In this article, we, culture bearers and music educators, discuss ways of using East Asian virtual musical instruments to promote culturally diverse music activities in classrooms. We introduce affordable tablet-based virtual instruments (Korean "hyang-piri," Chinese "erhu," and Japanese "koto") and hands-on music…

This article offers music educators ideas for supporting English learners in music classrooms. Music teachers across all grade levels work with English Learners, a diverse group of students with varied cultural and linguistic backgrounds. In the classroom, planning specific instructional supports can increase English Learners' participation and…

Policy is a critical practice that can be a valuable companion to music educators--alongside their pedagogical and content knowledge. This outlook challenges the position that teachers are subject to policy, reclaiming the necessity and value for teachers to see themselves as policy partners or policymakers in practice. The article explores three…

Students in the United States discuss popular music all the time, but often outside the music classroom. How can music educators bring those conversations into the classroom in ways that students find engaging and meaningful? Podcasts offer a potential solution. By taking on the role of the popular music podcaster, students enrich their…

The future of American music education may be found in its past--a time when music teachers instilled lifelong amateur music-making in their students. There are differences between amateur and professional musicianship, and the focus of American music education shifted from amateurism to semiprofessionalism in the mid-twentieth century. An…

This article critically examines the prevalent belief within music education that "music is for all," highlighting the incongruence between educators' intentions and students' lived experiences. Drawing on personal positionality and scholarly orientation, the author explores how music teachers may unintentionally disaffirm students'…

The National Coalition for Core Arts Standards released standards for music education in 2014. These standards are guided by artistic processes and measured by performance standards specific to content areas and grade levels. As school districts in the United States adopt the Core Arts Standards for their music programs, it is imperative that…

Curriculum is a representation of the ideas that drive music teachers' decisions in their planning and instruction. Yet some components of curriculum are never written down but are prevalent in a music teacher's instruction; these components are often called the null or hidden curricula. This article considers what these curricula are, how they…

Recognizing that music teachers may struggle to implement songwriting activities in a classroom, and that iconic notation provides an opportunity to increase access to school music for all students, the purpose of this article is to share one model of songwriting activities in a music technology class using chord diagrams, beat grids, and keyboard…

Music educators engage with policies and take policy actions on a daily basis. Better understanding their everyday policy contexts can empower music educators to interact with policies in ways that benefit students and local communities. In this article, we outline three main topics: (1) different types of policies and their associated…

Many K-12 teachers face hurdles when it comes to running a Modern Band, including the pedagogical challenges of facilitating large scale ensembles with unfamiliar repertoire and instruments. Approximation and scaffolding are two important tools teachers can use to help learners thrive in this environment. This article uses music examples to…

All states have some system of music teacher certification, and most, according to the 2018 "Analysis of State Music Education Certification Practices in the United States" from the National Association for Music Education, require broad-based music certification that includes both choral and instrumental music at levels K to 12.…

This article examines the NAfME Position Statement on Sacred Music in Schools, which has not been significantly updated since it was first published in 1984. Using genealogical inquiry, the author examines the conditions surrounding the construction of this document in relation to the conditions in the present. Relationships between the history of…

Teacher-focused accountability started to ramp up in the United States in 2007-2010 as the focus of accountability shifted from schools to individual teachers. Since that time, there has been a remarkable amount of change to the way that teachers are evaluated, and music teachers have been placed squarely under the microscope of accountability. In…

Music education majors at many universities in the United States take a course on education equity in or outside the music department. Sometimes called diversity course work, or classes on school access or school funding, these courses have syllabi that sometimes include topics such as unequal tax bases, white-savior narratives, class…