Southern Utah University

Course Syllabus

Southern Utah University
Southern Utah University
Fall Semester 2026

Woodwind Methods (Face-to-Face)

MUSC 3720-01

Course: MUSC 3720-01
Credits: 1
Term: Fall Semester 2026
Department: Music
CRN: 31711

Course Description

This course is designed to prepare music education students in the pedagogy and methods of teaching woodwind instruments. (Fall) [Graded (Standard Letter)] Registration Restriction(s): Music Education majors only

Required Texts

Required Materials

 

1)    Byo, James L (2016). The Woodwinds: Perform, Understand, Teach

Routledge

 

2)    At least one clarinet reed OR one saxophone reed (Vandoren traditional reed strength 2 or 2.5)

 

3)    At least one oboe reed OR one bassoon reed (Jones medium soft, red coloring)

Learning Outcomes

Students enrolled in this course will be able to:

 

Develop successful executive skills on the assigned woodwind instruments.

Organize, synthesize, and apply knowledge and skills related to music and human learning, particularly as it relates to woodwind instruments.

Self-critique their own teaching and critique their peers as a means to become better prepared to be music teachers.

Develop successful personal teaching skills by applying fundamental principles of effective instruction in guided experience with peers.

Observe a minimum of six (6) hours of a public-school teacher teaching band.

Course Requirements

Assignments:

 

Demonstration/Playing tests

            Students will perform tasks/melodies for a grade for each of the three instruments studied. Demonstration/Playing tests must be performed at the specific day and time assigned unless the student arranges with the instructor before the test.

 

Quizzes on each of the 5 woodwind instruments. 

These are short in-class quizzes on general knowledge of the five woodwind instruments. Information asked on these quizzes come from class discussions and the text book.

 

Teaching demonstrations

            Students will have opportunities to teach to their peers. Teaching demo #1 consists of teaching a song to the class by rote. Each student will choose a short, unison melody appropriate for the class (consider key, tempo, length, and difficulty) and teach it to the class by rote using the secondary instrument assigned to you. Write a lesson plan that includes materials, objectives, procedures, and assessment and provide one copy to the instructor on the day you teach. Your teaching will be recorded and students will do a self-reflection on their teaching. 

 

            Teaching demonstration 2:

            Compose an original tune or arrange an existing tune and add at least one harmony line for the class. Keep in mind appropriate ranges, keys, and difficulty level for each of the woodwind instruments. Include a detailed lesson plan that includes objectives, materials, procedures, and assessment and provide one copy to the instructor on the day you teach. Your teaching will be recorded and students will do a self-reflection on their teaching.

 

Observation Hours

            Students must complete six (6) observation hours outside of class time. Students are NOT allowed to contact teachers on their own to set these up. Students must follow SUU-procedure, including fingerprinting and a background check. The Iron County School District will determine which teachers/classes can have SUU students visit and when. Caitlin Ravenelli (caitlinravanelli@suu.edu) is in charge of keeping track of visitations and helping students obtain appropriate credentials. Visit the Sonia Portal for guidance on finger printing. 

After each visitation, please submit on Canvas a short report for each observation discussing teaching techniques used both to the ensemble in general and specifically to woodwind instruments. The Education Department will be notified of observations. Students must complete all six observation hours and submit a report to count toward final grade.

Grading

 

3 playing exams                                                                                           15%

5 quizzes                                                                                                       15%

Two teaching demonstrations                                                                    50%

Instrument demo 4 and 5 (putting instrument together correctly)        10%

Observation Hours and Reports                                                                10%

Instrument return and care

            Please be careful with these instruments! Do not leave them in cars and do not leave them unattended in open areas or practice rooms. Please lock them in lockers or securely in your dorm/home. Students are responsible for repair costs for damage to university instruments. Failure to return university-owned property as they relate to this course will result in an incomplete until the property is returned.

Course Outline

Sep 3 Syllabus, introduction, instruments

Sep 8 Rotation #1, Bring instruments, Flute introduction | Sep 10 First sounds

Sep 15 Small chunks and assemble instruments | Sep 17 Three note songs

Sep 22 Flute Quiz, Clarinet intro | Sep 24 Playing

Sep 29 Playing | Oct 1 Playing exam #1

Oct 6 Rotation #2 | Oct 8 Clarinet quiz, Oboe intro

Oct 13 Playing | Oct 15 Playing

Oct 20 Fall break - no classes | Oct 22 Playing

Oct 27 Playing | Oct 29 Oboe quiz, Bassoon intro

Nov 3 Teaching Demo 1 | Nov 5 Teaching Demo 1

Nov 10 Playing Exam 2 | Nov 12 Rotation #3

Nov 17 Bassoon quiz, Saxophone intro | Nov 19 Playing

Nov 24 and Nov 26 Thanksgiving Break – no classes

Dec 1 Playing | Dec 3 Playing

Dec 8 Teaching Demo #2 | Dec 10 Teaching Demo #2

Dec 15 Final Exam: 9am-10:50am, Saxophone quiz, Playing Exam 3

Instructor's policies on late assignments and/or makeup work

Late assignments may be turned in for partial credit. Please be communicative with me about missing days when quizzes occur.

Attendance Policy

Attendance

            Students are expected to attend every class. Please be communicative with me in advance regarding absences. Oversleeping is not an excused absence. Students who have over four unexcused absences will be penalized at the rate of one letter grade per absence over four. I will be a little lenient on the 8am start, but if tardiness becomes habitual it will affect negatively the final grade.

ADA Statement

Students with medical, psychological, learning, or other disabilities desiring academic adjustments, accommodations, or auxiliary aids will need to contact the Disability Resource Center, located in Room 206F of the Sharwan Smith Center or by phone at (435) 865-8042. The Disability Resource Center determines eligibility for and authorizes the provision of services.

If your instructor requires attendance, you may need to seek an ADA accommodation to request an exception to this attendance policy. Please contact the Disability Resource Center to determine what, if any, ADA accommodations are reasonable and appropriate.

Academic Credit

According to the federal definition of a Carnegie credit hour: A credit hour of work is the equivalent of approximately 60 minutes of class time or independent study work. A minimum of 45 hours of work by each student is required for each unit of credit. Credit is earned only when course requirements are met. One (1) credit hour is equivalent to 15 contact hours of lecture, discussion, testing, evaluation, or seminar, as well as 30 hours of student homework. An equivalent amount of work is expected for laboratory work, internships, practica, studio, and other academic work leading to the awarding of credit hours. Credit granted for individual courses, labs, or studio classes ranges from 0.5 to 15 credit hours per semester.

Academic Freedom

SUU is operated for the common good of the greater community it serves. The common good depends upon the free search for truth and its free exposition. Academic Freedom is the right of faculty to study, discuss, investigate, teach, and publish. Academic Freedom is essential to these purposes and applies to both teaching and research.

Academic Freedom in the realm of teaching is fundamental for the protection of the rights of the faculty member and of you, the student, with respect to the free pursuit of learning and discovery. Faculty members possess the right to full freedom in the classroom in discussing their subjects. They may present any controversial material relevant to their courses and their intended learning outcomes, but they shall take care not to introduce into their teaching controversial materials which have no relation to the subject being taught or the intended learning outcomes for the course.

As such, students enrolled in any course at SUU may encounter topics, perspectives, and ideas that are unfamiliar or controversial, with the educational intent of providing a meaningful learning environment that fosters your growth and development. These parameters related to Academic Freedom are included in SUU Policy 6.6.

Academic Misconduct

Scholastic honesty is expected of all students. Dishonesty will not be tolerated and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent (see SUU Policy 6.33). You are expected to have read and understood the current SUU student conduct code (SUU Policy 11.2) regarding student responsibilities and rights, the intellectual property policy (SUU Policy 5.52), information about procedures, and what constitutes acceptable behavior.

Please Note: The use of websites or services that sell essays is a violation of these policies; likewise, the use of websites or services that provide answers to assignments, quizzes, or tests is also a violation of these policies. Regarding the use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), you should check with your individual course instructor.

Emergency Management Statement

In case of an emergency, the University's Emergency Notification System (ENS) will be activated. Students are encouraged to maintain updated contact information using the link on the homepage of the mySUU portal. In addition, students are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the Emergency Response Protocols posted in each classroom. Detailed information about the University's emergency management plan can be found at https://www.suu.edu/emergency.

HEOA Compliance Statement

For a full set of Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) compliance statements, please visit https://www.suu.edu/heoa. The sharing of copyrighted material through peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing, except as provided under U.S. copyright law, is prohibited by law; additional information can be found at https://my.suu.edu/help/article/1096/heoa-compliance-plan.

You are also expected to comply with policies regarding intellectual property (SUU Policy 5.52) and copyright (SUU Policy 5.54).

Mandatory Reporting

University policy (SUU Policy 5.60) requires instructors to report disclosures received from students that indicate they have been subjected to sexual misconduct/harassment. The University defines sexual harassment consistent with Federal Regulations (34 C.F.R. Part 106, Subpart D) to include quid pro quo, hostile environment harassment, sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence, and stalking. When students communicate this information to an instructor in-person, by email, or within writing assignments, the instructor will report that to the Title IX Coordinator to ensure students receive support from the Title IX Office. A reporting form is available at https://cm.maxient.com/reportingform.php?SouthernUtahUniv

Non-Discrimination Statement

SUU is committed to fostering an inclusive community of lifelong learners and believes our university's encompassing of different views, beliefs, and identities makes us stronger, more innovative, and better prepared for the global society.

SUU does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, citizenship, sex (including sex discrimination and sexual harassment), sexual orientation, gender identity, age, ancestry, disability status, pregnancy, pregnancy-related conditions, genetic information, military status, veteran status, or other bases protected by applicable law in employment, treatment, admission, access to educational programs and activities, or other University benefits or services.

SUU strives to cultivate a campus environment that encourages freedom of expression from diverse viewpoints. We encourage all to dialogue within a spirit of respect, civility, and decency.

For additional information on non-discrimination, please see SUU Policy 5.27 and/or visit https://www.suu.edu/nondiscrimination.

Pregnancy

Students who are or become pregnant during this course may receive reasonable modifications to facilitate continued access and participation in the course. Pregnancy and related conditions are broadly defined to include pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, lactation, related medical conditions, and recovery. To obtain reasonable modifications, please make a request to title9@suu.edu. To learn more visit: https://www.suu.edu/titleix/pregnancy.html.

Religious / Conscience Belief Accommodation

RELIGIOUS / CONSCIENCE BELIEF ACCOMMODATION: In accordance with SUU Policy 6.7 Student Belief Accommodation, students may request, in writing, that their faculty accommodate their sincerely held religious or conscience beliefs. Students should provide their faculty with sufficient advanced notice, if possible within the first five (5) business days of the semester or session, or thereafter with good cause for requesting an accommodation after the first five (5) business days.

Faculty must provide a schedule accommodation or excuse an absence, in any course, for students to observe or participate in religious holidays or an organized activity conducted under the auspices of the student’s religious tradition or religious organization.

In courses that are required for graduation or for an academic major, a faculty member may accommodate a religious or conscience belief by modifying an assignment or examination if its content conflicts with the student’s belief. Faculty may decline the accommodation if it would fundamentally alter the course requirements. If declined, the student may request review by a neutral arbiter using the Belief Accommodation Request Form: https://cm.maxient.com/reportingform.php?SouthernUtahUniv&layout_id=5

Questions go to Assistant Provost Jake Johnson at johnsonj@suu.edu.

Disclaimer Statement

Information contained in this syllabus, other than the grading, late assignments, makeup work, and attendance policies, may be subject to change with advance notice, as deemed appropriate by the instructor.