Perceptions and Preparedness: Preservice Music Educators and Popular Music Teaching Skills

2020 ◽  
pp. 875512332095794
Author(s):  
Rachel Sorenson
Keyword(s):  
Music Education ◽  
Popular Music ◽  
Informal Learning ◽  
Music Educators ◽  
Music Instruction ◽  
Comfort Level ◽  
Teaching Skills ◽  
Music Software ◽  
Learning Practices ◽  
Music Education Majors

The purpose of this study was to examine the perceptions of undergraduate music education majors regarding the skills needed to teach popular music classes, and their comfort level with those skills. Preservice music educators ( N = 81) completed a researcher-designed questionnaire describing their previous experiences with popular music, their perceptions of necessary teaching skills for popular music instruction, their comfort level with those skills, and their overall feelings of preparedness to teach popular music. Respondents rated the teaching skills of ear training, piano/keyboard, and informal learning practices as most important. In addition, respondents indicated that they were most comfortable with the teaching skills of singing, music theory, and informal learning practices. In general, respondents felt moderately prepared to teach popular music, but many believed they were lacking important knowledge and skills, including proficiency on various instruments, understanding how to integrate popular music, and music software proficiency. Implications for music educators are discussed.

Accountability Concerns

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jay Dorfman
Keyword(s):  
Music Education ◽  
Music Educators ◽  
Music Instruction ◽  
National Standards ◽  
Music Listening ◽  
Educational Culture ◽  
The Arts ◽  
Music Educators National Conference ◽  
Music Standards ◽  
Teachers And Students

With the advent of technology-based music instruction, we are at an important juncture in terms of standards and accountability. To date, there are no sets of standards that directly address the ways in which TBMI teachers and students work, and therefore there is a lack of clarity as to how we are accountable to the larger educational culture. Several sets of standards exist that come close; they address either the musical or the technological portions of TBMI, but not both. Others address teachers’ roles or students’ roles, but not both. In this chapter, we will examine relevant sets of standards and explore how they imply accountability for TBMI teachers and students. In 1994, the Music Educators National Conference (now the National Association for Music Education) released a document outlining the National Standards for Music Education, in coordination with similar standards in theater, art, and dance. The nine music standards from 1994 were the following: Singing, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music. Performing on instruments, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music. Improvising melodies, variations, and accompaniments. Composing and arranging music within specified guidelines. Reading and notating music. Listening to, analyzing, and describing music. Evaluating music and music performances. Understanding relationships between music, the other arts, and disciplines outside the arts. Understanding music in relation to history and culture. The NAfME standards suggest curricula that are distributed among performance, musical creativity, and connections between music and context. These are noble goals for which teachers should strive. The NAfME standards are widely accepted, and many teachers refer to them as benchmarks to assess the completeness of curriculum. In no way do the NAfME standards suggest that musical learning should be achieved through technology, nor do they contain suggestions about how students should meet any of them. In this way, the shapers of the NAfME standards are to be commended because the standards are flexible enough that they can be addressed in ways teachers see fit. Therefore, the standards passively suggest that technology-based music instruction is as valid a means of music learning as are other forms.

Informal learning of popular music: gender monoglossia and heteroglossia

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Alison Butler ◽  
Kelly Bylica ◽  
Ruth Wright
Keyword(s):  
Elementary School ◽  
Music Education ◽  
Popular Music ◽  
Informal Learning ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Southern Ontario ◽  
Explanatory Framework ◽  
Gendered Patterns ◽  
Patterns Of Practice

Abstract This paper reports on a small-scale study in an elementary school in Southern Ontario, Canada. The study investigated relationships between students’ perceptions and practices of gender in popular music education with particular attention given to communication, instruments and technology and development of freedoms and constraints. The findings present a more opaque picture than previous research, suggesting that students frequently transgress binary gendered patterns of practice and perception in this particular field. Gender monoglossia and heteroglossia provide a useful explanatory framework for analysis, indicating that further application of these concepts to issues in popular music education might be most fruitful.

The Application of a Critical Sociology to Music Education

1984 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 247-266 ◽  
Author(s):  
Graham Vulliamy ◽  
John Shepherd
Keyword(s):  
Music Education ◽  
Popular Music ◽  
Music Educators ◽  
Music Teaching ◽  
Critical Sociology ◽  
Cambridge University ◽  
Sociology Of Music ◽  
Musical Notation ◽  
Musical Traditions

The aim of this article is to explore some important issues which music educators have raised concerning our work on the use of popular music in teaching and concerning the sociology of music thesis that underpins this work. Following a brief résumé of our perspective, we shall address four criticisms that have been made fairly generally by a number of reviewers of Whose Music? (Shepherd et al. 1977), and of the Cambridge University Press books (Vulliamy & Lee, 1976, 1982a) and the Routledge Popular Music Series (Vulliamy & Lee, 1982b). These criticisms are, first, that we hold an over-socially determined view of music; secondly that we have overstressed the qualitative differences between various musical traditions, especially in their differing relationships to analytic musical notation; third, that the culturally relative view of music which we espouse is both suspect theoretically and potentially anti-educational in practice; and, finally, that many of our suggestions for a reform of music teaching are impractical. Our hope is that we can dispel some ambiguities in our earlier work concerning these important but complex issues and thus leave music educators in a better position to appraise the relevance of our thesis.

Informal Learning as a Catalyst for Social Justice in Music Education

2015 ◽  
pp. 301-317
Author(s):  
Lucy Green ◽  
Flavia Narita
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Critical Pedagogy ◽  
Music Education ◽  
Informal Learning ◽  
Critical Consciousness ◽  
Music Classroom ◽  
Informal Music Learning ◽  
Learning Practices ◽  
School Music ◽  
Teachers And Students

This chapter considers social justice in relation to the incorporation of a set of informal learning practices within the secondary school music classroom and teacher education. It interprets Nancy Fraser’s view of social justice as “parity of participation” in order to suggest that the dialogical approach of informal music learning practices can potentially promote such participatory parity. It then examines Paulo Freire’s concept of critical pedagogy, which emphasizes the need for teachers and students to participate together in the learning process so as to enhance critical consciousness. Through an application of Green’s theory of musical meaning, the authors suggest that critical consciousness in music can be aided through a deeper understanding of music’s sonic materials and their inter-relations. Informal learning in the music classroom may promote both parity of participation and critical consciousness, with the potential to lead to a liberating musical experience.

Music Technology Pedagogy and Curricula

2017 ◽  
pp. 632-646
Author(s):  
David A. Williams
Keyword(s):  
Preservice Teachers ◽  
Music Education ◽  
Popular Music ◽  
Informal Learning ◽  
Music Technology ◽  
Technology Skills ◽  
Pedagogical Approach ◽  
Student Autonomy ◽  
Learner Centered ◽  
Education Profession

Equipping in-service and preservice teachers with music technology skills is a matter for concern within the music education profession. There is, however, an even more important issue affecting the use of music technologies in schools. This has to do with the pedagogy we employ in our classrooms. Curricular possibilities employing learner-centered and informal learning pedagogies are explored in this chapter, and one particular model that relies heavily on student autonomy is detailed. This pedagogical approach shares much in common with how individuals make music in popular music settings outside schools.

scholarly journals Formal and informal learning situations or practices vs formal and informal ways of learning

2006 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 135-145 ◽  
Author(s):  
Göran Folkestad
Keyword(s):  
Learning Styles ◽  
Music Education ◽  
Informal Learning ◽  
Learning Style ◽  
Music Pedagogy ◽  
Institutional Settings ◽  
Indigenous Music ◽  
Learning Practices ◽  
Formal And Informal Learning ◽  
The Relationship

During the last decade there has been an awakening interest in considering not only formalised learning situations within institutional settings, but also all the various forms of informal musical learning practices outside schools. Informal musical learning outside institutional settings has been shown to contribute to important knowledge and aspects of music education. In this article, I will examine research studies which in different ways focus on formal and informal learning situations and practices or formal and informal ways of learning. I will consider the relationship between music education as praxis (music pedagogy) and as research, and the relationship between these two facets of music education and the surrounding society. I will identify four different ways of using and defining formal and informal learning, respectively, either explicitly or implicitly, each one focusing on different aspects of learning: (i) the situation, (ii) learning style, (iii) ownership, and (iv) intentionality. Formal – informal should not be regarded as a dichotomy, but rather as the two poles of a continuum; in most learning situations, both these aspects of learning are in various degrees present and interacting. Music education researchers, in order to contribute to the attainment of a multiplicity of learning styles and a cultural diversity in music education, need to focus not only on the formal and informal musical learning in Western societies and cultures, but also to include the full global range of musical learning in popular, world and indigenous music in their studies.

The effect of participation in a popular band program on students’ musical and extra-musical outcomes in Korea

2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (3) ◽  
pp. 370-382
Author(s):  
Joo Yeon Jung ◽  
Jihae Shin ◽  
Soojin Lee
Keyword(s):  
Music Education ◽  
South Korea ◽  
Popular Music ◽  
Integrated Curriculum ◽  
Music Educators ◽  
Music Curriculum ◽  
Bob Dylan ◽  
School Music ◽  
Mainstream School ◽  
Younger Generation

The increased attention to the use of popular music within the classroom is not new. In fact, music educators in many countries have discussed the incorporation of popular music into mainstream music education for decades. South Korea is no exception, and the younger generation has a genuine interest in and sensitivity toward popular music. Yet, South Korea has been slow to incorporate popular music into its mainstream school music curriculum. Recently, the popular band has been gaining its popularity as a new kind of ensemble program inside and outside the school in South Korea. Thus, the purpose of this study was to analyze the effects of a popular band program, the “Little Bob Dylan Band,” on students’ musical and extra-musical outcomes. Thirty-five students participated in the program, and, in this study, both students and their parents completed a survey and were individually interviewed. Results indicated that the program enabled students to have new and deepened musical experiences in their lives. In addition, students were able to develop artistic originality through an integrated curriculum that involved cooperation with peers while creating and playing music together.

Early childhood fieldwork for music education majors

2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 199-215 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christa R. Kuebel
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
Music Education ◽  
Music Educators ◽  
Critical Examination ◽  
Education Majors ◽  
Musical Settings ◽  
Pedagogical Content ◽  
Early Childhood Music ◽  
Music Education Majors ◽  
Preparedness To Teach

Fieldwork experiences for undergraduate music education majors provide opportunities to gain pedagogical content knowledge as well as a deeper understanding of child development and musical behaviour. Early childhood music fieldwork experiences are vital to preservice music educators in order to gain insight into the specific needs of young learners and increase preparedness to teach in a variety of musical settings. Critical examination of the fieldwork opportunities provided to undergraduate music education majors in the early childhood music setting could benefit all preservice music educators. This article will describe one early childhood fieldwork placement and its impacts on the preparation of three undergraduate music education majors. Implications related to the importance of early childhood music education fieldwork experiences for preservice music educators are discussed.

Popular music in preservice music education: Preparedness, confidence and implementation

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-60 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandra Hamilton ◽  
Jennifer Vannatta-Hall
Keyword(s):  
Music Education ◽  
Popular Music ◽  
Teacher Educators ◽  
Classical Music ◽  
The United States ◽  
Music Educators ◽  
Music Teacher ◽  
Students Attitudes ◽  
Training Programmes ◽  
K 12

This study examined popular music in preservice music teacher training programmes in the United States. The researchers explored types of courses and programmes offered in undergraduate music education programmes to prepare future music teachers to teach popular music. Quantitative data revealed trends in the inclusion of popular music within undergraduate music education programmes, determined music teacher educators’ perceptions of their students’ attitudes towards using popular music in the general music classroom, and examined the types of popular music pedagogy needed for preservice music educators. Qualitative data ascertained perceived confidence levels of graduates to utilize popular music. Results revealed that western classical music is the focus for the majority of music educators’ undergraduate degree programmes and that often music teacher preparation programmes ignore popular music study. Bridging the gap between western classical and popular music would help prepare teachers to include and value all types of music in K-12 music education.

Popular Music in Nigeria: Patronising Attitude or Benign Complacency?

1998 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 181-189 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Okafor
Keyword(s):  
Music Education ◽  
Popular Music ◽  
Music Educators ◽  
The Other ◽  
Main Thrust ◽  
Cultural Traditions ◽  
Cultural Contact ◽  
City Life ◽  
The Media ◽  
Nigerian Government

The development of musicians and the continuity of the musical art should be the main thrust of music education. The institutions of education should therefore be equipped to mould the development of music in society and to make the strongest input into musical expressions that are fashionable, acceptable and available. Formal music education came to Nigeria by way of Western institutions, drawing from the cultural traditions of Western societies. On the other hand, the media and other agencies have brought in other types of music acceptable in Western societies outside their academic sectors. Musical and cultural contact has given birth to the contemporary popular music of Nigeria that integrates Nigerian and non-Nigerian elements. With the growth of city life, commerce, industry and communication, this music has grown in popularity, in some cases sweeping every other thing aside. The attendant ‘pop phenomenon’ also means that cultural intrusion from outside Nigeria has grown more menacing. Who controls the popular music in Nigeria today? This paper tries to answer this question and in addition presents some data on the prevailing perspectives in the hope that the Nigerian Government and all music educators should range plans and solutions against them.

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