Leading Music Education International Conference

Teacher as Champion: The Culture of the Music Classroom

My research poster focuses on the numerous factors that influence high school teenagers in music programs, including self/peer relations, home and family, their extended community, as well as teachers and administrators. The music classroom is a program unto itself: on one hand, a place to learn the skills that enhance students to become better musician, while on the other a culture that takes on its own identity. Music teachers have played an important part in the creation of this identity. Yet in our new post-modern classroom, the long-established role of the music teacher is no longer the sole champion of the program; rather, they have taken on a new role, one that shares the responsibility of creating and maintaining the culture of the classroom with numerous partners, including the student and the broader community. The research is divided into three sections: the first defines and examines the role of the music teacher first as a modern educator, then looks at what today’s music classroom appears to be, and the role of the music teacher as an transformational educator and champion in the post-modern organization; the second section identifies key culture concepts within the music classroom and program and how students both influence and determine the outcome both on their own and with the teacher champion, and; the third section sets about determining intrinsic factors within the school community and their relationship upon the music student, teacher, and classroom program. The goal of this research is to understand how the music teacher constructs a positive, welcoming environment and culture in the music classroom, and to understand the bond that exists between the teacher, students, and external community in creating a successful music program.