scholarly journals “I Do Belong Here”: Identity Perceptions of Postgraduate Music Education Majors

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 56-70
Author(s):  
Crystal Sieger

Students choosing to enter the music teaching profession after having already obtained undergraduate degrees in other music fields may experience unique forms of socialization and teacher identity development. Participants were four students enrolled in a 3-year master’s program with a music teacher licensure component. Through individual and focus group interviews, participants shared their perspectives on program experiences, course elements, and interactions with peers and professors as important influences on their developing music teacher identity. I examined the data for emerging patterns and applied open and axial coding to the most prominent responses, resulting in themes centered on participants’ socialization experiences, desire for independence, need for self-justification, and “outsider” status among peers. To combat lack of peer recognition or support, participants developed strong, collaborative relations with each other. Implications for music teacher educators are considered.

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-55
Author(s):  
Tami J. Draves

The purpose of this particularistic case study was to explore Paul’s teacher identity in his first year as a music educator. I chose Paul purposively because, while a high school senior, he had participated in previous research about teacher socialization. Using Olsen’s sociocultural view of teacher identity as a lens, I examined Paul’s teacher identity including personal beliefs about teaching, how those interacted with professional learning and teacher education experiences, and how Paul made sense of himself as a teacher. Through data analysis I revealed three themes: Becoming Student Focused, Learning to Be Myself as a Teacher, and Taking Ownership. I recommend making preservice and cooperating music teachers more aware of teacher identity models and suggest activities to promote teacher identity development in music teacher education programs. Music teacher educators would benefit from having more teacher identity scholarship focused on music student teachers and beginning music educators.


Author(s):  
Kristen Pellegrino

This chapter begins with a philosophical and research-based justification for facilitating teacher identity development in teacher education and music teacher education and then reviews related music teacher identity literature. After offering an overview of methods and theoretical frameworks associated with examining music teacher identity in research, the chapter highlights music research in four ways. First, it explores music identity research using symbolic interactionism theoretical frameworks, then using sociocultural/cultural-historical theoretical frameworks. Next, it presents some music identity research that focused on issues surrounding diversity, and lastly, it describes collaborations with members of the Society of Music Teacher Educators’ music teacher identity development Area of Strategic Planning and Action. Interspersed throughout the chapter are examples of activities and questions one might use with preservice music teachers. Finally, the chapter ends with a summary, suggestions for further research, and conclusions.


2018 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 67-88 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Miettinen ◽  
Claudia Gluschankof ◽  
Sidsel Karlsen ◽  
Heidi Westerlund

Societies worldwide are becoming more aware of the educational challenges that come with increased cultural diversity derived from ethnic, linguistic, religious, socioeconomic and educational differences and their intersections. In many countries, teacher education programmes are expected to prepare teachers for this reality and develop their intercultural competences. This instrumental case study is based on a project that aims to initiate mobilizing networks between two music teacher programmes to explore intercultural music teacher education. In this study, we map the intercultural competences that are required of music teacher educators and that are provided in the music education programmes at two higher music education institutions in Israel and Finland. The data consists of 11 focus group interviews with music teacher educators at the Levinsky College of Education in Tel Aviv and the Sibelius Academy of the University of the Arts Helsinki, conducted by a multinational research team. The data was analysed abductively, using content analysis as a method. While the interviewed teacher educators could articulate many aspects of their own intercultural competences or the lack of them, the findings indicate that in musical diversity and teaching students from different musical backgrounds the teacher educators found it difficult to explain what kinds of intercultural competences their respective programmes provided for the students. Based on the findings, there is a need for a more holistic understanding of intercultural competences in music teacher education as well as how our institutions produce power. There is also a need for the teacher educators in the programmes to collaborate and discuss among each other in order to create “knowledge communities” and to move towards addressing intercultural issues.


Author(s):  
Jolanta Lasauskiene

The professional identity of music teacher represents the essence of this profession. Improving the programmes of music teacher education and deciding how to (re)construct the professional identity of prospective music teachers, it is important to discuss what contextual factors can have an impact on the development of music teacher identity and what possibilities of its (self-) development are available at university. A better understanding of the role-identity of teachers at various stages of their careers could enhance the conceptions of study programmes in music teacher education. The article analyses and discusses the conception of music teacher identities, substantiates its peculiarities during pre-service training, points out the most important characteristics for the successful professional activity of the music teacher. The research presented in the article focuses on professional identity development of 30 university music students (15 Lithuanian and 15 foreign) at Lithuanian University of Educational Sciences (Music Education). The method of focus group interview was used in this study.The research results show that the student music teachers have developed a distinctive attitude towards the professional education in universities and their own expectations. Suggestions for practice and further research are also provided.


2020 ◽  
pp. 105708372094846
Author(s):  
Erik S. Piazza ◽  
Brent C. Talbot

Music education majors report low exposure to creative musical activities (CMAs) despite increased discourse surrounding the inclusion of CMAs in standards, curricula, publications, and practice. The purpose of this study was to compare preservice music teachers’ (PMT) and music teacher educators’ (MTE) experiences with CMAs. We used an anonymous survey instrument to explore definitions, perceived importance and preparedness, and the incorporation of CMAs within undergraduate music education curricula. MTEs and PMTs valued the inclusion of CMAs in preK–12 curricula, PMTs felt most prepared to teach arranging and least prepared to teach composing with their future preK–12 students, and PMTs valued and desired more opportunities to practice CMAs in undergraduate curricula. MTEs should consider integrating these activities as regular components in undergraduate music curricula.


2021 ◽  
pp. 105708372110305
Author(s):  
Olivia Gail Tucker ◽  
Sean Robert Powell

Many view music teacher education as a locus for socially just transformation of music education through the development of preservice teacher agency and identity development. However, few have directly examined values in music teacher preparation programs, and values are implicit in agency. The purpose of this exploratory, intrinsic case study was to investigate the visible values in music education courses at one institution to add a new dimension to research and practice. We collected data from four instructor and five undergraduate participants through observations, interviews, and syllabus review. Themes of critical thinking, agency, student centeredness, positive teacher-student relationships, and skills and knowledge for teaching emerged from the data. Findings indicate that values may be relative in practice despite shared language among preservice teachers and music teacher educators. We provide guiding questions for program review and future research through the lens of values.


2018 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 11-27
Author(s):  
Kristen Pellegrino

The purpose of this descriptive case study was to examine two music education students’ experiences as String Project teachers (SPTs). Research questions were as follows: What connections were made between coursework and the authentic-context learning (ACL) experience? and What was the impact of ACL experiences on music teacher identity? Data were an open-ended questionnaire, journal entries, observations, videotaped teaching segments, and two semistructured interviews. These SPTs used terms and concepts explored in coursework in their goal-setting for themselves and their students, and also referenced concepts while reflecting on their teaching. The SPTs developed their music teacher identities as they learned in a supportive community, and they made connections between personal, musician, and teacher identities. Through ACL experience situated within a supportive String Project community, ideas initially explored during coursework became internalized as part of the SPTs’ thinking, practices, philosophies, and identities.


2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-85 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raychl Smith ◽  
Jacqueline Secoy

The purpose of this instrumental case study was to understand how learning to play the ukulele influenced the music identity of elementary education majors. Eighteen participants (17 females, 1 male) from two universities created YouTube playlists and recorded solo ukulele performances for their YouTube channel. Music identity perceptions were collected via writing reflections, video recorded class sessions, and focus group interviews. We found that students’ early life experiences informed their beginning-of-semester perceptions of music identity (past selves), while in-class experiences contributed to higher levels of music competence and participation, and meaningful shifts in music identity (present and future selves). Music teachers should consider how the ukulele and YouTube may be used to promote individual expression, accountability, and self-directed learning. We encourage music teacher educators to use music biographies and YouTube as tools for culturally responsive teaching while creating safe spaces for the music identity development of less experienced/confident musicians.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1321103X1987508
Author(s):  
Siew Ling Chua ◽  
Graham F Welch

The article discusses a lifelong perspective for growing music teacher identity, particularly related to the in-service development of music teachers. It presents a theoretical framework which is developed from literature reviews on teacher identity development and construction and from case studies of the transformative learning journeys of serving music teachers in Singapore. Seven themes – personal self, activist identity, music, teaching, students, social relations, and the ecology of the social world – are found to interact and contribute to the transformative learning of music teachers.


Author(s):  
Michael Raiber

The impact of teacher dispositions on the professional development of preservice music teachers (PMTs) has been substantiated. This chapter describes an approach to dispositional development within the structure of an introduction to music education course. A teacher concerns model is used to organize this systematic approach through three developmental stages that include self-concerns, teaching task concerns, and student learning concerns. A series of 11 critical questions are presented for use in guiding PMTs’ dispositional development through these developmental stages. Activities to engage PMTs in the exploration of each of these questions are detailed for use by music teacher educators desiring to engage PMTs in dispositional development.


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