Upcoming Symposium on Music Teacher Education and “The State(s) of Music Education”

Curious about the latest research and thinking on music education from the perspectives of music teacher educators? Take a look at the schedule for the upcoming Symposium on Music Teacher Education taking place at UNC Greensboro Sept 26-28. The program looks fantastic and is sure to generate a buzz regarding the current state and future of music teacher education along with implications for K-12 music programs.

I’m looking forward to presenting with my colleagues Marg Schmidt, Sandy Stauffer, and Jill Sullivan on our new undergraduate music education curriculum that, among other things, centers around the following four core principles:

• Flexible musicianship
• Innovative practices
• Inquisitive thinking
• Community leadership

Serendipitously, just prior to posting this I was reading a blog post by Alex Ross on The Orchestra Crisis at 110, which led me to two blog posts discussing “The State of Music Education” that I think are informative for those of us who seek to broaden dialogue about music teaching and learning.

Consider reading Jon Silpayamanant’s The State of Music Education  and Michael Lowenstern’s The State of Music Education. Both perspectives seem to focus on schools of music, particularly in terms of higher education. While you are at it read Silpayamanant’s post challenging music educators to consider whose music and musical cultures are addressed in music programs. To what extent does your program address cultural and musical diversity? Then consider following up with Carlos Abril’s recent article Towards a More Culturally Responsive Pedagogy and peruse the new Oxford Handbook of Children’s Musical Cultures.

In relation to the posts on The State of Music Education, equally as compelling and thankfully avoided by both Silpayamanant and Lowenstern is the myth that music education has disappeared from K-12 schools that is often perpetuated in mainstream media and others across various social media.

I’m always interested to read diverse perspectives on music education, particularly when they come from areas beyond K-12 and music teacher education. As music educators we may sometimes take for granted our access to numerous conferences, research journals, blogs, and vibrant music education communities, many of which are looking to the future of our discipline and developing related pedagogy and curricula.

Case in point – take a look at the recent CFP for the 2014 New Directions in Music Education Conference hosted by Michigan State University. The call starts with the following sentence:

“Our musical world has changed rapidly in recent years. So rapidly in fact that it is often difficult for music teachers and scholars to keep up with the latest advances in music technology, methods, and research.”  (Regardless of whether you submit a proposal or present at the New Direction conference absolutely consider attending!)

Might K-12 and music teacher education do a better job of broadening our conversations to connect with others who have perspectives on music education but are somewhat disconnected from our ongoing dialogue?

Stay tuned for some more on a similar topic in the near future. . .