teaching
This page documents a range of my teaching experiences across higher ed, secondary, and primary settings. Each section includes case studies, curricula, and creative responses to the specific challenges of diverse learning environments.
_____
Explore my teaching resources below
Teaching Philosophy
As an educator and first-generation college graduate, I center my teaching on real-world relevance, student agency, and inclusive creative development. My classrooms emphasize practical learning, mutual respect, and long-view artistic growth – whether students are pursuing music professionally or engaging as part of a broader liberal arts education. I integrate adaptable strategies (e.g., peer collaboration, interdisciplinary methods, and UDL frameworks) to meet diverse student needs and help them build transferable skills for careers, communities, and lifelong learning. Drawing from experience across educational and artistic contexts, I also incorporate narrative and symbolic frameworks (including mythic structure) to help students make meaning of their work and connect deeply with their learning journeys.
MENTORSHIP
My approach to mentorship emphasizes reflective dialogue, professional agency, and the relationship between academic work and institutional opportunity. Working with emerging scholars across disciplinary boundaries, I help mentees clarify research priorities, recognize the value of their academic and community-engaged experiences, and consider how their contributions can be communicated and developed professionally. Rather than prescribing particular career paths, I encourage critical reflection on institutional expectations, sustainable commitments, and opportunities that align with their own goals and values.
Teaching Resources
Below are examples of free teaching resources I’ve created, including instrumental lesson aides, ear training worksheets, diversity and inclusion tools, and more. Feel free to use these resources in your own practices, or email me at saxamassima@gmail.com for more info.
→ 🗃️ You can also read about the Music Educators’ Resource Library (mERL)– a public service project compiling hand-curated creative materials, enrichment resources, and literature for K–12 music educators.
HIGHER ED
In Spring 2025, I was asked to stabilize and teach an undergraduate jazz theory course during an unexpected faculty leave. I inherited a lightly structured course shell with limited scaffolding and enrollment approximately double that of the previous year. I implemented a structured weekly module format, designed custom rubrics, and created multiple final-project pathways tailored to students’ interests and musical backgrounds. These changes supported a mixed-proficiency cohort — including non-performance and general education students — without a TA or grading assistant. The course achieved a 95% completion rate, with student reflections documenting changes in understanding, confidence, and application of course concepts.
→ 🧭 See the Jazz Theory Course Rebuild (2025) case study for documentation of curriculum redesign, feedback methods, and selected student outcomes.
In 2024, I designed a full “Jazz for Preservice Music Teachers” syllabus and course sequence as part of my doctoral comprehensive exams. The course helps future educators integrate jazz into K–12 or early undergraduate classrooms through active listening, improvisation, and developmentally appropriate ensemble instruction. Drawing from current jazz pedagogy literature, the syllabus includes sample units, teaching strategies, and scaffolded assessments tailored for beginner-level students and novice jazz directors.
In addition to adjunct and large and small ensemble teaching, I’ve lectured across a range of graduate and undergraduate courses exploring connections between music and broader topics like educational psychology, career sustainability, arts policy, and the music industry. Sessions have included:
“Post-Retro”: a workshop for adults on the evolution of video game music and nostalgic sound design
“Musician Quality of Life: Finding Balance in the Music Field”: an interactive lecture on well-being, burnout, and identity
“The Mechanics of Classroom Management”: a collegiate session exploring structure, feedback, discipline, guided engagement, and instructional decision-making
Charter-school policy rhetoric: graduate teaching lesson examining 21st century educational policy and discourse
Secondary School
As an itinerant music director and private instructor, I worked with middle and high school band, ensemble, and general music students across dozens of institutions along the East Coast. These varied environments — ranging from well-funded magnet schools to under-resourced programs in transition — informed my understanding of the systemic challenges in public music education, including scheduling, staffing, retention, and equitable access.
This wide exposure refined my adaptive pedagogy and deepened my commitment to responsive, student-centered music learning. I continue to pursue ongoing professional development; my NFHS music and coaching certificates can be found here. I focus on helping students play with expression, understand what they’re doing, and build confidence through feedback they can actually use.
→ 📝 Practical Teaching Guide: “Everything One Needs to Know About Teaching Music” (2024)
A one-page summary of foundational music teaching principles, drawn from field experience and comprehensive exam reflection.
Primary School
Some of my most creative curriculum design emerged from teaching PreK–8 general music and summer programs across diverse school systems. Working in early childhood and elementary classrooms sharpened my use of multi-modal scaffolding, creative literacy, and exploratory music techniques.
One recurring issue I noticed was that families often committed to an instrument too early — before students had the chance to explore their interests. In response, I developed the “Instrument Explorer” curriculum: a hands-on, budget-friendly program that introduces all five instrument families through guided activities, listening exercises, and physical engagement with low-cost “primer” instruments. The course has been implemented as a one-week intensive, an 8-week unit, and a full-semester enrichment class. It supports student agency, parent engagement, and long-term ensemble recruitment.
→ 🎒 See the full curriculum, budget templates, and resources: Instrument Explorer: A Flexible, Hands-On Curriculum for Young Musicians (2018)
Many of the tools and approaches developed through my classroom teaching have evolved into full-scale service projects, resource hubs, and public-facing educational initiatives. These efforts reflect a consistent throughline in my work: translating pedagogical insight into practical, community-responsive solutions. For expanded documentation, curricular materials, and collaborative models, see the Service Projects page.