Collaboration as Effective Music Professional Development

Defining Collaborative Professional Development

Music teachers commonly express feelings of isolation and wish for PD featuring meaningful collaboration with other music educators (Ballantyne, 2007; Bauer, 2007; Conway, 2003; Gruenhagen, 2009; Hammel, 2007; Krueger, 1999; Roulston, Legette, & Womack, 2005; Stanley, 2012). One formal solution to isolation is teacher mentoring. Researchers recommend careful selection and preparation of mentors (Conway, 2003) and providing ample release time opportunities for early career teachers to observed those who are more experienced (Krueger, 1999). Typically, however, the small number of music teachers in school settings ultimately still often leads to a lack of meaningful connection, and a resultant feeling of having to “sink or swim” and fending for themselves with little collegial support (Ballantyne, 2007, p. 184). Conway, Hibbard, Albert, and Hourigan (2005) described true support as going beyond superficial sharing of teaching tips, and asked, “What about developing sharing communities of arts teachers who, as the real experts in many cases, get together to problem solve and exchange ideas?” (p. 8).

One type of “sharing community” is a group of teacher-learners, working together to expand teaching expertise (Blair, 2008). When effective at supporting teacher learning, these communities are collaborative: that is, they help teachers work together to unpack teaching techniques, analyze results, and codify their expertise into translatable and sharable forms. These collaborative communities contrast with the common “expert delivery” format of much PD, featuring instead an emphasis on teacher dialogue and joint problem-solving efforts between teachers at all career stages (Reynolds, Robbins, Bauer, Eros, & Stanley, 2010). Feiman-Nemser (2001) wrote, “By engaging in professional discourse with like-minded colleagues . . . teachers can deepen knowledge of subject matter and curriculum, refine their instructional repertoire, hone their inquiry skills, and become critical colleagues” (p. 1042). We believe that collaborative PD structures give music teachers opportunities to participate in powerful, professional learning with others; this collaboration is missing from many PD initiatives.

We define collaborative PD as occurring in various groups: (a) among music teachers within a school, district, or among music teachers who may not work together but who have similar assignments or interests; (b) in groups of teachers representing a variety of curricular areas; (c) across P–12 grades; (d) among teachers in various stages of their careers; and (e) between teachers and universities and other PD providers. From the literature on PD within music teacher communities (Beitler, 2011; Gruenhagen, 2008, 2009; Junda, 1994; Reynolds et al., 2010; Robbins, 1994/1995; Stanley, 2011, 2012), we distilled seven elements characterizing effective collaborative PD for music teachers.

Collaborative PD for music teachers is

In this article, we highlight experiences of teachers and PD providers with the seven research-based elements above (Table 1).¹ In our work as PD researchers and providers, we were aware of stories of successful models of collaborative PD that we felt should be shared with a larger audience. We found other interesting models of PD by asking colleagues around the country. We selected a cross-section of various PD structures in an effort to highlight a number of different types and formats, contacted participants and providers, and interviewed them about their experiences in these models. All quotes in this article came from these interviews, conducted during the 2011–2012 school year. We did not set out to perform a research study; rather, we sought to capture an informative (although by no means inclusive) look at various ways collaborative PD is structured in different communities and school sites. These teachers’ and providers’ success stories illustrate the value of collaborative music teacher PD, and provide models for those seeking to create powerful PD experiences for music teachers as well as valuable collaborative learning experiences for preservice teachers. We hope these success stories are only a beginning of a list of great ideas in PD; we intend the ideas in this interest article to serve as a catalyst for JMTE readers in their efforts to create similar PD models, and to find and feature other innovative, effective PD structures in their own research and writing.

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Table 1.

Professional Development Participants and Providers Interviewed for Article

Name	State	Teaching position	Collaborative professional development
Elicia Spencer	California	High school music director, early career	TCAP (The California Arts Project): Collaboration within the fine arts
Philip Briatico	New York	Instrumental music teacher, mid-career	Individual collaboration with university personnel
Kathryn Richard	Florida	Elementary strings teacher, early career	Collaboration with other string teachers
Lisa Hunter	New York	University professor	District–university collaboration
Joanna Herrero	New Jersey	Elementary general music teacher, mid-career	Collaboration with other music teachers
Nancy Beitler	Pennsylvania	Middle school music educator, veteran teacher	Collaboration with middle school teachers across multiple subject areas
Heather Wickman and Lisa DuPrey	Michigan	Veteran P–12 music teachers	Collaborative action research with university personnel

Musical Professional Development

Because nearly all preservice music teacher education is music specific (i.e., music theory, history, instrument methods), the lack of music-specific PD is often jarring to early career in-service teachers. PD that neglects music may be missing a crucial element: Music making is a “potentially transformative professional development activity” (Pellegrino, 2011, p. 80). Elicia Spencer, music director at Vista del Lago (California) High School said working with other music teachers in The California Arts Project (TCAP) Collaborative Design Institute was unique because of its focus on musicality. She said working on musicianship and curriculum development with music teachers enabled them to personally experience improvisation, and create a series of units on teaching improvisation in general music, recorders, and string orchestra classes. Elicia’s previous PD was not musically oriented. She said,

While I did learn some important things about teaching in those programs, I felt that my content area wasn’t really taken seriously. Instruction was geared towards math, science, history, and English . . . having to adapt all material covered to fit my needs was quite the stretch.

In contrast, her TCAP experience allowed her to really focus on music and music teaching:

It was great collaborating with teachers in my content area. Completing instructional tasks with other music teachers made everything immediately relevant, and sometimes the tangents that we went off on in conversations were just as valuable as the task at hand!

Collaborative PD in music allows teachers to share their musicianship with one another, and to strengthen musical skills with others who share like goals. Elicia said one productive aspect of the TCAP institute was having all music teachers, including instrumental music educators, work with a vocal specialist on singing skills and voice technique. Similarly, Philip Briatico, an instrumental music teacher in Elba, New York, expressed interest to personnel at an area university—including author Alden Snell—in developing both his musicianship and teaching skills. Over an entire academic year, he used materials designed by Snell and fellow Eastman School of Music doctoral student colleague David Stringham to improve student musicianship and understanding of repertoire. In this model of personalized PD featuring individual attention and expert coaching, Snell and Stringham kept close contact with Philip via e-journals and classroom visits. Philip noted how he appreciated having ongoing communication with his university collaborators, how his score preparation skills improved, and how musicianship improved in his students and himself, saying, “It was a great experience. I just think that it really worked.”

Kathryn Richard, a Florida strings teacher for Meritas Family of Private Schools, was able to assist teachers with little strings teaching knowledge with development of their musicianship on stringed instruments. For example, she said,

I was charged this year with helping a teacher in Las Vegas learn how to play and teach the violin via Skype™ lessons twice a week. I was selected because [school administration] saw leadership potential in me from the beginning and wanted to give me experience in a leadership role working with another teacher.

Kathryn said musical skill building in violin technique, plus pedagogical ideas for incorporating solfège singing, notation reading, rhythm dictation, group technique, and learning new songs, resulted in a rich musical experience for the teachers she helped. Although teaching other teachers is undoubtedly a time-consuming, effortful task, one which should not be mandated or forced upon already over-burdened teachers, in this case Kathryn’s sense of personal growth and fulfillment as a professional were enhanced. This activity also counted toward her personal PD, which for Kathryn, justified her volunteering and her use of time in this endeavor: “I thought of it as helping even more kids love the violin.”

Sustained Professional Development

Long-term PD engagements are more powerful than short, “one-shot workshops” as they offer deeper learning opportunities for teachers (Garet et al., 2001; Guskey, 2000). For example, Elicia’s experience with TCAP was sustained, starting in summer 2010 and concluding in January 2011. Another sustained experience was the three-year PD program Buffalo State College Associate Dean Lisa Hunter created for teachers. Hunter, an administrator for Professional Development for Arts Educators (PDAE), a collaboration between art and music educators in the Buffalo Public School District (New York) and Buffalo State College art and music teacher education faculty, reported positive results after the 3-year duration of the PDAE. Lisa stated,

Now that the three-year program is finished, participants speak very positively about the experience. They report gaining new ideas, becoming better teachers, being able to confidently design and implement a standards-based lesson and how planning can truly have an impact on student learning.

As part of the PDAE, artists-in-residence regularly provided teachers with content-specific support, allowing for musical growth to be emphasized throughout the sustained PD.

Joanna Herrero, a Cherry Hills, New Jersey, music teacher, was asked to provide Orff-Schulwerk-themed PD for music colleagues in her district. She explained how her district implemented a sustained PD plan:

The idea was that instead of going to a PD day at the end of the year where you wouldn’t have an opportunity to implement any ideas until September (and might even forget everything), you could attend three two-hour sessions after school throughout some time frame during the year to learn about the topic and hopefully be able to implement ideas in between each session. That way, you could come back and report on what you were able to accomplish in the classroom and problem-solve any issues that came up.

Nancy Beitler, a Pennsylvania middle school music educator, established a Wiki-based and face-to-face collaborative network for teachers of various academic disciplines in her school. Nancy appreciated the group’s discussions pertinent to all student learning, not just in music. Awareness of what teachers in other disciplines are doing helped create community for Nancy, something music educators may lack in their frequently isolated settings.

Preservice music teachers are engaged in the most sustained example of PD—their undergraduate education. The knowledge and skills obtained during their undergraduate years serve as a representative example of how powerful sustained PD can be. As preservice music teachers entire the workforce, the importance of continued, sustained PD is a necessary disposition for lifelong learning.

Musical and Sustained Professional Development in the Form of Action Research

Music teachers who conduct research in their classrooms can provide musical and sustained PD for themselves. Collaborative action research is an effective form of PD (West, 2011). As part of a university partnership with seven teachers, three University of Michigan PhD students including author Scott Edgar, and music education professor Colleen Conway, P–12 music teachers Heather Wickman and Lisa DuPrey of Michigan conducted research studies with their students. Guided by curiosity and motivated by what they perceived as improved teaching, Heather and Lisa attempted to research questions they had about their classroom.

Heather said she developed an awareness of how important reflection in teaching is, “What fun is life if you’re not constantly looking at and questioning things and trying to figure out why things work?” Lisa found great benefit in collaborating with university researchers: “I think having you [Scott Edgar] point out what I don’t see is one of the most beneficial parts, because I’m in it all the time. Different aspects of the questions, different angles we can take. I think that’s really helpful.” The relevant, musical, and sustained PD initiative provided ways for participants to embrace the research experience and reflect on teaching.

Voluntary, With Teacher Choice

PD is most effective when participants enjoy choices about how and when they take part (Hammel, 2007). Although not all PD can be voluntary, when teachers know they have control over their own learning, they are more likely to accept and retain new teaching practices. Truly collaborative PD allows teachers to choose how they will participate, and in what type of role: leader, follower, group member. This allows for a view of PD going beyond merely checking off required hours; what Elicia Spencer called “busy work . . . hoops to jump through.”

One way to establish choice within PD is to establish scheduling options. Joanna Herrero explained her district’s “flex option” PD structure: teachers could choose to attend PD in shorter sessions throughout the academic calendar, rather than in day-long sessions at the end of the year:

Those who signed up for the flex option really wanted something that they could directly apply in their classroom- some fresh new (or at least different from their own) ideas . . . they were glad they could choose in-service applicable to what they do every day.

Giving teachers PD choice will often result in teachers picking the learning environment most beneficial to their growth, rather than just the simplest option. For example, Nancy Beitler’s colleagues in her collaborative reflection group participate in “time consuming” PD with a “huge accountability factor . . . not an easy road to credit hours.” She feels they persevere, despite the commitment required, because they make progress toward professional goals: “This group provides accountability in very appropriate ways . . . provid[ing] encouragement to stay focused on a goal and bring it to fruition.”

Similarly, Philip Briatico stated his choice to avail himself of personalized coaching from university doctoral students had a “huge influence” on what he did in the classroom, even though it was not required by his district: “I’m developing my musician skills at the postgraduate level. I mean, that’s great, and, I don’t have to do this . . . this is something I’m doing on my own.”

Preservice music teachers exit programs typically containing very little choice, and few truly voluntary elements. When stressing to preservice educators the importance of continued PD, an appealing element is that in-service teachers might think of “choosing their own adventure” as meaningful PD. Some early career teachers will likely struggle to identify their PD needs and their best PD options, requiring intervention from an experienced mentor, colleague, or administrator. Ultimately, however, personal choice and freedom in selecting PD opportunities will likely be attractive to early-career teachers and perhaps encourage their continued participation in sustained, meaningful PD.

Honoring Teacher Wisdom

Teachers bring a wealth of professional knowledge to their PD encounters. PD structured to build on the collective knowledge base that teachers hold is more effective than that which begins with the assumption teachers know nothing and need to be “re-trained” (Barrett, 2007). Joanna Herrero said she was conscious of teachers’ past practice and understanding, even as she presented new ideas, stating,

I was able to connect things with how someone using Music Learning Theory or Kodály might approach teaching similar skills. I was also extremely careful to present things as “one way” vs. “the way” and also to ask how the other teachers might take the same or a similar idea and make it more their own.

In Nancy Beitler’s collaborative reflection group, teachers work to find solutions to what she calls the “everyday problems in classrooms.” The group provides a “comfortable and productive setting for teachers to reflect on their teaching strategies and experiences,” she said; teachers choose goals and work with peers to achieve these goals over the course of a year. Teachers meet formally and informally to find answers to teaching dilemmas and assess one another’s progress, providing ideas and support. Nancy’s model of teachers-helping-teachers is not the typical expert-delivered PD workshop model, and confirms recent research (Gruenhagen, 2008, 2009; Stanley, 2012) as one way to build on the collective body of teacher knowledge.

Teacher or action research helps teachers add to their knowledge base by trying innovations in systematic, organized ways. These efforts are often more meaningful when shared with others. In Heather Wickman and Lisa DuPrey’s experience with teacher research, PhD students helped them design and implement studies, and reflect on the importance of classroom research. The teachers liked the university collaboration. They stressed the importance of connecting with others who valued their teaching experience and were willing to help them systematically and critically analyze their teaching practice. Sharing teacher knowledge with peers at the TCAP institute was crucial for Elicia Spencer:

The beauty of this institute was that we were able to share our prior knowledge and experiences with our colleagues. I learned so much from talking and performing music with the other music participants. We also shared teaching and classroom management strategies with each other.

To be sure, preservice music educators require expert-led instruction to learn necessary pedagogy and content knowledge to become music educators. Nevertheless, preservice music teacher educators should continue to examine ways to provide students with collaborative opportunities in which preservice teachers’ existing knowledge is used to improve learning and understanding. Collaborative structures for preservice teachers, including group reflection with fieldwork cohorts, focused conversations within student teaching seminars, collaborative teacher study groups (Stanley, 2012), “Looking At Student Work” groups (Allen & Blythe, 2004, or www.lasw.org) are similar to the real-world group activities in which teachers have to function (curriculum task forces, grade-level or subject-area committees, and faculty work groups), and give preservice educators insight into the sorts of collaborative sharing and collective construction of shared knowledge that characterize productive groups.

Reflection

The opportunity for reflection is a key concept in adult learning (Merriam, Caffarella, & Baumgartner, 2007). Building reflection into PD results in teachers better able to understand their own practice and the role of new ideas in improving student achievement:

I think that sometimes teaching is so fast paced that we sometimes forget to stop and reflect on what we are doing and how we can improve upon it. Reflection was a key component in the TCAP institute. We left no stone unturned, and we asked ‘why’ about everything that we did.

Elicia Spencer said the reflection built into the TCAP institute was one element separating this experience from everyday teaching.

PD providers, like Lisa Hunter who administered the PDAE, often create multiple reflection opportunities so teachers have many chances to examine and discuss their own learning. In the PDAE, participants completed written and oral reflections through evaluation forms, informal activities, communication notebooks, and videos. Nancy Beitler asked her teacher-collaborators to reflect openly once a month on a shared Wiki page:

The entry describes their progress with their goal, successes and challenges and sometimes calls for ideas for help. Each member is also required to respond to at least two of his or her peer’s entries. Most teachers will typically go beyond the required reflection entries.

Philip Briatico described his reflective process as increasing over time:

You start to get more and more reflective. So, I think the [one year duration] of this project was very beneficial. . . . I had this kind of meta-cognitive process. . . . I could reflect upon what was working, what wasn’t working . . . what am I actually doing here?

Contemporary teacher education practice places a high value on reflection. In many models of preservice education, teaching examples and episodes are examined, scrutinized, and reflected on using a variety of means and methods. Student teaching, field experiences, and increasingly, state certification requirements often call for detailed and sophisticated written reflection on teaching practice. Unfortunately, given the myriad demands of teaching jobs, this carefully inculcated disposition toward reflection largely disappears, unless it is emphasized in a sustained induction into the art of becoming a reflective practitioner. Preservice teachers should be encouraged to find mentors who can help them continue to reflect on their teaching; teacher educators can create ways to help their students understand that reflection can be much more than just an assignment, rather, a habit of mind and a source of inspiration and motivation.

Site-Specific Support

Efforts to improve teaching practice often founder on a lack of site-specific support (Penuel, Fishman, Yamaguchi, & Gallagher, 2007). Teachers find it difficult to implement new ideas when no one around them offers practical, local support. Collaboration with others from the same district or school helps teachers find ways to improve curricular implementation in particular groups of students and communities.

“One of the amazing things about this group is we become very aware of what others are doing and teaching in the building. We learn about new teaching and learning strategies from each other,” said Nancy Beitler. Nancy also explained the connection with other teachers in the building was unusual: “It’s an amazing feeling when someone shows interest in your goal; especially for those of us in the Arts department that tend to be very disenfranchised because of the nature of our discipline and location in the building.”

Sometimes site-specific support can be as simple as merely getting teachers together in the same room. Kathryn Richard said teachers in the Meritas program come together at least once a year to demonstrate new teaching ideas with students in Kathryn’s class. Having several people from one school participating in the same PD experience can give teachers more assistance in contextual implementation. For example, Elicia Spencer is fortunate to have in her building an art teacher who was on staff at the TCAP institute she attended: one nearby person she can go to for support in implementing new ideas.

Preservice music teachers experience a variety of site-specific issues through observations, practicum placements, and student teaching. Through collaboration with university faculty and in-service teachers, preservice music teachers should regularly reflect on aspects of music teaching and learning that are site-specific, not site-specific, and possibly a combination of both.

Mentoring

Effective PD often has a component of mentoring teachers differently according to where they are in their career life cycle (Conway, 2003; Eros, 2011). As teachers take on “mentor” and “mentee” roles, they codify their own knowledge in order to communicate it. The collaborative mentoring relationship is mutually beneficial; the mentor gains confidence and increased understanding of her teaching, and the mentored teacher benefits from that wisdom. Joanna Herrero said she got a great deal of satisfaction out of imparting her Orff-Schulwerk understanding, saying, “I think that I really just wanted to share part of the joy and wonder I get from experiencing Orff workshops, levels, and other PD with colleagues who haven’t necessarily had the opportunity.” Lisa Hunter said the PDAE project used mentors to honor past arts teaching practice in the district. By recognizing the effective teaching already occurring in city schools, it was easier to propose district-wide standards-based PD to enhance student learning and get buy-in from all stakeholders.

The idea of mentoring and assuming leadership roles have been suggested as valuable experiences for both the mentee and the mentor. The mentor can experience profound personal development as well (Conway & Holcomb, 2008). Kathryn Richard had a unique experience in being asked to take on a mentor role in her first year of teaching:

I was selected because [school administration] saw leadership potential in me from the beginning and wanted to give me experience in a leadership role working with another teacher . . . the most challenging for me was getting over thinking ‘she has 40 more years of teaching experience than I do’ and replacing it with ‘I can teach her about teaching the violin.’

Finally, Philip Briatico’s collaboration with Alden Snell and David Stringham reinforces the importance of music-specific mentoring. In fact, Philip stated, “the most informative thing that [researchers] need to glean from this [project]” was the fact that this PD experience was the only one in his career he could actually remember: a fact he called “almost embarrassing” but one that rings true for teachers who have encountered many unmemorable PD experiences.

Conclusion: Collaboration

All the positive aspects of music teacher PD mentioned in the preceding sections are reliant on collaboration for their success. Joanna Herrero’s Orff-Schulwerk workshops and Kathryn Richard’s best practice sharing sessions involve collaboration among music teachers within a school, district, or program. Elicia Spencer’s TCAP experience and Lisa Hunter’s PDAE project are examples of collaboration within all the fine arts. Nancy Beitler’s collaborative reflection group brings together groups of teachers from one school, representing a variety of curricular areas. Collaboration across P–12 grade levels is important in terms of understanding and aligning curriculum vertically; the TCAP institute and the PDAE project involved teachers from multiple grade levels. Collaboration among teachers in different career stages is rewarding; several PD projects in this article involved beginning and experienced teachers. The PDAE project, the TCAP institute, and the University of Michigan teacher/action research project involved collaboration between teachers, universities, and other stakeholders/providers.

Unfortunately, many PD structures are limited in efficacy because of a lack of meaningful musical content, or limited duration. Many structures de-emphasize teachers’ prior knowledge, fail to provide mechanisms for reflection, or are absent local support in implementing new ideas and classroom change. Collaborative PD can remedy these drawbacks by connecting teachers with a variety of helpful personal and professional contacts and resources. It can provide music teachers with strong networks of support they need to cyclically evaluate, assess, and alter their music teaching practice based on data and feedback from colleagues and students. Just as we want our students to be members of a caring classroom community, we should provide similar collaborative support for music educators working to learn: “What we want for our children, we should also want for their teachers” (Hargreaves, 1995, p. 27).

We suggest music teachers share these stories with their administration and advocate for musical, sustained, collaborative PD experiences. PD could be one of our profession’s best and most promising tools for increasing the musical achievement of students. The success stories in this article are examples of powerful learning opportunities, and provide excellent collaborative models for teachers, administrators, PD providers, and professors to consider.