Okay. I think I’ve been making this more stressful than it needs to be. (Anyone who knows me won’t be too surprised to hear that.)
I’ve been spending a lot of time going back and forth in the last week. Should I write a paper or should I create a presentation? I even started creating both!
The truth is, there is an opportunity to present that likely would not be too hard to set up. I have attended the Comprehensive Musicianship Through Performance (CMP) workshop a number of times, and I am fairly certain that the head of the CMP committee would allow me to give a presentation on how I used technology to improve communication between my classroom and home--either this summer or next.
But I’m also pretty certain that this is not the right choice for me. I am a better writer than speaker. I know this. It’s why I’ve been struggling all along. Should I take the opportunity that’s right there, or should I do what feels right for me? It might take a little more legwork, but writing is the better choice for me. (This is not to say that I wouldn’t be willing to also present at CMP at some point. But I don’t think I should gear my Publishing/Leadership project around something I’m not comfortable with.)
So--where to publish? I’m looking into a few possibilities. No final decisions yet, but here are my thoughts.
Teaching Music Magazine: If the “AR Folks” find this publication suitable, I think right now it is my first choice. Simply because I feel that an articale in Teaching Music is likely to actually be read. It is not as academic a journal as some, but it is practical, accessible, and I know that music teachers actually turn to it as a resource. I certainly have! This is important to me. I have done some work that I think people should know about. I don’t want it to be buried in an academic journal that your average way-too-busy music teacher won’t have time to read. (HERE is the link to the Guidelines for Contributors to this magazine.)
Wisconsin School Music Magazine: I looked into this publication for the same reason that I thought of Teaching Music. It’s a similar kind of magazine, but for Wisconsin music educators specifically. I don’t think it will work out, because the maximum word count for an article is 900. I would have to cut a lot of information out of my project to make this work. Maybe I could publish something different here another time?
Music Educators Journal: I think this could be an alternative to Teaching Music. It’s not my first choice, because I fear that the academic nature of the journal means that the more casual audience may miss it. I would rather write about using a web page to teachers who might not consider it otherwise (I was one of those not too long ago) than to people who are already researching it. (HERE is the link to the Manuscript Submission Guidelines)
American Music Teacher: I actually don’t know much about this publication, except that it was one of my literature review sources came from here. I think it would be worth exploring more if my other choices don’t pan out. (HERE are the guidelines for submission)
Okay. Back to writing!!
I think the Teaching Music Magazine could be a great place to submit. You are right about MEJ (Music Educators Journal) being a bit too academic in nature. However, you might consider it anyway.
Good luck!
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