Beginning Music Teachers’ Self-Reported First-Year Preparation

The purpose of this study was to investigate beginning music teachers’ (BMTs) self-reported preparation for their first year of teaching using more than 20 years of nationally representative data from the U.S. Department of Education. BMTs reported the strongest first-year preparation for teaching their subject matter, teaching to state content standards, and using a variety of instructional methods. BMTs in the sample reported being less prepared for classroom management, using computers and technology, teaching students with special needs, and teaching English language learners. Self-reported first-year preparation was largely similar between the music teachers ( N ≈ 1,080) and the nonmusic teachers ( N ≈ 34,850) in the sample. Relative to teachers in other content areas, the music teachers reported much better preparation for teaching their subject matter but lower relative preparation for classroom management, using computers and technology, teaching students with special needs, and teaching English language learners. Although first-year preparation was largely similar across degrees earned, school locale, school grade level, and gender, BMTs who pursued traditional certification reported stronger first-year preparation overall and especially during the pandemic.