With the ever-growing diversity of students in our schools, so too are the cultures and experiences that our students bring with them into the classroom. Yet many teachers feel ill-equipped to teach their students in a culturally responsive way. This article includes strategies for music mentors to successfully mentor beginning teachers toward…

Music educators often look for ways to deepen students' understanding and artistic interpretations of repertoire. One way to engage students in discovery and dialogue about the music they perform is through connecting to the historical, cultural, and societal implications of primary sources. This article delves into resources from the Library of…

Professional learning communities (PLCs) are a prominent form of high-quality professional development (PD) that can provide opportunities for teachers to collaborate, share teaching strategies, reflect on teaching practices, and create mutually supportive and collegial teaching environments. PLCs hold much promise as a PD model for music…

Assessment is one of the thorniest aspects of teaching for creativity. Nevertheless, research suggests there is tremendous potential for nurturing creativity through assessment. This article identifies how music educators can leverage assessment for learning (formative assessment) as a powerful tool for cultivating creativity within a variety of…

Most music teachers desire to positively influence the development of their students' character; however, the practicalities of doing so have been understudied in music education. This article draws on research from the related field of sports education and presents possible strategies for developing strong character in music students. Cultivating…

Nearly fifty years ago, Timothy Gallwey published "The Inner Game of Tennis," which left an indelible mark on sports psychology; subsequently, Barry Green used similar principles to author "The Inner Game of Music." As far as can be determined, there lacks a concise guide that translates key insights from sports and music…

Teaching middle school choral music in a culturally diverse middle school in Hawaii resulted in new knowledge about welcoming the challenges posed by diversity to the benefit of both students and educator. Concise strategies described in this article are applicable to any music program.

This article presents a three-pronged strategy for teaching collective improvisation in the general music classroom through structured surround soundscapes. This strategy consists of developing socio-interactive skills, shared understanding, and personal music vocabulary in collective improvisation. In the music classroom, these concepts should be…

In 1989, Bennett Reimer wrote that there are three ways through which people can experience music: performing, listening, and composing. Similarly, in the current National Standards document, MENC [now the National Association for Music Education (NAfME)] identifies performing, creating, and responding to music as the "fundamental music…

This issue of "Idea Bank" asks: "Wouldn't it be wonderful if word of mouth were sufficient to sell music education--if students lined up outside the rehearsal spaces to enroll in the ensembles?" The reality is that people don't show up in music classrooms without motivation. Music educators need to understand what motivates…

Songwriting is a form of composition that relates directly to adolescents' personal experience of music. This article provides a rationale for establishing courses in songwriting at the middle school and high school levels. Other topics in the article include curriculum development, instructional procedures, and assessment. The article ends with…

In performance-focused ensemble classrooms, students and teachers often work toward convergent solutions (e.g., accurate notes and rhythms, agreeing on interpretation). Hierarchical structures may be in place in which it is considered inappropriate to question or disagree with an interpretation set forth by the leader. Teaching composition, in…

This article offers instrumental directors at all levels some suggestions for the use of movement to facilitate "beat competency". We use the term beat competency to refer to a musician's ability to play with a consistent sense of pulse and balanced subdivision, as well as the eventual ability to bring that sense of pulse to reading…

Choral music educators can purposefully create a learning environment that helps minimize the anxieties of young singers. According to Parker Palmer, "to teach is to create a space" that possesses three qualities: hospitality, openness, and boundaries. Choral music educators can influence these characteristics by applying five strategies…

Growth mindset, or the belief that talents and abilities are malleable and can grow, is known to hold immense benefits in the world of education. What benefits could it hold for our students' musical growth as well? This article explores the many benefits of instilling a growth mindset into our ensembles by examining research in educational…