Issues Facing Music Teacher Education

8/18/2019 Issues Facing Music Teacher Education

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Issues Facing Music TeacherEducation in the 21st Century

Developing Leaders in the Field


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The Author

! A professor of music education atthe University of Michigan, School

of Music, Theater and Dance.

! She has presented at national andi n t e r n a t i o n a l c o n f e r e n c e s(including NAfME and ISME) andhas published more than 80

articles on these topics in all of themajor music education journals.

! She is currently editor-in-chief of Arts Education Policy Review.

Colleen M. Conway


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Music Teacher Education Research Context

! SMTE – Society for MusicTeacher Education (1982)

! NAfME – National Association

for Music Education

! Journal of Music Teacher

Education (1990)


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SMTE Areas of Strategic Planningand Action

! Teacher Recruitment! Assessment and Alignment! Preservice Teacher Development!

Restructuring the Curriculum Cultural Diversity in MusicTeacher Education

! Cultural Diversity in Music Teacher Education! School and University Partnerships! Policy and Association Partnerships! Professional Development for the Beginning Music Teacher

!

Professional Development for the Experienced MusicTeacher

! Teacher Retention! Preparing Music Teacher Educators and Supporting Current

Music Teacher Educators! Alternative Licensure


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Topics of Interest to the Organization! Student-centered instruction! Developing comprehensive musical understandings in every

student!

Changing the culture of instrumental music education! The importance of the teaching/learning process in a product-

driven profession

! Lifelong musical participation

! Increasing the influence of instrumental music educationmethods instruction/instructors

!

Defining/describing pedagogical content knowledge ininstrumental music teacher education

! Recruiting instrumental music teachers and instrumental music

teacher educators! The ongoing professional development of teachers in ways that

move them beyond the traditional instrumental music

education paradigm


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Recruitment of Music EducationMajors into the Preservice Program

! “Current music teachers may be the best

recruiters the profession has. They exert a greatdeal of influence that could positively affect

t h e r e c r u i t i n g o f f u t u r e m u s i cteachers” (Fredrickson and Burton, 2005)

!

P-12 music teachers are encourage to workwith local Tri-M Chapters.

! “apprenticeship of observation”


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Observation of Teaching with aTeacher’s Lens

! A focus on getting music education students outto schools early in their teacher education

experience.

! Fieldwork observations are often cited by

beginning music teachers as both the most and

the least valuable requirements in the musicteacher education program.

! Learning to view the classroom from the teacher’sperspective is an important benchmark in the

journey to become a teacher.


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General Issues in Music TeacherEducation Curriculum

! Managing to fit all the coursework deemednecessary into the degree program along with

general music requirements as well as generalstudies requirements.

! Most music education students take longer than

four years or attend in the summers to completethe degree.

! Most music students experience a conflict ofidentity as they try to develop as a musician and

a teacher simultaneously.


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Preservice Fieldwork

! Faculty loads, student schedules, availability of localschools and other resources affect the nature offield placements.

! There is a delicate balance between fieldwork thatprovides good first teaching experiences and

fieldwork that is a “trial by fire” approach to theprofession.

! “Immersion Fieldwork” refers to placing students in a

diverse setting for an extended time period duringwhich they live in the community as well as teach.


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Music Education Methods Courses

! Music Education students need to learn to reflect“in” and “on” the action in music classrooms and

they must consider multiple strategies for solvingclassroom dilemmas.

! Questioning techniques need to be practiced by

methods instructors and skills for facilitating

classroom dialogue explored.

! More frequent testing and the use of alternative

grading procedures will provide a methods courseatmosphere more conducive to the learning of

reflective thinking skills.


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Student Teaching

! The most valuable component of the teachereducation process.

! To think beyond the given context instead of telling

them how to teach or what to do.

! Have open lines of communication between the

co-op teacher and the university supervisorregarding the student and the placement details.

! To view student teaching as a “spot” on the

continuum of learning to teach and not as the “end

point”.


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Graduate Certification Models andAlternative Certification

! These programs typically have the samecoursework and sequence as an undergraduate

degree including preservice fieldwork, methodscourses and student teaching.

! The major advantage is the potential foralternative routes to attract a more diverse

teaching force.

! The disadvantage is that there is no research in

music education on alternative routes and it isunclear in the general research if teachers stay in

the field in the long term.


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Supporting Beginning Music Teachers

! New teachers have two jobs – they have to teachand they have to learn to teach.

! No matter how good a preservice program may be,

there are some things that can only learned on the job.

!

The first encounter with real teaching occurs whenbeginning teachers step into their own classroom.

! The first years of teaching are an intense and

formative time in learning to teach.


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The Four Stages of Teachingby Kevin Ryan

!

Fantasy! Survival

!

Mastery

! Impact


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The Fantasy Stage

! Some people call this the idealistic stage. This is

usually the period before a new teacher walksinto the classroom. The new teacher feels thatshe/he would make a fantastic teacher because

of various reasons, that the new teacher is there

to save the world or at least save the children,

and that every school day will be fun, fun, fun!The new teacher might voice the idea that,“Certainly, teaching will be hard.” Inwardly, the

teacher knows that it would be easy.


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The Survival Stage

! The Survival teachers begin to rely on practices that theysee other teachers use, some effective, most ineffective, to

get through the day. Teaching becomes a matter of gettingthrough one day after another and holding on till paycheck

day. Many Survival teachers begin to whine and make

excuses, give busywork, and take no responsibility for thestudents’ learning. They make fun of professional

development meetings and never actually develop as a

professional. Their conversations in the lunch room beginswith “These kids …” in a high, whiny voice. Because the

Survival teachers do not succeed in teaching their students,they will try to convince the teachers around them that it’s

not possible and make fun of teachers who are working

hard. Unfortunately, many teachers never leave this stage.


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The Mastery Stage

! The Mastery Stage begins when teachers takeresponsibility for what goes on in their classroom and

hold themselves accountable for their students’learning. Suddenly, the Master teacher uses effectivepractices, have high expectations, and strive to

improve professionally at all times. The Master teacheris not afraid to ask for help or “How did you do that?”

This is where true enjoyment of teaching begins. TheMaster teacher is very threatening to the Survivalteachers because they are living proof that “these

kids” can learn. The Master teacher may not yet bethe model teacher, but their attitude and

professionalism will soon lead them there.


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The Impact Stage

! This is the ultimate teacher, the award

winning teacher who makes an impact onhis/her students’ lives. Every day is focused

on learning effectively, rigorously, and inan engaging manner. The students may

view this as fun, fun, fun and in a realsense, the Impact teacher has achievedthe dreams of the Fantasy teacher. The

teacher has come full circle and teaching

is an everyday joy.


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Experiences of the Beginning MusicTeachers

! Isolation! Loneliness

!

Culture-shock!

In-service and administrative help! Community relations! Feelings of failure!

Feelings of being in a “sink or swim” situation

!

Feeling overworked and overburdened! Feeling overtired!

Being confused by or in disagreement with administrativepolicies and evaluations

! Dealing with parents and feeling threatened!

Insecure and vulnerable


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Supporting Beginning Music Teachers

! The first step in supporting beginning music teachers is torecognize the inability of many school districts to provide

appropriate support.

! Music educators must become more active in the policy arena

so that music teachers may receive professional development

credit (in-service credit).

! Beginning music teachers are often “inducted into a school by

being provided with “this is how it works around here”information.

! Recognizing the need for professional development support

beyond the first year will help not only to retain the reflective

teachers, but it may also help foster more reflective teachers.


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Mentoring Beginning Music Teachers

! Beginning music teachers secure “informal” mentorsthrough their buildings, state music organizations

and other contacts rather than “formal” mentors.

! Beginning teachers value the mentor more if theyhave had an opportunity to interact in informal

ways (social gatherings) at the start of the

mentoring experience.

! The beginning teacher might start the year by

observing the mentor in the mentor’s classroom firstthen, the mentor might come to the beginner’s

classroom and do some teaching.


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Characteristics of Mentors

! Excellent musician!

Strong knowledge of music subject matter! Exemplary teacher! Similar philosophy of music education! Proactive in establishing relationship

! Good listener

!

Organized! S t rong knowledge o f po l ic ies and

procedures(building, district and state)! Personable but professional


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CONCLUSION

! Music teacher education is often the effect ofattacks regarding lack of preparation for teaching.

! Beginning music teachers need assistance in

dealing with the messy issues in school change andcurriculum reform that they encounter once they

begin working in schools.

! True collaboration in music teacher educationbetween higher education faculty, policy-makers in

music education and P-12 music educators is still inits infancy.

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Issues Facing Music Teacher Education