Abstract
Real-world experiences, such as situated learning, fieldwork, and student teaching have been among the most prevalent examples employed in teacher preparation programs. Despite the increasing evidence in support of service learning in music teacher preparation, there are a limited number of models specific to instrumental music education. The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of participants in one such model, called Band Project. Participants included preservice music educators, young band students, and one lead teacher who also served as the instrumental music teacher at the school. The research question that guided this investigation was as follows: In what ways do participants in an afterschool band project describe their experience? Four themes emerged from analysis of data: (a) Relationships and Community, (b) Challenges and Tensions, (c) Aspirations, and (d) Transformations. Findings reinforced the importance of service learning for preservice music educators, particularly amid growing concerns for cross-cultural awareness, inclusion, and social justice in music teacher preparation.
Keywords
I have found that teaching generally is 95% of the time awesome and it’s the only thing I want to do, contrasted by the other 5% of the time when I freeze up and I don’t know what I got myself into. I guess Band Project has helped me figure out that I actually want to be a music teacher instead of just thinking I want to be a music teacher. (Mr. P., Band Project Apprentice Teacher
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What happens when you ask music education students to volunteer for a service-learning teaching project, where no credit is given, where the demographics of the students and school are different than they are accustomed to, and the instructional focus centers on composition and improvisation? This is Band Project. It is not a typical music education practicum experience because it is not firmly attached to a course, nor do students receive course credit for their work. The music education students who volunteer do it because they are motivated to serve others, gain knowledge and skills related to teaching, and share music with underserved students who happen to be young band students.
Real-world experiences, such as situated learning, fieldwork, and student teaching are among the most prevalent examples employed in teacher preparation programs. Movements toward bringing field experiences earlier into undergraduate teacher preparation have been described by several authors (Conkling, 2007; Conway, 2002; Nierman, Zeichner, & Hobbel, 2002). Service learning has been used to describe learning models that integrate classroom lessons with experiential work initiatives in which one population provides support or assistance to another (Root & Furco, 2001). I use service learning in the current study to describe an afterschool Band Project in which preservice music teachers provided instruction to beginning band students. This partnership was designed to support the music development of young band students and pedagogical skills for preservice teachers in a program that supplemented the school’s existing music program.
As Burton and Reynolds (2009) noted, a key component of service learning is that it be mutually beneficial to those being served and preservice teachers. Additional benefits for preservice teachers have included opportunities for personal growth, intellectual growth, and a deeper commitment to teaching (Bartolome, 2013; Reynolds, 2004). Examples of service-learning initiatives within music education have included methods courses in which preservice teachers work with homeschool students (Feen-Calligan & Matthews, 2016), preschool children with and without disabilities (Bartolome, 2013), elementary school settings with no music teacher (Burton & Reynolds, 2009), and correctional facilities (Nichols & Sullivan, 2016). Examples of outside of methods courses have included collaborations with performance majors (Burton & Reynolds, 2009) and community initiatives such as String Project (Byo & Cassidy, 2005). Reynolds (2004) and Siebenaler (2005) suggested that activities such as music performance and teaching are naturally aligned with service-learning principles.
On a larger scale, service-learning efforts have been found to foster an awareness of inequality, providing pathways to issues such as cross-cultural competence, social justice, and civic engagement (McKoy, 2013). As a result of their involvement in a university-sponsored service-learning program, participants developed skills including empathy, patience, respect, and trust (Einfeld & Collins, 2008). Einfeld and Collins also found interactions among participants and their clients yielded a commitment to continue civic engagement, suggesting that benefits of service learning include building support for positive change.
According to McKoy (2013), “Developing cross-culturally competent music teachers goes directly to the heart of what it means to prepare music teachers who recognize and value” the experiences and knowledge students bring to the music learning process (p. 389). Service learning, then, can translate knowledge gained in the classroom into real-world settings as new teachers enter their classroom amid a growing diversity of student backgrounds and increasing number of students of low socioeconomic status. In their review of service learning in teacher education, Root and Furco (2001) described an increased commitment to teaching, improved attitudes toward diversity and social justice as one outcome of service learning.
Research in music teacher education has often overlooked underserved students, including urban students, those in high poverty schools, and students of color, thereby leaving out important voices (Kindall-Smith, McKoy, & Mills, 2011). Underrepresentation of people of color among those in and entering the profession further has been found to exacerbate the disparity between teachers and students in urban settings (Elpus, 2015; Kindall-Smith et al., 2011).
Despite the evidence in support of service learning as an important component in music teacher preparation (Butin, 2006; Conway, 2002; Reynolds & Conway, 2003), there are a limited number of models specific to instrumental music education. Furthermore, there is a need to better understand the impact of service learning on participants in instrumental settings—preservice music educators as well as the students with whom they interact. Given Kindall-Smith’s (2004) claim about the hesitancy of preservice music teachers choosing to work in urban schools, the setting of the current study in a high-poverty school was aimed at deepening the understanding and knowledge of the preservice teachers with regard to underserved student populations. The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of an afterschool program, called Band Project, on preservice music teachers and their beginning band students in a high-poverty school. The research question that guided this investigation was as follows: In what ways do participants in an afterschool band project describe their experience?
Method
Instrumental case study design facilitated examination of the impact of Band Project on apprentice teachers 2 as well as beginning band students who participated, conveying the particularity and complexity of this case (Creswell, 2013). Band Project took place at Twin Rivers 3 School twice weekly. As of 2017, Twin Rivers was a high-poverty school 4 (National Center for Education Statistics, 2017) in a large urban center in the upper Midwest. Eighty-five percentage of the student population received free and reduced-price lunch; 44% received English Language Learner services; student race included 58% Hispanic, 28% Black, and 24% Native American, White, and Asian American (School website). This setting allowed for the college students to work with a student population much different from their own, thereby broadening their experience of diverse student populations. Situating Band Project at Twin Rivers School aligned with the mission of the land-grant university in a large urban area, charged with serving citizens of (State).
Band Project took place after school on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Two sessions were held each day with a short break in between, during which time some students moved to or from another afterschool class as part of the school’s Community Education Program. Young band students attended one or two sessions each week and were in Grades 4 through 6 with 1 or 2 years of playing experience. Instruments included flute, clarinet, saxophone, trumpet, baritone, trombone, and percussion. All instruments and supplies were provided by the school at no or minimal cost to students. Apprentice teachers arranged their teaching schedule in conjunction with their university classes—some taught four sessions each week, while others were available to teach only one. This fluidity allowed for inclusion of more apprentice teachers and band students than if they were required to be present for all sessions. Student schedules were coordinated by James, Twin Rivers band director and lead teacher for Band Project, and (Sindberg, 2016), university faculty and program director. Creative processes, along with an emphasis on learning and playing by ear, served as the curricular touchstone for Band Project. Instructional materials were designed in consultation with James and included documents for planning and assessing, a tune lexicon, and “All Ears Improvisation, Aural Training, and the Creative Process” (Sturm, n.d.). The tune lexicon was an internal, open-access resource that included simple songs and pop tunes, and was expanded as apprentice teachers contributed songs (often popular tunes that their students wanted to learn). “All Ears: Improvisation, Aural Training, and the Creative Process” was a pdf that included instructional strategies designed to facilitate improvisation and listening (https://tritonejazz.files.wordpress.com/2008/02/all-ears-tritone.pdf). All instructional resources were contained in a Google Doc file as well as provided to apprentice teachers in hard copy form. Echoing short patterns was often used as a first step in teaching short melodies by ear. These melodies also formed the basis for creating variations as a stepping stone to composition. The tune lexicon was expanded as apprentice teachers contributed songs (often popular tunes that their students wanted to learn). Instructional emphasis was placed on skill development through the use of composition, improvisation, and aural activities. Lesson planning materials helped frame each lesson, but each lesson was informed by student input, providing a dynamic context for teaching and learning.
Each instructional period was approximately 40 minutes, which was followed by large group sharing in which students and their teachers performed whatever it was they worked on. Apprentice teachers worked with small groups of students, usually two to three in each group, primarily in homogenous groupings. James and I were present during all teaching sessions providing support to students and apprentice teachers as needed to assist with managing students or supply teaching modifications.
Analysis of Data
Indeed, 11 music education students participated in the study as apprentice teachers, 4 of whom agreed to be interviewed, and 22 young band students participated in the study, 6 of whom were interviewed. Data collection took place over a period of 5 months, the instructional period of the second semester (January through May). All participants were self-selected, and institutional review board procedures were followed in securing consent of all participants.
Each apprentice teacher was interviewed twice, five young band students were interviewed once, and James was interviewed once. Two focus group meetings of apprentice teachers allowed for interactive discussion. All interviews and focus group meetings were recorded and transcribed for analysis. In addition, video data were collected after the first 4 weeks of instruction and again 4 weeks later, and included lessons and short performances during large group sharing for a total of 18 videos spanning 35 seconds to 2 minutes. In addition to conducting interviews and facilitating focus group meetings, I observed lessons, took fieldnotes, and collected artifacts. Artifacts included apprentice teacher reflections, student compositions, self-assessments, and lesson plans. An external auditor reviewed excerpts of raw and coded data to confirm emerging themes and serve as an additional verification strategy. Multiple data sources facilitated triangulation, while various and sustained interactions enabled me to establish rapport with the participants, as advocated by Glesne (2011).
I served as primary investigator as well as program director for Band Project. As program director, I was responsible for recruiting apprentice teachers, organizing instructional materials, and crafting a teaching schedule with my colleague at Twin Rivers School. I entered the research process with a deep interest in collaboration with public school instrumental teachers in forging service-learning opportunities part of my work as a music education professor. These values speak to my bias as a researcher; however, memo writing throughout data collection and analysis helped provide full disclosure of the research process, particularly in my role as participant-observer and veteran teacher.
Data were coded using multiple methods and cycles, informed by Saldaña (2016). A multicycle coding scheme helped in identifying themes: during the first cycle of coding, I used descriptive, in vivo (Saldaña, 2016), and deductive methods (LeCompte & Schensul, 2013); eclectic and pattern methods in the second coding cycle enabled me to refine and develop categories. As I read through the data multiple times, coding and categorizing, I identified four themes: (a) Relationships and Community, (b) Tensions and Challenges, (c) Aspirations, and (d) Transformations.
Findings
The research question that guided this inquiry was as follows: In what ways do participants in an afterschool band project describe their experience? The theme of Relationships and Community was used to describe interactions among apprentice teachers, students, and lead teachers. Tensions and Challenges chronicled myriad interruptions to the teaching and learning process, from attendance and behavior to fatigue and inexperience, all of which affected Band Project on any given day. Aspirations included accounts of goals and intentions, some of which were short-term and others that envisioned intentions over time. Finally, Transformations described ways in which apprentice teachers and students changed during their participation in Band Project. Apprentice teachers are identified by Ms. or Mr. and first initial, and students are referred to by first name.
Relationships and Community
Relationships and Community described interactions among students, apprentice teachers, and lead teachers and on a more intangible level, the feeling of the place where we worked together. Apprentice teachers expressed the importance of knowing their students as foundational to their work in Band Project. Examples were apparent in the ways apprentice teachers talked with and about their students, analysis of videos, and informal opportunities to speak with apprentice teachers or students outside Band Project sessions. In one focus group meeting, Ms. E. described her interactions before and after small group lessons as meaningful: “the time I would spend before a lesson or after a lesson and ask them how’s school going, that was really helpful.” She continued by comparing those interactions with the particular dynamics of her group: . . . in the group lesson too you see them with their friends and some of them would like to have fun but some of them are more shy, so it was interesting to see them in the group dynamic. (Ms. E., Focus group)
Interviews, reflections, and focus group meetings reinforced the importance of discovering the idiosyncrasies of each student, and apprentice teachers valued sharing what they were learning about their students. Relationships evolved over time, such as in the way Mr. S. described getting to know one of his students. William was a second-year Band Project student who switched from trumpet to trombone: When I first met him I thought he would be challenging . . . I’ve worked with challenging students before, but not in music. I think at the beginning he was interested to find out what the limitations of my patience were. I hope he has realized that my limitations are pretty far—that he is not likely to get me to lose my patience. I think it caused him to focus more. One day I worked with just William and he really, really wants to work things out on his own. (Mr. S., Interview)
Their awareness of students as individuals reflected a level of maturity unusual for preservice teachers: I’ve learned that kids can be very opinionated; some of them either have their heart set on learning certain songs/doing certain activities, other kids might resist certain songs/activities. Sometimes, kids are shy, distracted, or disengaged; I’ve learned how to interact with my regular students in different ways to excite them, convince them, calm them, or whatever type of attitudinal direction they need, to make some kind of music during our time together. (Ms. M., Reflection)
Relationships and Community were apparent in videos and observations. In one video, collected during a large group sharing, Maria introduced “Have Fun,” a piece she wrote with her teacher: “My name is Maria,” her teacher introduced himself, “and we’re playing a song called ‘Have Fun.’ Written by me . . . and him” (she added quietly just before beginning the performance). After performing for her peers, there was applause and cheers. Maria stood to take a bow and her teacher smiled (Video #1).
One of the repeating patterns in video data was the laughter and enjoyment that the students showed before, after, and occasionally during performances. Many were able to laugh at small mistakes they made while playing, and most of the students seemed to enjoy giving performances, although some appeared more nervous than others. The students appeared to be compatible with the teachers they worked with and often responded positively to the teachers’ guidance. Community was evident as apprentice teachers shared ideas and strategies during planning meetings and often while traveling to Twin Rivers School. Apprentice teachers, James, and myself frequently talked after the band students left for their buses. In an interview, Ms. E. described the impact of this sharing: It has been helpful to have a safe environment to experiment with different games and ideas. Also, this year there is definitely an increase in the dialogue that occurs amongst apprentice teachers. That has been super-helpful to me because I love hearing about the different games they tried and just getting a change to collaborate on different ideas for specific instruments. (Interview)
Dialogue among apprentice teachers, interactions among apprentice teachers and their students, and comments by band students (“we are all nice to each other even though we don’t know each other”) evidenced the role of community and the importance of positive relationships. Many apprentice teachers commented that forming positive relationships with students was the most rewarding aspect of their work in Band Project.
Tensions and Challenges
Participants described myriad tensions and challenges during the period of data collection. Apprentice teachers cited writing lesson plans, meeting the needs of students at different skill levels, scheduling conflicts, fatigue, and student behavior. Ms. N. described her biggest challenge as “dealing with things that I didn’t have any control over” (Focus group). Feeling overwhelmed by their own school demands made it difficult for some apprentice teachers to have what they believed to be adequate energy for their work at Twin Rivers: Some days, I would just be so tired. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to go, but I was so drained. And then, I would get into the lesson. I love being around the kids, but I could tell that I wasn’t being the best that I could be because of extenuating things, too many tests, or whatever . . . (Ms. E., Reflection)
Communication among students and apprentice teacher was challenging in that students did not readily express their difficulties verbally. Apprentice teachers described challenges with finding a balance between material that was difficult enough to keep their students focused and engaged but not so difficult as to frustrate them and struggled with finding ways to reach each of their students. “I sometimes have trouble getting them focused and enthusiastic” (Ms., L., Reflection) and “Students giving up easily if things get too hard” (Mr. P., Reflection) were observed in lessons and mentioned by several apprentice teachers. “If they are bored, they become disruptive very quickly. If they get frustrated, it becomes difficult to work with them” (Mr. S., Interview). Band Project students verbalized their challenges to their apprentice teacher.
Ms. E. referenced a conversation she and some of her colleagues had with James, in which he offered suggestions on helping students improvise: “He’s like, ‘You know, it can be just one note. You could just improvise a rhythm and it would still be awesome’” (Interview). During a flute group lesson, when Ms. S. asked “what is hard about playing ‘Lean on Me,’ G. said that ‘Everything’ was hard and Ms. S. responded by assuring them, ‘You guys can do it, though’” (Lesson video transcript). Students appeared to verbalize difficulties to their apprentice teacher in small groups much more so than during interviews.
Inconsistent attendance on the part of the young band students was a persistent challenge, and seemed to slow progress and inhibit relationship building. Teaching spaces varied from 1 week to the next. Sometimes lessons took place in the choir room, which had the advantage of space to allow students to work independently; however, this large space also offered many distractions and was not always available. Lessons took place in hallways, practice rooms, the band room, and a small room that also contained an elevator. It was not unusual to face multiple challenges at once or for student behavior to vary considerably from one day to another, and Ms. M. captured one such example in a reflection: I’m learning that I need to use different approaches to deal with the various moods and attitudes of my students, and that has been an ongoing challenge, particularly with students I see infrequently. Another challenge is balancing teaching good technique and making music. My key objectives are always learning songs, but along the way, I need to teach them good embouchure, holding position, posture, and playing habits. I try to keep the focus of the lesson always on learning music, but I usually pick a subsidiary “theme” that recurs during the lesson. (Ms. M., Reflection)
When asked to describe what they found challenging, young band participants listed difficulty remembering notes and fingerings. This was also observed in teaching videos, where some students would play with their teacher by watching their fingerings. In one video, students struggled with accuracy while playing short patterns during a warm-up, “perhaps because they can’t just watch Ms. M.’s fingers.” Data indicated that challenges and tensions described by participants diminished over time.
Aspirations
Apprentice teachers and their students were frequently invited to articulate goals and reflect on their growth. The third theme, aspirations, described hopes and goals expressed by participants. Aspirations expressed by apprentice teachers were often related to practical teaching matters but also included connecting with students. Gathering strategies to improve instruction, knowledge about secondary instruments, classroom management, and incorporating composition and improvisation were among those most-often stated goals. One example was provided by Mr. S., who expressed a desire “to get more comfortable teaching lessons . . . learn as many practical tips and techniques as I can” (Interview). Another apprentice teacher’s aspirations were centered on the vision she had for her students: I hope they are learning it takes practice to improve . . . that was kind of evident with the One Direction song . . . a couple of them practiced it and really worked on it. And I hope they are learning how to have fun being a musician. (Ms. E., Interview)
In this quote, Ms. E. expressed a vision for her students beyond the confines of Band Project sessions. Mr. P. took a reflective approach in describing his aspirations. His comment indicated a sophisticated level of pedagogical understanding: Teach like it’s an art. Right now I feel like I am getting good results, but it doesn’t feel very fluid. Some days are better than others, so I guess that shows that I am growing. But when I watch really good teachers I just want to be like them—not sure how to get there but it’s a goal. (Mr. P., Reflection)
Student aspirations were often expressed in relation to songs they wanted to learn or activities they enjoyed and were most often conveyed verbally to their respective apprentice teacher. Students also completed reflections following each lesson, and described something they would like to work on (“I want to work on another well-known song by just hearing it first”) and their favorite part of the day (“ . . . playing Taylor Swift song We Are Never Getting Back Together”). Student reflections listed preferences for playing and learning popular songs, such as “Green Onions,” “Lean on Me,” and “Louie, Louie.” They also expressed interest in activities like mouthpiece buzzing, holding the longest note contests, and composing. Student participants often wrote that they wanted to learn something “new,” whether a song or activity; “having fun” was a commonly expressed aspiration.
Transformations
Examples of transformation were evident with apprentice teachers and students alike, but in different forms. Apprentice teachers and students became less tentative and more confident in their teaching, in their relationships with one another, and better equipped to explore composition and improvisation with their students. Each of the apprentice teachers talked about the growth they saw in their students as they talked about transformation. Ms. K. described a collaborative atmosphere among her students, which was not present initially: All of my students, when they were there, you know, they came a long way. I mean, there was always different groups, and there were some times when they didn’t get along initially, but by the end they were helping each other figure things out and teaching that work I don’t have to do. (Ms. K., Focus group)
James observed that Band Project students demonstrated increased curiosity about their instruments, asking about the origins of the flute, and “did you know there is such a thing as a sackbut?” He also observed a ripple effect in which Band Project students would come to large group rehearsals and play their Band Project songs as other students noticed and asked to learn the same song. One example was the Oompa Loompa song, 5 which a group of trombone students were learning with Mr. S. “I get to see the seeds spread . . . another benefit to my students, to the program, in there is a different sense of responsibility” (James, Interview). He expressed surprise on seeing a composition by Maria, a clarinet student: “Remember when she came in with that composition? She was all proud of it, and wanted to play it at the Showcase, and teach it to other kids? That came out of nowhere . . . ” (Interview). James was unaware that Maria had been working on a composition. Her teacher believed Maria’s transformation would not have been possible without her participation in Band Project.
The Band Project Showcase highlighted student transformation in many ways. Held on campus at the end of April, this culminating event allowed for sharing the work of students and apprentice teachers with a public audience. In a post-Showcase focus group discussion, apprentice teachers described a high level of excitement among their students: “They seemed more confident on stage than they normally do . . . they were a lot more enthusiastic about actually performing in the recital hall” (Mr. S., Focus group). The Showcase was followed with a luncheon and sharing of thank-you notes written by the students. One student, Jordan, wrote to his apprentice teacher, “I wouldn’t be a successful trumpet player without you.” While all students presented their apprentice teachers with individually composed notes, Mr. S. received a two-page thank you note from one of his students, Lisa, in which she detailed areas of growth and overall appreciation for her apprentice teacher’s work.
Their ability to observe growth in their students was informed by the apprentice teachers’ knowledge of and positive relationships with their students. Ms. S. described each of her four clarinet students and the ways they approached composition: “ . . . and Daniel, he knows exactly what he wants to do, he wants to add dynamics . . . ” Mr. S. provided a poetic account of his transformation from the beginning to the conclusion of his work in Band Project, capturing both uncertainty and resilience: I think when I first started it was the equivalent of going down a flight of stairs in pitch darkness . . . you have a vague idea of what you’re doing, but you’re not quite sure where the next step is, and so my plan at the beginning was very, very skeletal with just some simple jottings, but once I knew the students I knew what they would be interested in. I knew what their abilities were. That made it easier to play . . . sometimes the students would have suggestions. When they would have a suggestion it was like, “OK, next week I will figure out how to teach that.” (Mr. S., Reflection)
Discussion
The purpose of this study was to explore the experience of an afterschool program, Band Project, on preservice music teachers and young band students. Relationships and community provided a positive impact and various challenges contributed a negative impact on Band Project participants. Findings were consistent with previous studies describing benefits of service learning and its potential for improving music teacher preparation (Bartolome, 2013; Burton & Reynolds, 2009; Feen-Calligan & Matthews, 2016; Nichols & Sullivan, 2016; Reynolds, 2004). Benefits described by Kilgo (2015) were echoed in findings of this study, including promoting teacher development through engagement with faculty outside class, learning experiences that integrated skill development, and interaction with peers.
Research has shown that service learning is a conduit for promoting relationships among university, school, preservice teachers, and community (Bartolome, 2013; Reynolds, Jerome, Preston, & Haynes, 2005). Data confirmed that a significant impact of Band Project was the importance of relationships and community as a foundation for the teaching and learning that took place. Relationships among participants were symbiotic—apprentice teachers brought music knowledge and expertise while students brought their discrete interests. This was consistent with the findings of Vickers, Harris, and McCarthy (2004). Descriptions in which apprentice teachers expressed increased compassion and concern for their students echoed the potential of service learning to promote caring, empathy, patience, trust, and respect has been articulated by other authors (Einfeld & Collins, 2008; Root & Furco, 2001). Videos, interviews, and focus group meetings accentuated the importance of developing relationships with students. Informal conversations before and after Band Project provided space in which apprentice teachers could share their experience, further solidifying the importance of relationships and community.
Development of skills and knowledge in a real-world context have been among the benefits of service learning described by authors (Barnes, 2000; Reynolds, 2004). This study answered the call for more examples of service learning (Bartolome, 2013; Burton & Reynolds, 2009) and expanded curricular focus to include composition and improvisation. Apprentice teachers developed skills and knowledge while also developing the ability to respond in the moment as challenges arose. James described the impact of Band Project on his students from his distinct vantage point as their band director, observing that his students were improving their instrumental technique, asking music questions rather than technical ones, and that their willingness to be creative was increasingly apparent.
Service learning can bring preservice educators into settings which may be outside their life experience and may serve as a transition to teaching; such was the case with Band Project. The more informed preservice teachers can be in relation to cultural competency, the more effective they can be in the classroom. Transformations described in the previous section indicated the apprentice teachers developed skills that will contribute to their effectiveness in the classroom, particularly in working with underserved students.
Growing evidence has pointed to service learning as a means toward developing cross-cultural awareness (Kilgo, 2015; McKoy, 2013); however, the extent to which discussions about their experience led to cross-cultural awareness on the part of apprentice teachers was uncertain. In general, apprentice teachers’ comments were not focused specifically on their students as underserved, but they did indicate a growing understanding of students’ strengths, needs, and interests. It is possible that the apprentice teachers did not talk more specifically about working in a high-poverty school because they were focused on their individual students and meeting their needs.
Implications
Those entering the profession are confronted with increasing expectations for meeting teacher standards and navigating challenging contexts amid a growing diversity of student background and socioeconomic status. The merging of expectations for new teachers and realities of urban classrooms results in a curriculum that is complex and crowded. For example, if music teachers are expected to incorporate composition and improvisation in their practice, they need to have opportunities to develop skills and knowledge to do so. Being able to practice developing these skills in Band Project helped undergraduate students gain confidence in teaching composition and improvisation. Preservice teachers may experience a disconnect between curricular approaches in methods courses and practices of instrumental music teachers. Service-learning models such as Band Project provide one way to address increasing expectations while in the field.
The learning part of service learning was a process that unfolded over time. The Band Project model introduced music education students to real-world settings and provided space to explore different or new ways to teach. Additional research could examine the ways in which apprentice teachers carry their service-learning experiences into their own classrooms and shift their thinking in significant ways. Mr. S. provided one example: I was thinking about in Intro how we can teach a different way than we were taught. Instead of the way you [we] were taught to teach. It’s a lot of work, to try and teach differently than how you were taught. I am trying to do that with Band Project. (Mr. S., Reflection)
Amid ever-increasing calls for cross-cultural awareness, inclusion, and social justice in music settings, there also exists a need to build community. While their experience in Band Project was individually constructed and personally meaningful, the importance of relationships and community echoed the loudest among participants. The most compelling implication of all was having the opportunities to foster positive relationships, community, and caring. This was expressed by an apprentice teacher: One of the best things is when kids feel good about themselves and what they are doing. I get excited when my clarinet players are using the pads of their fingers rather than the tips to cover tone holes, but that isn’t anywhere near as fulfilling as when the students get excited about what they’re doing and feel proud of their accomplishments. (Ms. M., Reflection)
Footnotes
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The author declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The author received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
