Journal of Research in Music Education

The purpose of this study was to examine the degree to which impostor feelings and selected demographic variables predict burnout among undergraduate music education majors. Participants (N = 143) completed the Clance Impostor Phenomenon Scale (CIPS) and the Maslach Burnout Inventory for Students. Overall, participants reported relatively high levels of impostor feelings and burnout. Results of multiple regression analyses revealed that CIPS score and year in school significantly predicted exhaustion and cynicism. Participants with higher CIPS scores (more frequent impostor feelings) and more years in school experienced greater exhaustion and cynicism. Descriptive analyses indicated that upper-division and band students experienced more cynicism than lower-division and choral/string/general music education majors, respectively. CIPS score was the only variable that significantly predicted professional efficacy. Participants with lower CIPS scores rated themselves higher in professional efficacy.

When teachers and school staff work together, it inevitably involves issues of power, influence, diplomacy, and cooperation; this has been termed “micropolitics,” and the ability to read situations with micropolitics in mind has been identified as “micropolitical literacy.” The purpose of this year-long case study was to explore one beginning music teacher’s micropolitical literacy development with explicit connections to the framework put forth by Kelchtermans and Ballet. The research questions were (1) How does the participant describe their micropolitical understanding? (2) How does the participant describe their micropolitical strategies? and (3) How does the participant feel about their micropolitical literacy? Qualitative analysis of interview transcripts suggested themes aligned with the theoretical framework’s aspects of know (understanding), do (strategies), and feel (experiential). The participant’s knowledge development focused on power dynamics, structures, and relationships. Strategies included gaining clout and reframing situations. Furthermore, the participant’s experience of micropolitical literacy development was fraught with negative emotions and uncertainty. Overall, literacy development was stymied by systemic challenges in the district.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the potential relationship between student enrollment trends in elective secondary music ensembles and music ensemble teacher job turnover. Although student enrollment is widely accepted as an important concern for music educators and a crude proxy measure of music teacher quality, these normative beliefs have not been thoroughly examined empirically. This study tested these beliefs using data from a State Longitudinal Data System to link statewide high school student ensemble enrollment data to teacher workforce data for the academic years 2012 to 2013 through 2019 to 2020. Two-way fixed effects estimators with logistic and multinomial logistic regression showed that decreasing enrollments in high school music ensembles predict music teachers’ departure from the profession. A comparative interrupted time-series analysis showed that a change in music teacher does not significantly affect the future enrollment trend of a high school music ensemble program. An exploratory analysis examining the postteaching careers of former high school music teachers showed that the majority of music teachers who exited the profession earned considerably higher wages in their new careers. The authors conclude by discussing the implications of the results for music teachers, music administrators, music teacher education, and future research.

Band repertoire lists evolved from a desire to make the school band experience “more educational” when school bands themselves were relatively new. The first national band repertoire list was created for the National Band Contest in 1924, with new lists published annually through 1943. These lists gave prominence to the literature they contained, and through nationwide dissemination, the literature contained on them formed the foundation of many band libraries. This study was an analysis of the pieces and composers that were on the lists, how the lists were structured, and also the people who created them. Only 9.25 percent of the literature on the earliest lists between 1924 and 1931 had been originally composed for band, whereas 40.23 percent of literature on the lists from 1931 to 1943 had been composed for band. Only 2.58 percent of the literature on the lists was composed by women or people of color, and their works on the list were all transcriptions for band. The literature lists, designed to make band “more educational,” excluded popular styles, including jazz and ragtime. These lists were created and maintained by 41 White men between 1924 and 1943, predominantly (88.1 percent) from New York and seven states in the Midwest.

According to social identity theory, individuals self-categorize into groups and then differentiate between groups based on stereotypical norms to create a perceived hierarchy to benefit their self-esteem. The purpose of this study was to explore the presence of social identities among adolescent musicians related to the career paths of music performance and music education and to determine whether self-categorization and differentiation regarding these career paths were a feature of these social identities. Participants were 821 adolescent musicians of varying experience and backgrounds. Results indicated that participants self-categorized and differentiated in favor of the music performance career path but allocated hypothetical resources in favor of the music education career path. Age, family income, performance setting, and intention to major in music were significant predictors of self-categorization, differentiation, and resource allocation. These findings indicate that participants who were older, had greater financial means, identified as soloists, or intended to major in music were more likely to be aligned with a music performance social identity.

The purpose of this study was to examine relationships between high school concert band directors’ self-efficacy for classroom management, efficacious sources, and classroom management behaviors. Participants (N = 271) completed the Band Director Self-Efficacy for Classroom Management scale and responded to items about their demographic and school characteristics, formal preparatory experiences, stress from student behavior, support and trust, and satisfaction with recent classroom management. Additionally, participants rated their effectiveness for using classroom management behaviors. Participants’ level of satisfaction with their recent classroom management was the strongest positive predictor of their self-efficacy for classroom management scores, followed by their ratings of parent resource support. When participants indicated higher stress from student behavior or higher administration resource support, they also had lower self-efficacy for classroom management scores. Results indicated that several classroom management behaviors predicted participants’ self-efficacy, including establishing routines and procedures, keeping students on task, and rarely referring to the music score or lesson plan. Implementing and refining effective classroom management behaviors may improve the likelihood of directors gaining positive mastery experiences and lessen the influence of stress from student behavior on their self-efficacy for classroom management.