Carol Broos teaches fourth through eighth grade music at Sunset Ridge School in Northfield, Illinois.
Any time a new technology comes out, I want to find a way to get music part of it. I view music as the driver, technology as the car, and performance as the race. Music can drive me to tears, lifts me up, and centers me as an individual.
I have a B.M.E. from The Ohio State University and a M.A. in Music Education from Northeastern Illinois University and currently teaching fourth through eighth grade music at Sunset Ridge School in Northfield, Illinois. In 2004, a 13-station Mac MIDI lab, with controller-headsets was installed at Sunset Ridge. IT COMPLETELY CHANGED MY LIFE. Additionally, Sunset Ridge has been a part of the Vermont MIDI project for the past two years. Students compose music and professional composer mentors comment on a password protected website.
My website www.carolbroos.com parents and students use daily. It has over 34,000 hits in eighteen months. Also on the website is www.beatechie.com a teacher-friendly website where teachers have posted their work they have completed at my presentations. There are links, blogs, pictures, and videos. I have also developed a presentation wiki. It also has all the handouts and (powerpoint) presentations for downloading. I have a blog about what is going on within the classroom at on this site.
In 2007, I became a presenter as various technology and music conferences, thus I started a wiki for presentations musictechie.pbwiki.com I also started a ning for music techie teachers, to collaborate and share ideas that concern music and technology. http://musictechieteachers.ning.com/
My website has received the “school website of the week” for March 16, 2007 by techlearning.com. It also won the “Best in the Web” as the best student-centered site for 2007 by Digital Education, the only teacher awarded. I was awarded the “Leader of the Year – 2007 – Finalist” from TechLearning.com and the “Mary Hoffman” award from Illinois Music Education Association. I am a “Star Educator” from Discovery Education.
I traveled to Japan on a Japan Fulbright Memorial Fund teacher scholarship in October 2006. They have since discontinued the wonderful experience, so I am greatful that I go when I did. My Japan website has blogs, podcasts, pictures, and many many answered questions concerning my Japan experience.
I have published an article for Technology Institute of Music Educators (Spring 2007, Vol. 9, No, 2) titled “GarageBand, not GarbageBand.” In January, “Podcasting with iWeb” was published by Technology Institute of Music Educators and Illinois Computing Educators.
I have presented at the Illinois Music Educators Convention (IMEA), the National Technology Institute of Music Educators (TI:ME), Ohio Music Educators Conference (OMEA), Illinois Technology Conference for Educators (IL-TCE), Summer Experience 2007, Illinois Educational Technology Conference (IETA) National Music Conference (MENC) Midwest Band Clinic and the National Educational Computing Conference (NECC). Apple Computer Inc. selected to videopodcast my presentation at NECC 2008. It is available hrough Apple Learning Exchange. I am an Illinois provider for CPDU’S.
In September 2008 began, two of my seventh grade students won “Best of the Web,” for www.lazertron.net an amazing accomplishment, for the other winners were colleges and universities. I also became a Google Certified Teacher, listed in “Who’s Who in American Women – 2008, 50th edition,” and an Apple Distinguished Educator 2009.
