Web Site Critique: TMEA

www.tmea.org

This is the official site for the Texas Music educators Association. In my opinion, it is the best online resource for music educators and current music students (From elementary to college) available. This site contains a huge amount of information that is current relevant to music educators and their students.

Opening Page

From the opening page, without ever clicking on a dropdown menu one can reach: a job database, the TMEA teacher mentoring network, a member directory, current curriculum updates and mandates and direct links to other music education associations in Texas. Usually I can find exactly what I am looking for from this page alone.

Resource center

This drop down contains statewide coverage on the advancement of the arts as well as current state laws that directly affect music educators. As well as an advocacy tool kit consisting of flyers and other printable materials that can be used to help lobby for the arts in your district. This section of the site also contains the TMEA publication The southwestern Musician, which contains association information, and also presents articles written by live teachers working right now in the state that detail useful tips and teaching methods. The final section of this menu contains a Music Teacher handbook. This resource explains the qualities of a successful music teacher, and the qualities of a successful program. Also, a very useful list of tips for first year teachers is also included. A multitude of resources are provided for parents also. An entire section is devoted to building successful booster clubs and strategies to increase parent involvement. Also, the association rules are also clearly laid out. Which, might I add are also many of the same rules enforced by UIL.

Divisions

This section is divided into the five divisions of music education in Texas. There are: elementary, band, orchestra, vocal and college. Each of the links to each of these divisions contains information, problems, and resources that are specifically pertain to each. For example, choir teachers in Texas do not need to worry about instrument purchase, just as instrumental music teachers don’t have to worry about the problems associated with their male ensemble members experiencing puberty. This adds to the site’s ease of navigation.

Students

This last section contains some very good resources, not just for educators, but for students as well. It contains opportunities for scholarships, the site for the Future Music Educators association, as well as archives of past all-state ensembles and the current audition materials for the all-state ensembles.