Music teacher attitudes toward popular music education

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to examine the attitudes, values, and beliefs of New York music teachers towards the inclusion of popular music in the classroom. This research was guided by the following questions: 1) To what extent are K-12 teachers interested in teaching a variety of popular music instruments and styles? 2) What attitudes and beliefs do music teachers express about popular music education? 3) What popular music approaches are used most frequently by music teachers? and 4) What are the opportunities or barriers associated with popular music classes and ensembles in school settings? Survey respondents (N = 120), all of whom were members of the New York State School Music Association in the United States, showed strong support for the inclusion of popular music education in school programmes, with approximately 75 per cent of respondents agreeing or strongly agreeing that popular music instruments and repertoire should be included in K-12 schools.

KEYWORDS:

• Popular music
• K-12 music
• attitudes
• informal learning

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

The data are available from the authors by request.

Geolocation information

Ithaca, NY, USA, 42.4440° N, 76.5019° W.

Additional information

Funding

This research was not supported by a grant or any other funding award.

Notes on contributors

Matthew Clauhs

Matthew Clauhs is an Associate Professor of Music Education at Ithaca College. Matthew is a co-author of Popular Music Pedagogies: A Practical Guide for Music Teachers (Routledge) and his research on creativity and inclusion has been published in Music Educators Journal, Music Education Research, Choral Journal, Urban Education, Journal of Music Teacher Education, and Arts Education Policy Review.

Rachael Sanguinetti

Rachael Sanguinetti is pursuing a PhD in Music Education at the Eastman School of Music. Her research interests center around secondary general music, popular music, and student-centered instruction. Before pursuing a PhD, Rachael taught middle school general music, chorus, and music elective courses including Ukulele, Songwriting, and Modern Band.

Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Matthew Clauhs, Ithaca College School of Music. Phone: (607) 274 - 3603; Email: [email protected]