The Diversification of Music Teacher Education

Music teacher education has been evolving in response to increasing cultural diversity of American society. This has been guided by the multicultural education movement that challenges preparation programs and teachers to consider revisions in pedagogy. This essay presents a historical, societal, and pedagogical framework for the multicultural developments in music teacher education, and offers six cases to illuminate the nature of pedagogical shifts that are taking place. The cases detail innovations in a range of settings, from music teacher education programs to the music classrooms. These accounts point to the importance of extended encounters with diverse cultures. Such experiences provide opportunities to confront musical assumptions and expand teaching beyond the limits of the traditional Eurocentric paradigm. The programs resulting from these experiences offer possibilities for music teacher education as it evolves by highlighting specific processes through which the field can continue to adapt to a culturally diverse American society.