When novice music educators abandon their expressed dedication to forward-looking ideas like equity, epistemological distinctions between belief and knowledge, or lack of such distinctions, may influence such action. Political philosopher Russell Hardin argued that it makes sense for people to hold false, conflicting, and even extreme beliefs. Drawing on his work, we consider how social influences may encourage music educators to adopt a view of knowledge as the acquisition of information that is useful rather than truthful in the sense of (...) being falsifiable and supported by evidence. First, we examine how teachers’ everyday socialization may cause them to abandon practices associated with “music for all,” an ill-defined ideal—officially adopted by the (US) National Association for Music Education—that we problematize here. Second, we consider the effects of broader polarization on socialized epistemology, including amplifying effects of technology, which may contribute to an in-group versus out-group mentality. Third, we investigate how advocacy related endeavors as well as bounded social circles in both K-12 music education and collegiate music teacher education may further solidify extreme beliefs within the profession. Finally, we consider implications for practice, including providing tools for more inclusive and open-minded advocacy efforts and some version of profession-wide “music for all” that focuses on socialization and recognition. (shrink)

Abstract:Contemporary music education leaders suggest ambiguous definitions of "diversity," often assuming it both unquestionably good and compatible with equity. The purpose of this inquiry is to explore the assumptions underlying such discourse. First, I use the legal history of diversity in education to examine the American National Association for Music Education's statements on equity, access, inclusivity, and diversity. Second, drawing on Thomas Green's educational systems framework, I analyze the political strength of arguments surrounding diversity and equity. Third, considering instances when (...) white parents deem diversity "best" for their children, I investigate the advantages and limitations of what Natasha Warikoo calls the "diversity bargain." While not condoning unbridled self-interest, I posit how music educators might use parents' self-interest to support more ethical practices. Designed to benefit all students, diversity initiatives conflict with efforts aimed at equity. Music education diversity and equity rhetoric rely on either a troubling misreading of a politically strong state rationale or on the weak political positions of societal interests or educational goods valuable for their own sake. Rather than focusing on diverse content, teachers and students might experiment with how artistic expressions enable the exchange of individuals' stories and insights. The music education profession might also provide attention to equity apart from diversity. (shrink)

Analyzing how some names grant and reinforce power while others deny it serves a central role in understanding and ultimately challenging systemic inequalities. Yet, when left unquestioned, the ways in which social justice advocates use names can have detrimental effects. The work of various post-structuralist authors illuminates the problems and possibilities of names and naming. While names can further homogeneity, stagnation, and limited future possibilities, not naming can hide inequalities, propagate existing hegemonic systems, and inhibit actionable political endeavors. This essay (...) proposes two integrated paths forward and offers possible applications to music teacher education. First, utilizing Braidotti’s “scheme of feminist nomadism,” I suggest that social justice advocates consider differences between groups, differences within groups, and individuals’ differing. Second, superposition is posited as a philosophical figuration for simultaneously named and unnamed individuals. Seeing ourselves and others as existing in superposition accentuates the temporal aspect of naming as well as highlights unnamed potentialities. (shrink)

Despite calls for the inclusion of the body, emotion, and sociality into music education theory and practice, the complex interplay of these aspects of being remains largely unarticulated and ignored. Deleuze and Guattari assert the importance of ongoing interconnections, arguing that multiplicities rather than singularities comprise humans. In this paper, I begin by drawing on their ideas to propose a human ontology based on the inseparability of cognition, embodiment, emotion, and sociality, positing that these four aspects enable and influence musical (...) experiences. Next, I use Deleuze and Guattari’s philosophical figuration of a body without organs to explain how the integration of these four qualities can serve to complicate rather than simplify our understanding of ourselves, our musical endeavors, and our music teaching. Lastly, I offer that teachers might begin engaging their inseparably cognitive, embodied, emotional, and social students in musicking by embracing the ongoing processes of complicating, considering, and connecting. (shrink)