189 | Interview with David Bedard - HD 1080p
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[00:00:00] You are listening to that music podcast with Bryson Tart, the curriculum designer and educational consultant behind that music teacher in the elementary music summit. Each week, Bryson and his guests will dive into the reality of being an elementary music teacher and how music can truly be transformative in the lives of the students you serve.
[00:00:23] Show notes and resources mentioned in this episode can be [email protected].
[00:00:35] Bryson Tarbet: Hello everyone and welcome back to that music podcast. I'm super excited to have David Bedard with us. He, if you watched him present at the Elementary Music Summit whenever, whatever year that was, you'll know how much of a just energetic, amazing human being this guy is. Uh, and we are super excited to talk about accessibility in the music classroom, which, um, is very near and dear to my heart as well.
[00:00:58] Bryson Tarbet: Um, so David, hi. [00:01:00] Thank you for joining us.
[00:01:01] David Bedard: Hello. Um, I am so happy to be here and Bryson, I can't, I can't thank you enough for having me on
[00:01:08] Bryson Tarbet: for sure. Can we get started? For those people who don't know you, uh, can you give us a little bit about yourself and what led you to. Kind of have this, this focus on accessibility in music education.
[00:01:20] David Bedard: Of course. Uh, well, to better understand what led me to focus on inclusivity and accessibility in the music education, there are sort of three brief things I'd like you to know about me in order to know what lenses I see. Important work through, uh, one my personal lens is from someone who has and continues to benefit from the power of music.
[00:01:42] David Bedard: Uh, when reflecting on my own life's journey, I have come to realize that, you know, music has really provided me safe and comfortable spaces with supportive people. Whether it's with my family or, you know, growing up, taking part in chorus in school or working, uh, during the summer times [00:02:00] on a music theater, uh, camp in Lake George that did three musicals in a month's time.
[00:02:06] David Bedard: Um, whether it was learning guitar from my father or being inspired by my own grandfather who. Was very musical and played mandolin and violin and guitar and piano. I just feel fortunate that music has been a part of my early childhood, my adolescent years, and still now plays a large role in, in my adult life.
[00:02:26] David Bedard: Um, which leads me to number two. My lens is from someone who works with individuals of all kinds of abilities. Uh, a major reason I, I have a strong interest in accessibility in music is through my work with an outstanding nonprofit organization called Daniel's Music Foundation, for which I'm appreciative and grateful to have been with for now 19 years.
[00:02:49] David Bedard: I, I can't believe that's a little, I
[00:02:50] Bryson Tarbet: have to say that that's, that's a long time.
[00:02:53] David Bedard: I know. I look at that number and I say, no, that can't be right. And I mean, at Daniels Music Foundation, I'm surrounded by [00:03:00] colleagues who also believe, just as you do that music is really a right and not a privilege. You know, I'm not afraid to say that again.
[00:03:07] David Bedard: You know, it's, it music really is a right and, and not a privilege. It's, um, uh, it's in New York City and it offers, you know, free music lessons to individuals with all abilities. Through 50 group classes a semester, one-on-one instruction, as well as additional virtual opportunities, including open mics and dance parties.
[00:03:27] David Bedard: And you know, thanks to Daniel Truss and his family, the staff and faculty there, their donors, their board of directors, their advisory council, um, you know, I'll. I'll put this out there in case, uh, if you ever find yourself in New York City, please look us up. Um, if you ever want a tour of the space of Manhattan at the hundred First and Lexington, I know we'd be happy to show you around.
[00:03:48] David Bedard: And number three, my lens is from someone who works with children ages three and four at a preschool. As a classroom preschool teacher, I am fortunate to witness the benefits of music in real [00:04:00] time. In those crucial early years, I'm consistently amazed to see how music can be a vehicle for learning for fostering kindness.
[00:04:09] David Bedard: I. Building community, empowering children's self-esteem and identity and, and so much more, you know, no matter what age or stage of life someone is in music, I believe should be accessible. And the opportunities for music education, uh, inclusive, um, of all
[00:04:25] Bryson Tarbet: Wow. That there's so much to go with right there that is just, you can end it right there.
[00:04:31] Bryson Tarbet: Perfect. You know, I, I love that and I love that. Well, I'm literally, I wrote down while you're talking. New York City meetup. 'cause I'm actually gonna be going to New York for the first time in a few months and I was like, oh, I need to talk to David. So I'll be reaching out to you. Yes. Oh, that would be amazing.
[00:04:47] Bryson Tarbet: So before we dive in any deeper, um, I'd love to. I would be remiss if I didn't share that you're gonna be leading a masterclass inside that music teacher community where you're gonna go even deeper on what we're talking about [00:05:00] today. Um, but we're gonna go ahead and we'll share more about that later. But I did wanna, you know, kind of throw that out there.
[00:05:05] Bryson Tarbet: If you wanna learn more about that, we'll have the link in the description as well. So, David, let's, are you ready to dive in?
[00:05:10] David Bedard: Oh yes. Oh yes. Let's do it.
[00:05:12] Bryson Tarbet: So what do you think, I know this is the, you know, million dollar question, you know, what are some of the biggest, biggest barriers that students face in traditional music education?
[00:05:21] David Bedard: Oh, what a great question That is, as we know, there are so many barriers I. You know, students face in traditional music education. Um, I recently was, was reading a study from Henley and Barton in the British Journal of Music Education. Uh, it was published in 2022 from Cambridge University Press, titled Time for Change, recurrent Barriers to Music Education.
[00:05:44] David Bedard: Um, and it identified barriers that should come as no surprise to you or I or those listening, you know, location, funding, collaboration, those transitional points. Sometimes you're leaving. You know, early childhood and you're going to middle school, do you carry [00:06:00] that musicianship with you? Um, and then, you know, one of the big points I, I thought from the study that I found kind of fascinating.
[00:06:08] David Bedard: Was the lack of pupil or participant voice and involvement as one young participant in the study was quoted saying, uh, you need to start listening to young people and stop making decisions, um, by having decisions by adults who think that they know best. You know, le leaving that room for, for, for student agency, I think is a great way to tear down a major barrier within our, within our classes.
[00:06:37] Bryson Tarbet: I think that's something that is so overarching in, you know, just the general question of how can we make music education better period is give students agency regardless of, you know, where, what that means. I think so many conversations I've had with other people, well, whether it be about, you know, cultural relevancy or just making it relevant to the student's life or keeping the engagement up, all it all [00:07:00] comes back to getting students.
[00:07:02] Bryson Tarbet: Agency, and I think that is something that is especially important when we come to Ace when we're talking about accessibility in the music classroom, because I think it can be really easy oftentimes to feel like we need to make those decisions. Mm-hmm. When the reality is, is. We don't need to be the person making the decisions.
[00:07:22] Bryson Tarbet: We have people, we have students that are in the trenches that likely are able to tell us, at least in some way what they want and what they need and how we can better serve them rather than us kind of guessing and checking constantly.
[00:07:35] David Bedard: Absolutely. And it just shows that we have that trust in them. When we provide that space, you know?
[00:07:42] David Bedard: Um, and I think that comes to an even harder point where, you know, some students don't even see themselves as musicians. Um, you know, even from an early start, uh, there was a, a workshop I once attended where, um, this was, this was in the [00:08:00] form of arts and, um, and the, the, the facilitator of the, um. The presentation, you know, looked around the room and said, you know, please raise your hand if you feel like you are an artist.
[00:08:14] David Bedard: And sadly, very few hands went up in this room full of educators. And, you know, the facilitator shared that when you ask the same question of young children, you know, many more hands excitedly go up and slowly with time, less hands go up when you ask them. Who out there is an artist, and I feel that the same holds true if we were to ask people if they believe that they were a musician.
[00:08:39] David Bedard: Oh yeah. You know? Yeah.
[00:08:42] Bryson Tarbet: Yeah. The really, really heavy stuff. Honestly, like that. That is really true. I think I. I think, you know, conversations that I have just, you know, on the daily when you're getting your haircut or at least a topic of conversation, oh, you're an elementary music teacher. Oh, you teach the recorder.
[00:08:56] Bryson Tarbet: Like, all these things kind of always happen, but it [00:09:00] does kind of, it, there's usually an aspect of, but I can't sing, uh, in tune or, but I don't do that anymore. And I think that is a real. A real shame. And I think that there are a lot of reasons for it, but I, I hope we can at least kind of make, make some effort to make it a little bit better in the future.
[00:09:21] David Bedard: Yes. And think of what a world it would be if the, uh, the adults in our students' lives were also exploring their own musicianship and coming along for the same journey.
[00:09:32] Bryson Tarbet: Without getting too far on a tangent, that right there I think would be have the biggest impact on music education is just having children see adults making music.
[00:09:42] Bryson Tarbet: Because so often we see students that are like, well, I'm not gonna do that. I'm not gonna do that, because they don't see, especially when we're thinking about, you know, traditional masculinity like. That's something we often don't see. We don't see, you know, I'm, I'm not gonna sing, you know, singing's for girls.
[00:09:56] Bryson Tarbet: All, you know, we've, we've all heard it and I think, again, we're getting kind of on [00:10:00] a tangent here, but you mentioned it and I really wanted to touch on it because it's so important of just music is for everyone. We just need to make sure that people. Understand that and see that, and see themselves represented in it.
[00:10:12] Bryson Tarbet: Um, so again, I, I don't wanna go too far on that tangent. Um, so bringing it back a little bit, um, to, you know, accessibility, I would love for you to share is there a specific moment or experience, um, that really solidified for you the importance of. Paying attention to accessibility in your teaching?
[00:10:29] David Bedard: Yes.
[00:10:30] David Bedard: When, when I think, um, of the, the many years and things, so many of these episodic memories come to mind, and I still cherish them to this day, um, there's, I find that it's during those moments of true connection and respect that they pop out. Um. One specifically that comes to mind, uh, is a, a student that I've known for a long time, uh, he's an adult, um, has autism and often engages in echo or repeating of words or [00:11:00] phrases spoken by others.
[00:11:01] David Bedard: Um, you know, when asked if he wanted to sing something for everyone, you know, he would repeat, sing something, you know, sing something. But finally one time when asked, you know, I feel like you should never, never give up. You know, you never know what comes when it's a new day. Um, he said, he didn't say sing something.
[00:11:21] David Bedard: He said sunshine. And, and so I asked, you know, do you, do you wanna sing? You Are My Sunshine. And, and he looked up and he, he said, yes. With, with the sort of, you know, glimmer in his eye and knowing that it gave a great place to go on from, it was like, I. The shared, you know, connection and respect, as I had said.
[00:11:43] David Bedard: Um, and it allowed for a great place. He, he sang it on his own. And, you know, if I wanted to scaffold what forte could we do a piano, could we sting at staccato, could we sting at legato, could had some, uh, shared piece [00:12:00] of, of music to, to take it there with. So, um, finding those, those moments, I feel, um.
[00:12:07] David Bedard: Solidify how important it is, uh, to to see where the person is that you are meeting, how you can meet them right where they are.
[00:12:17] Bryson Tarbet: I mean, that right there I feel like is the biggest change for me when I teaching, when I was thinking about accessibility is coming from it from a place of how can I meet them where they are and I think.
[00:12:31] Bryson Tarbet: We, I think as educators we get that. I think sometimes we struggle with, well, how do I do that? Um, you know, I. I, I lovingly refer to the, the scene from Schitt's Creek where Myra, Moira and David are, are making, you know, folding in the cheese and no one's really saying anything. And I feel like so often in education, um, that's how this conversation goes with accessibility and meeting even just, you know, meeting people where they are, like, we're like, [00:13:00] oh, we'll just meet them where they're at.
[00:13:01] Bryson Tarbet: What does that mean? Like how do I do that? So I'd love to zoom in a little bit and give some simple strategies that are beyond a surface level of, we'll just make it more accessible. Not that that's what you're giving, but like, because I know that that's really what the rhetoric, a lot of the rhetoric is in the world.
[00:13:19] Bryson Tarbet: So what are some small, easy to implement changes that can have a big impact in creating an inclusive classroom?
[00:13:26] David Bedard: Well, first off, I mean, I think everyone should go out and watch more. Schitt's Creek. It's maybe one of my favorite shows. Um, but, uh, no, certainly I think it boils down to the deeper, you know, um, the students or the class that you work with.
[00:13:41] David Bedard: The, the more you can jump off from, you know, that investment of getting to know the people in your class, um, and filling it with lessons that. You know, have that hallmark of a good activity where it allows for self-expression. So you do get to know, um, really informs, informs [00:14:00] you. Um, for example, uh, I find that it's, it's sort of like, uh, if, if you know you're going through your material, you're coming up with new material, you're attending one of your.
[00:14:13] David Bedard: Your amazing summits and learning new things, and you might say, because you know your students so well. Oh, it's almost like you're going shopping. That would be a great gift for so and so. You know, that person would latch onto that part of act, that activity so well. So I feel like. So much of it comes down with this overlooked idea of just knowing who is in your group and how well you know them, so that when something does present itself, you can say, oh, that would be a puzzle piece fit.
[00:14:45] David Bedard: Or you go and try it and it doesn't work, but it works for someone you didn't think it would work for. So I, I find, um. That investment goes a really long way and can start as easy with, you know, just having a plain notebook [00:15:00] or Google doc and it has everyone's name on the top. And as soon as you discover, oh wow, so and so really responds to, uh, that song by Adele.
[00:15:08] David Bedard: I'm gonna remember that because when we're talking about time signatures down the line, I can pull back to that fact I know about them. Um, never, uh, underestimate the power of. The, the facts and the, the strengths that you gather from each person who's in your, your cohort?
[00:15:29] Bryson Tarbet: Yeah. I feel like it can be really easy to feel like we need to have specific strategies, you know, earmarked for certain students when the reality is sometimes it's just like having an understanding of who they are.
[00:15:41] Bryson Tarbet: Um, one, one of my former students, um, what I loved about this is it was actually in his IEP, like, in just kind of like a general notes or like, just as like general context of like. That he loves movies like Vivo and Encanto and things like that. So I knew with this student, and I knew this personally from knowing him, that like if he [00:16:00] was ever starting to like go towards the edge of not being successful or needing, you know, not just not being able to access things, like how can I get that joint attention back?
[00:16:11] Bryson Tarbet: One of the big ways was by singing one of those songs or, you know. Mm-hmm. It, it is easy connect that I could bring in very quickly that it wasn't a, well, here's how you differentiate this. It was just like, this is how this something that can help this student connect more to, to what's going on with them.
[00:16:31] Bryson Tarbet: And I think that whenever we can kind of collect those nuggets like that is really where we can start. Applying them, and honestly just sometimes it's really just like, is this gonna work? I think it will. Let's figure it out and let's see if it does. Just like you said, sometimes you have this strategy or this idea that you have like, oh, this would be really good for so and so, and then it's not, but it's end, but it ends up helping another student or being successful or whatever, like.
[00:16:58] Bryson Tarbet: It, it really, [00:17:00] teaching really is a lot of iterating and just kind of guessing and checking sometimes because based on all of the information that you have, and I think that's, that's a really good kind of tidbit from, from what you just shared of just like, how can we, I. How can we keep track of the stuff that we notice that lights these kids up?
[00:17:18] David Bedard: And it's like you said too, sometimes when you know that one thing, you know, maybe you pivot to that and then it allows you to pivot right back to where you were hoping the group would go. And it's sort of, sort of like this field trip and you wanna make sure everyone is, is coming along and you don't wanna leave anyone behind.
[00:17:33] David Bedard: But sometimes making that quick detour stop from the exit sign you just saw so you can get right back on the highway is just what you needed and what the group appreciates too. Um,
[00:17:44] Bryson Tarbet: yeah, I, I'm gonna Midwestern myself, so here in Ohio we have this thing called grandpa's cheese barn. I'm not sure if you've ever heard of it, but it's exactly what it sounds like.
[00:17:54] Bryson Tarbet: And it's right on. It's like right off the highway. It is this giant. Barn or you can get any sort of [00:18:00] cheese, flavor, whatever you want. And it's the same kind of thing, like no one's stopping at that exit. There's nothing to do at that exit except for bite cheese. But like it's always popping because sometimes that's just what you need.
[00:18:13] Bryson Tarbet: You need some pickle flavored cheese. Um, I can't believe I brought that up here. We're, listen, you're coming New York.
[00:18:18] David Bedard: I mean, I feel like I need to come to, to grandpa's cheese barn. That sounds, that sounds amazing to me.
[00:18:23] Bryson Tarbet: We'll do a cultural exchange. So once we've kind of started figuring out what are some things that, you know, what some things that students are resonating with or some strategies that we feel, you know, like I love how you use the analogy of going shopping.
[00:18:36] Bryson Tarbet: How, what are some ways that you would suggest or some things that teachers can do to adapt instruments, movement, activities, notation, whatever we're working on to better support students with disabilities?
[00:18:45] David Bedard: Sure, sure. I'm gonna try to be as specific as possible for, for music activities. I, I really like to preface the activity by saying, you know, please choose movements that feel comfortable and feel good, you know, to both you and your [00:19:00] body.
[00:19:00] David Bedard: Um, giving that, that. Freedom of, of knowing. I, I trust that you know what's best for you, I think is an important message to share. And you could sort of, kind of take note of, you know, what has felt comfortable for that, that student so that, you know, if you're calling upon everyone to do, fill in the blank, you know, well, they've never really done that before when you've opened it up for free exploration of it.
[00:19:28] David Bedard: Um, but I always allow that, that space of listen, you know. Choose what feels best to you in, in your body. Um, for notation, I, I feel like. You're only limited by your imagination. There's, there's so many ways, whether you color code things or, or this and that. Um, for, for instruments, um, this one's one of my favorite, you know, for, for string instruments of, of course I'm, I'm preaching to the choir over here.
[00:19:55] David Bedard: But I mean, the way that you tune them can be remarkably so that somebody. [00:20:00] Who, you know, just requires one finger to make the same chords their, their peers are making to feel part of the group. It's still right in line. Or, um, you know, maybe your instrument choice for that person is different. Maybe you're choosing an auto harp where they're pressing a, you know, more or less a, a button in order to achieve that chord.
[00:20:20] David Bedard: Um. And then one of my favorite, uh, tricks to have, uh, up my sleeves is, uh, it sounds silly, uh, but I'll share with you because this I know is a safe space, is, um, I always like to have a single hole punch and I like to have various colors of pinker's tape. And I love, just as soon as I press it through, I save that dot that has come out from pressing it and that makes a great fretboard marker.
[00:20:49] David Bedard: Or, oh,
[00:20:49] Bryson Tarbet: that's brilliant.
[00:20:50] David Bedard: You could put it next to, um, the holes on a recorder. So if I say, all right, cover red holes, or, you know, I'll line up the ukulele, [00:21:00] uh, dots. So you know, now we're playing the green chord, you know, now we're playing the pink chord. That sort of thing. Never underestimate. Some painter's tape that's colorful.
[00:21:10] David Bedard: Allow the person to choose what color they want it to be. It doesn't always need to be that the G chord is red and the D chord is blue. You know, you can, you know that again, that feels very powerful to someone who feels like, you know, they wanna say in what's. With being done, but I tell you, a, uh, a single hole punch and some painter's tape has, has not steered, uh, steered me wrong.
[00:21:33] Bryson Tarbet: That is brilliant. I've done it where, like, where I've taken like the, the binder, re binder hole, reinforcers and some colors. Yes. And used those, um, around the recorder holes. But I've never would've thought about using tape 'cause that way the color doesn't come off. And. Again, it's perfect size and I've never thought of
[00:21:50] David Bedard: the reinforce hole punch for around there, so I'm, I'm also taking notes.
[00:21:53] David Bedard: I have Love it. Pen and paper in mind. So, I mean, this just goes to show that we're, we're always adding to [00:22:00] what we have and the more educators have this opportunity to speak with one another. The, the more passing of ideas, you know, takes place. And I, I always admire what, what you do for that reason where someone might feel so isolated, if not for.
[00:22:15] David Bedard: You know, the service and the, the meaningful work that, that you provide to so many, so, so thank you.
[00:22:21] Bryson Tarbet: I, I really appreciate that. 'cause that really is why, why we do what we do here at that music teacher is because music teacher Island gets boring and it gets lonesome and it feels like we're screaming into the void together.
[00:22:32] Bryson Tarbet: Mm-hmm. Um, which speaking of, I feel I keep looking over and our backgrounds are so similar. I feel like we're both in the same void right now, so we're gonna, I'm just, I just had to share that because, um, but yeah, I think you really bring up a good point, which is like. You're just constantly picking up new ideas and they might not work.
[00:22:50] Bryson Tarbet: They might work. You might have to adapt them to your environment. Some of my best strategies are one, ones that I've seen in a general education setting, um, that I was like, oh, like [00:23:00] we could do that with music. Like, sure, why not? You know? Um. And then some of them are the exact opposite. I see that, that they work and I go, oh, that, I really don't think that'll work, but like, that gave me this new idea, um, that I think would work a little better.
[00:23:13] Bryson Tarbet: Um, so I know that I personally have quite a few of these, um, but are there any common myths or misconceptions about accessibility that you'd like to address?
[00:23:23] David Bedard: Yes. Uh, one that I only just thought of because of, of what you just said. I would also encourage. People to not discard, uh, a tactic or something that they think would work because, uh, your student might be different from.
[00:23:39] David Bedard: Today to tomorrow, or, you know, don't be so quick to crumple it up and throw it in the waste basket when that same idea would work wonderfully next year with a different cohort of, of, of students. So don't, I would, I would encourage you not to say, listen, this didn't work once, so it's never going to work.
[00:23:58] David Bedard: Know that [00:24:00] maybe for the right. Student, it, it would be what reaches them. Um, and I would say one of the, one of the big, you know, myths or misconceptions about accessibility is that it's only that it only benefits, you know, people Yes. With disabilities. When, when in reality, you and I know that it be, it benefits everyone.
[00:24:23] David Bedard: If you provide bonus visual cues for something, not only are those students that extra needed benefiting, but maybe it's solidifying for that student that is kind of glancing off to the side referencing it too, or it's another way to think about. The music being presented, you know, um, uh, an example that, uh, that I found that I, I was like, oh, this is, this is me entirely.
[00:24:50] David Bedard: Um, you know, you brought up Schitt's Creek before. I'm really into, um, I'm really into severance at the moment, so I, I have noticed [00:25:00] that the closed captioning. You know, I'm, I'm not visually impaired. I'm not blind. This is not something that, or, or, you know, not for those things. But if I'm deaf, I mean, you know, and I'm reading the words presented on the screen, but yet it still helps me because I know that what I read, I retain more.
[00:25:20] David Bedard: Then what I hear solely. So by hearing it and seeing it, it is stronger than if I were just hearing it. So I, I think it's a great example of, you know, here's this thing that you might think is exclusively for one audience of individuals, when really it could benefit anyone who finds that helpful.
[00:25:44] Bryson Tarbet: Yeah.
[00:25:44] Bryson Tarbet: And kind of taking it one step further. Removing a barrier for one person doesn't add one to another. And I think that's something that quite frankly, in a lot of aspects right now is, is the rhetoric that we're hearing. And the reality is, you know it, I [00:26:00] talk about universal design a lot because it really encompasses so much of what I believe about accessibility, which is just like there's, if there's no reason for a barrier to exist, break it down.
[00:26:10] Bryson Tarbet: We don't need it. Like let's get to the core of like what we actually want with this and. What I love about that is sometimes we will accidentally make our classroom more accessible for a student. When we were really focusing on this student over here, uh, for one, one of the things that I, I, I talk a lot about is, um, over the year, headphones, you know, in my classroom I had like 15 pairs of them, which is a little excessive.
[00:26:31] Bryson Tarbet: For some teachers, they might think that, but like for me, I wanted it to be anyone at any point can get them. Um. One, I think that's important just because let's not say, oh, Johnny, you like, grab these headphones. You're overstimulated. But like, it really makes it, it doesn't other, that student that really, um, really gets a benefit out of it.
[00:26:51] Bryson Tarbet: But also I've noticed that there are students that maybe they have a migraine that day and they don't normally receive, you know, receive any benefit from having those [00:27:00] headphones. But if you're at a migraine, we have 28 third graders with block spiels, it's gonna be mm-hmm. Not fun. Um, so by having those available, having that like.
[00:27:08] Bryson Tarbet: Nobody's getting, nobody's hurt by the fact that my students have noise canceling headphones. Like that doesn't make it any worse. It doesn't make it any harder for anybody else. It just is something that is available to help those that need it. And I think that is one of the big things that I would love to get across about accessibility is that it's not us versus them.
[00:27:28] Bryson Tarbet: It's just us.
[00:27:30] David Bedard: Yes. Yes. And by allowing, I love that example because by allowing the other students to do that same thing, it, it's, it's just showing that's a, a resource. It, it just, it completely welcomes it as another tool in your groups box to, to help make things better. 'cause when you make it better for one or more, you're making it better for everyone.
[00:27:54] David Bedard: Um, it's really great what you've done.
[00:27:56] Bryson Tarbet: So David, I know that we're only scratching the surface here. Um, so [00:28:00] in your masterclass that you're gonna be leading inside that music teacher community, you're gonna be diving in even deeper, uh, without giving too much away. Can you share a little bit about what attendees might expect to learn?
[00:28:11] David Bedard: Sure, sure, of course. Um, attendees can expect to, you know, expand their mindset about who accessibility and inclusion is really for and who it benefits. You know, spoiler alert, it's, it's for everyone. Uh, attendees can expect to, to be called on to reflect on their own practices as they really are the experts when it comes to knowing their students and attendees can expect to have some tools ready so that when you know something that would.
[00:28:39] David Bedard: Come up that would benefit the group for both the individual, but as the group as a whole, you know, you're able to, to feel free enough to take those risks and making modifications so that you know it, it may not always work, but at least you feel free enough to, to try it. I
[00:28:57] Bryson Tarbet: love
[00:28:57] David Bedard: that.
[00:28:58] Bryson Tarbet: So what's one [00:29:00] key takeaway that you hope people walk away after the session?
[00:29:03] David Bedard: Yes. Yes. I think it goes back to what you were saying, 'cause I think that hit the nail on the head because if you have that belief, so much for you is possible that, that all people, you know, regardless of, of having a disability or not, can certainly benefit from adaptations, modifications, customizations that allow for the highest level of participation, engagement, and satisfaction.
[00:29:27] David Bedard: As a musician, you know, we all. We all have our idiosyncrasies. I know, I do. Uh, and I feel like when they're validated, acknowledged, and recognized in a safe space, you know, it, it frees us to be ourselves.
[00:29:41] Bryson Tarbet: I love that. David, this has been a great conversation and I. Again, it's not one that's really gonna ever have an end.
[00:29:47] Bryson Tarbet: I think it's just gonna be a constant, a, a constant conversation that's hopefully getting heard by new people along the ways, and then they share their own little tidbits as they pass it on. Um, so if there are [00:30:00] people that are looking to keep this conversation going with you specifically, uh, where can our listeners connect with you if they wanna learn more?
[00:30:06] David Bedard: Of course, of course. Um, listeners can find me and message me on, on LinkedIn if they look up David Bedard or email me at d bedard [email protected]. I love staying in, in contact, so, so please, I am, I'm not scary or intimidating. I don't, I don't think all five, four, all five foot four of me. So please, um, please reach out.
[00:30:33] Bryson Tarbet: And for those who want to start making their classrooms a little bit more accessible today, what is one small change that they can implement? Right?
[00:30:42] David Bedard: Sure, sure. I, I would say, um, I would say those, those two are, are so crucial. I know you asked for one here, I'm slipping an addit additional one in, uh, that, having that notebook that's dedicated to just getting a note.
[00:30:59] David Bedard: You know, [00:31:00] maybe a whole day has gone by. But you learned one thing about one person. Put it right in there. Keeping a recogni a, a record of what resonates with the students you teach and what their strengths are is gonna help you. And, uh, again, never underestimate the power of a few roles of, um, a few roles of painters, tape, and a whole bunch, uh, these simple things, you know.
[00:31:21] David Bedard: I'm sure you're, you're filled with so many of, of those things to do and that you can also share with, with other educators those tips and tricks that, you know, Bryson is, is filled with and, and, and you are as well to share with the community. So hold onto those and know that they're valuable not only to you, but to others.
[00:31:38] David Bedard: You share them with.
[00:31:39] Bryson Tarbet: David, thank you so much for joining us today and sharing what is clearly a, an important work that needs to happen and needs to continue to happen, um, in our field. Um, so we really appreciate you sharing with us today.
[00:31:52] David Bedard: Oh,
[00:31:52] Bryson Tarbet: and thank you again for having me on and doing this most important and meaningful work.
[00:31:56] Bryson Tarbet: I. For sure. Thank you so much for listening. We are so [00:32:00] excited to have David inside the community. So if you wanna have a de a deeper, deeper dive in his masterclass, please check out the link in the description. Uh, with that being said, if you haven't left us a review on iTunes, YouTube, wherever you're listening, it would be in the world to us.
[00:32:13] Bryson Tarbet: If you were to give us a five star review, let us know what you're liking about it. Um. As always, thank you so much for making a difference in the lives of the students that you teach.
