Music as a Tool for 21st-Century Civic Education

ABSTRACT

The intention of this research was threefold: to demonstrate that teachers can use music to educate students about social issues and encourage them to be active in the public sphere; to enjoin educators and teacher educators to foster civic knowledge, guide civic attitudes, and encourage civic behavior through music; and to locate our efforts within a synthesis of civic renewal and cultural citizenship. A combination of survey and interview responses from 213 high school students generated the results of this research. Overall, the data allowed us to conclude that there is a relationship between civically oriented music and students' civic knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors. Intrepid teacher educators and practitioners should allow music (and, more broadly, popular culture) to be employed more frequently in the context of the social studies classroom.