir. So it is vital that we develop the organizational and planning skills that will allow us to keep track of what exactly we are doing from day to day. As far as your question goes as to whether you should plan jazz band stuff on Monday, etc., I would say don't count on always having time during planning periods to do the work. You never know what might come up during the school day that would cut into your planning time. It's probably best just to do the work ahead of time so if a situation arises that cuts into your scheduled planning time, you aren't stuck up the creek without a paddle.


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[> Re: Time Management -- Dr. O., 09:33:15 05/04/04 Tue [1]

Time management is a real issue for most music teachers, and perhaps most acutely for high school ensemble directors, with the many after-school rehearsals, meetings, etc. Then there are the weekend commitments for football and basketball games, contest, trips, and so on. This is all balanced somewhat by the school calendar: we do still have long Christmas breaks, a spring break, and a summer. I think you have to use these times as planning times. You need to know going into the year what repertoire you're going to perform, and have at least a tentative rehearsal schedule in mind. It all comes down to this: What are your goals and objectives? How are you going to accomplish them? How will you decide when you've succeeded?

When I was a high school band director, and a young married person, I had an interesting situation. My wife was a nurse and worked in St. Louis, 30 minutes away from our home; she needed to be on the nursing floor at 6:00 a.m., and we only had one car. Our solution was for her to drop me off at school on her way to work, and pick me up on her way home. This meant that I arrived at work at 5:30 every morning, and usually went home around 4:00. I hated it at first until I realized what it meant: I had two full hours every day before school to practice, work on scores, plan my classes, grade papers, or whatever needed doing. The only other person in the building was the custodian, so we often had a cup of coffee together, and that allowed me to build a good relationship with him. My principal was amazed when she discovered that I arrived at work at 5:30; you can imagine that it made a good impression! In short, it worked out great for me. You might not want to get to school before dawn, but you will need to find some time when you can work uninterrupted and do your planning. The good news is that it can be done, and many people in our profession do it. It is tough, though, to be a procrastinator and get everything accomplished, so we might all have to eliminate that habit from our lives!
Dr. O.


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[> Re: Time Management -- Chad, 11:37:36 05/06/05 Fri [1]

From what I've observed from my former band and choral directors, separating ensembles by different days usually works quite well. I know there are certain days, particularly around Solo and Ensemble Competitions that you would have to stay late, but I would recommend separating the ensembles by a day to day basis, or if the oppurtunity could afford, do two different ensembles per day; one in the morning, one in the afternoon. This is what I would do.


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