Middle School Choir Directors’ Perceptions and Applications of Multicultural Music Education (open access)

Middle School Choir Directors’ Perceptions and Applications of Multicultural Music Education

The purpose of this descriptive study was to discover Texas middle school choir directors’ perceptions and applications of multicultural education in their classrooms. Three research questions guided this investigation: (1) What were middle school choir director’s perceptions about multicultural music education?; (2) How did middle school choir directors apply multicultural music pedagogy in their classrooms?; and (3) How did middle school choir directors perceive professional development opportunities in multicultural music education? Texas middle school choir directors perceived that the purpose of multicultural music was to expose students to different cultures and diverse worldviews through music. Teachers listed several social and musical benefits of studying multicultural music including broadening musical horizons, cultural appreciation, and expansion of student worldviews. Teachers consciously programmed multicultural music for most of their concerts, and some chose literature based on their students’ cultural backgrounds. Although most teachers tried to make multicultural music experiences genuine for students, authenticity was the foremost pedagogical concern regarding multicultural music pedagogy. Teachers tended to utilize a combination of music concept and sociocultural approaches when teaching multicultural music by comparing multicultural music to Western music and using classroom discussions to discuss social issues that lend context to the music. Professional development opportunities in …
Date: August 2015
Creator: Herring, Michelle Limor
System: The UNT Digital Library