The Experience of Creating Community

The purpose of this intrinsic case study was to explore four midwestern choral teachers’ experiences of creating and sustaining community within their public school choirs. Research questions included (1) how choral teachers describe their experiences of creating choral communities, (2) how the teacher–student relationship is experienced, and (3) what challenges get in the way of sustaining choral communities. Writings by Edith and Victor Turner, Martin Buber, and Nel Noddings were used as a theoretical lens. Participants were selected purposively and represented heterogeneous choral programs, different school sizes, and diverse population densities. Participants included one 8th-year middle school male choral teacher, two female high school choral teachers who had taught for more than 18 years each, and one male middle and high school choral teacher who had taught for 12 years. Cases were bounded by interviews, written and observational data, and artifacts. The data collection included 20 observations, 12 interviews with choral teachers, and 16 student interviews. Data analysis was inductive; 31 codes emerged and were gathered into four themes including support and care, fostering a sense of belonging and acceptance, quality creates and inhibits community, and program legacy and vision. Teacher profiles are included in the findings.

20 Years of the MENC Biennial Conference

The purpose of this study was to investigate the content and intended audiences for educational sessions offered at MENC biennial conferences in order to illuminate trends and topics in professional development. The researchers performed a content analysis of each session ( N = 2,593) using program booklets from conferences between 1988 and 2008, creating a coding scheme with separate codes for audience focus and session content. After establishing sufficient interjudge agreement, the researchers coded all educational sessions offered at the conferences from 1988 to 2008. Results indicated that the number of sessions targeted at specific audiences (e.g., choral teachers only) remained small relative to those targeting broader audiences. Content coding revealed large increases in the number of sessions focused on technology and a slight decrease in the number of sessions focused on traditional large ensembles. Session content sometimes followed professional trends (e.g., the inception of the National Standards in 1994) but did not reflect increased attention in the profession to topics such as creativity and students with exceptionalities. These findings have important implications for those planning state and national music education conferences and for music educators who attend these professional development events.