A Comparison of Expert and Novice Music Teachers' Preparing Identical Band Compositions: An Operational Replication

1999 ◽  
Vol 47 (2) ◽  
pp. 174-187 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas W. Goolsby

This replication is the third causal-comparative study of expert and novice instrumental music teachers seeking to determine characteristics that may define successful, outstanding band directors, using methodology refined in two previous studies (Goolsby, 1996, 1997). Here, 10 expert and 10 novice teachers prepared an identical composition for a rated performance. A total of 216 rehearsals were analyzed to establish frequency distributions for 30 teaching and performance variables and for sequential patterns of instruction. Results showed that novices used more time overall and spent more time in verbal instruction while preparing the composition. The expert teachers spent a greater percentage of the rehearsals performing than novices did. Differences for frequency distributions indicate that novice teachers stopped and restarted more frequently without providing instruction; experts addressed balance, style, tone, and intonation more than did novices.

2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (3) ◽  
pp. 48-57
Author(s):  
Linda Thornton ◽  
Mara E. Culp

Although resources exist to help instrumental music teachers assist learners in inclusive settings, students’ voices may be absent from those resources. As such, music teachers may struggle to honor the needs and experiences of students with physical differences. Students with physical differences may be steered away from instrumental music or toward an instrument that may not be the student’s preference. The purpose of this study was to understand the stories of students with physical differences and their teacher to examine how participation in instrumental music was enabled in this setting. Data were generated through examining artifacts and completing interviews with the instrumental music teacher, students, and students’ parents. Interview data were analyzed using process/action coding. Main themes that emerged were (a) previous experiences and prior knowledge, (b) recognizing strengths and challenges, (c) perseverance toward desires in the face of uncertainty, (d) help and support from others, and (e) materials. Implications for future research and possible applications to music teaching and music teacher education are discussed.


2020 ◽  
Vol 68 (3) ◽  
pp. 328-350
Author(s):  
Ryan D. Shaw

The purpose of this study was to understand the social networks of three instrumental music teachers in a midwestern school district. Research questions were (1) How do instrumental music teachers describe their formal/instructional networks? and (2) How do instrumental music teachers’ social networks differ by career stage? I used a qualitative ego network design to map social networks of information sharing with a focus on the flow of social capital. Data sources included a name-generating questionnaire to construct networks and two semistructured interviews focusing on the nature and significance of teachers’ ties. Findings suggest that social networks showed particularities in terms of number of ties and tie strength. On matters of instruction, participants sought out music teachers whom they respected or who possessed specialized knowledge. Participants spoke of the importance of forging micropolitical ties to secure needs related to resources and scheduling, using ties strategically. Finally, participants felt that networks differed by career stage with advice seeking decreasing over time and networks becoming more close-knit. Implications are offered for music teachers and music teacher educators.


2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 231-249 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lilian Lima Simones

A framework for studying teachers’ hand gestures in instrumental music pedagogy is proposed, focusing on teachers’ teaching behaviours as a context-dependent basis for understanding the meaning and functionality of their gestures. The application of the Teacher Behaviour and Gesture framework across instrumental music pedagogical settings (one-to-one, small and large teaching groups and across singing, woodwind, brass, strings, and other pedagogical contexts) will bring understandings on the role of teachers’ gestures in their pedagogical interactions with students, with implications for student learning and instrumental music teachers’ teaching and education.


2017 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 78-105
Author(s):  
Jill M. Sullivan

The purpose of this study was to determine how women music teachers became the United States’ first female military band directors. Interviews with seventy-nine World War II military bandswomen revealed that seven of the ten chosen female directors were music teachers prior to their enlistment in the Army, Coast Guard, or Marines—band and orchestra teachers, music supervisors, and a college professor. Six of those seven directors are included in this study. Research questions pertained to their childhood music education, formal schooling, music-teacher employment, why they quit teaching to enlist, military education, military leadership and performance experiences, how they continued music making after the war, and the meaning of this experience for their lives. Corroboration of interview responses with primary and secondary sources—census data, school records, city directories, social security index, newspaper articles, photographs, diaries, military documents, military and WWII books—revealed that these music educators had accurate memories, outstanding music education and performance backgrounds, substantial leadership experiences, and diverse musical backgrounds that made them good choices for leading military bands and ensembles. All were part of significant firsts for women in the military. Near the end of their lives, they believed that their service as a military band director and musician had substantial impact on their lives and in some cases valued as “the most important” experience of their lives.


2013 ◽  
Vol 61 (4) ◽  
pp. 431-451 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catherine G. Bell-Robertson

Multiple forms of support for teachers new to the profession are important and necessary. The use of an online community by 11 novice instrumental music teachers at the middle school and high school levels was investigated in this case study. The teachers exchanged messages and information within the online community during the 2010–2011 school year; data sources included all transcripts from the online community and multiple interviews with each participant. The participants’ experiences in the utilization of the wikispace as an online community of practice was analyzed using Wenger’s three components of domain, community, and practice. The findings suggest that the online community appeared to have met novice teachers’ emotional needs as they learned to become music teachers but that their positions were often also quite different in terms of specific responsibilities and music curricula they taught. Thus, online conversations focused more on the affective issues that surround being a new music teacher rather than on curriculum and classroom-specific content.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document