Reflection: Challenging exclusionary paradigms in the traditional musical canon: Implications for music education practice

Reflection: Challenging exclusionary paradigms in the traditional musical canon:

Implications for music education practice

Summary

The purpose of this study is too address culturally responsive teaching “based on a perspective of social justice and equitable access for all students” (Kindall-Smith M., McKoy C.L., Mills S.W., 2011, p. 374). The article presents two cases, one being historical and the other being pedagogically, in examining culturally responsive teaching.

Western European culture has largely shaped music education in the United States as outside cultures have been misrepresented or ignored. As Johnson (2000) suggests, by ignoring other cultural influences, stereotypes become the prevailing view of non-Western European Cultures. The examples presented are (1) the history and cultures that shape Appalachian music and (2) the preparation of music teachers in regards to diversity. The authors suggest that the solutions to these issues are found through the social justice approach to music education as laid out by Nieto and Bode (2008):

“Challenge misconceptions, untruths, and stereotypes that lead to structural inequality and discrimination based on race, social class, gender, and other social and human differences;”

“Provide all students with equitable access to instructional and educational resource;”

“draw on students’ talents and strengths to increase learning;”

“foster a learning environment that promotes critical thinking and supports agency for social change.” (Kindall-Smith M., McKoy C.L., Mills S.W., 2011, p. 375)

Kindall-Smith M., McKoy C.L., Mills S.W (2011) go on to “propose that the development of best practices in music education across multiple demographic and cultural settings requires a conceptual understanding of music teaching and learning based on a perspective of social justice, equitable access, and culturally-responsive instruction for all students of music and music education.” (p. 375). Within this, there are five dimensions of teaching and learning that define the educational environment and are affected by race, ethnicity, and culture, they are: Teacher, student, content, instruction, and context.

The first case presented in the article is the history and teaching of Appalachian Music. Appalachian songs and games collected from 1938 – 1973 by Professor Leonard W. Roberts have been shown to neglect the cultural influences of African Americans. The songs that Roberts presented did not give credit or mention their origin in African American cultural. This was partly due to the fact that these songs and games were collected from white segregated schools. This misrepresentation forms an inaccurate depiction of African Americans and White in the Appalachian. As suggest by historians, artifacts and writings of both White culture and African American culture were mixed in all aspects of their lives (except education). The implications of this also reach much further than Appalachian music. The purposeful exclusion of non-white cultural influences on Appalachian music bring into question all music used in schools. The “musical canon” within schools is traditionally seen as predominantly White European. This status quo needs to be reexamined and put into more culturally accurate or diverse representation.

In addition to the historical perspective of Appalachian music and its contribution to the “traditional musical canon”, the pedagogical approach to teaching within urban settings has not been adequately addressed in teacher education programs, affecting both expectations and performance. Gay’s (2002) conclusion found that culturally responsive teaching is ‘more of an attitude than method in working with students of color’. Also, teachers, in order to be most effective, need to understand their ‘deficiencies’ and adapt to effectively teach in diverse classrooms.

Using social justice within the urban classroom can be effective in reaching to students of color. The article references a situation in which the teacher used West Side Story to teach social justice. Students discussed issues that appear in both the musical and the student’s communities.

Changing the landscape of education through more culturally responsive teaching is to be accomplished by “pre-service music teacher preparation and, subsequently, in-service music teaching practice.” Cited as an example of culturally responsive pre-service teaching is the Manguang String Program in South Africa in which teachers gain experience teaching “Black African folk melodies and pedagogy feature(ing) an aural learning approach, honoring the transmission authentic to the Black folk tradition” Kindall-Smith M., McKoy C.L., Mills S.W., 2011, p. 381).

Response

The traditional musical canon of concert band music is predominantly made up of white male composers. While selections within the traditional canon may have multicultural backgrounds (i.e. Variations on a Korean Folk Song) the composers and/or arrangers often come from the western European decent. Teaching to a 99.9 % black population, I find it difficult to discover music that reflects or represents the students I serve. The history of bands in the U.S. began with military bands, made almost entirely of white musicians. In fact, the development of Jazz in the early 1900’s was in part due to the discrimination of black musicians in both bands and orchestras/opera’s. Given this history and the lack of diversity among composers, I struggle to find a place for band music in the culture that I teach. Questions that I have considered when selecting music: Will this music enrich the students’ music making and life? What perceptions will be made by selecting this piece? How will this piece contribute to the culture of the band/classroom?

In regards to the traditional music canon, I have also found a cultural gap between the traditional or folk songs presented in the beginning method books and its familiarity among my students. I have found that many of the songs I came to know as a child are not known to the students I teach. With this, I am careful in my assumptions and avoid using my background knowledge/experience as a norm or a standard in which to hold my students to. Those students who are familiar with the song have an inherent advantage over students that do not know the song. A student that is able to hear the song in their ear will play the song with more accuracy than students without prior knowledge.