ERIC Number: EJ1436172
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2023-Nov
Pages: 14
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0265-0517
EISSN: EISSN-1469-2104
What Is Attractive about Becoming a Music Teacher? Exploring the Motivations of Pre-Service Music Teachers towards the Profession
British Journal of Music Education, v40 n3 p311-324 2023
Uncovering the motivations towards a profession may contribute to a better understanding of how the profession is chosen and will be pursued. However, the research on the attractiveness of the music teaching profession is rather limited and predominantly focused on identity development, thereby overlooking other aspects that may play a role. In pursuing a case study, my aim is to contribute to this field of research by investigating the views of pre-service music teachers enrolled at the University of Karlstad in Sweden. The results depict a unique motivational profile compared to their counterparts in other subjects. These differential aspects are threefold, indicating a high prevalence of 'extrinsic motivations' driving their choice of profession, that 'altruistic reasons' have lower significance as a motivating factor, and that there is a poor perceived relevance of these individuals' future profession. In addition, this study provides evidence of the prevalence of 'musician identities' over 'teaching identities' and foresees the dependence between the participants' motivation and their future students' progression. Moreover, I hypothesise that career changes and Pygmalion effects are to be expected if intrinsic motivation towards the profession is not fostered or if this population's motivation is linked to the progress of their students rather than the challenge of motivating them in the first place.
Descriptors: Music Education, Music Teachers, Preservice Teachers, Teacher Motivation, Career Choice, Foreign Countries, Altruism, Professional Identity, Career Change
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Sweden
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A