![[PDF]](/pb-assets/Icons/adobe-pdf-icon-1498649896243.png){kind=icon}
Abstract
While constructivist theory is widely promoted in pre-service music teacher education, there has been a lack of research conducted to reveal the ways in which the theory is individually personalized, then subsumed, translated and adopted into in-service classroom teaching practice. To address this shortfall, this article explores some of the ways that music teachers individually apply their understanding of the philosophically generated ideas and the cognitive concepts and principles that are broadly regarded as “constructivist.”
In seeking to contribute to professional dialogue and debate surrounding this matter, this study seeks to illuminate how a small sample of music teachers engages both theoretically and practically with constructivist views of learning. Using a qualitative approach, the researchers incorporated staged, informal interviews with invited teacher participants. Preliminary analyses of interview data were returned to the participants for review and further commentary. This process was designed to contribute to both the trustworthiness of representation and to enhance the transactional process between participants and researchers. The commentaries are designed to problematize issues, raise points for discussion and the article concludes with implications for practice in schools and universities.
References
|
Amos Hatch, J . (2002). Doing qualitative research in educational settings. Albany: State University of New York Press. Google Scholar | |
|
Barrett, M., Stauffer, S. (2009). Introduction. In Barrett, M. S., Stauffer, S. L. (Eds), Narrative Inquiry in Music Education: Troubling Certainty (pp. 1–4). Amsterdam, The Netherlands: Springer. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
|
Burnard, P., White, J. (2008). Creativity and performativity: Counterpoints in British and Australian education. British Educational Research Journal, 34(5), 667–682. Google Scholar | Crossref | ISI | |
|
Bowman, W. (1998). Philosophical perspectives on music. New York, NY: Oxford University Press. Google Scholar | |
|
Cleaver, D. (2009). Storying the musical lifeworld: Illumination through narrative case study. In Barrett, M. S., Stauffer, S. L. (Eds), Narrative inquiry in music education: Troubling certainty (pp. 35–56). Amsterdam, The Netherlands: Springer. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
|
Crotty, M. (1998). The foundations of social research: Meaning and perspective in the research process. Sydney, Australia: Allen and Unwin. Google Scholar | |
|
Davies, S. (1994). Musical meaning and expression. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press. Google Scholar | |
|
Denzin, N., Lincoln, Y. (1998). Introduction: Entering the field of qualitative research. In Denzin, N., Lincoln, Y. (Eds.), The landscape of qualitative research: Theories and issues (pp. 1–34). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE. Google Scholar | |
|
Fox, R. (2001). Constructivism examined. Oxford Review of Education, 27(1), 23–35. Google Scholar | Crossref | ISI | |
|
Green, L. (2001). How popular musicians learn: A way ahead for music education. Aldershot, UK: Ashgate. Google Scholar | |
|
Golding, C. (2007, December). Pragmatism, constructivism & Socratic objectivity: The pragmatist epistemic aim of philosophy for children. In 36th Annual PESA Conference: Creativity, Enterprise and Policy. Wellington, New Zealand. Google Scholar | |
|
Horn, I. (2009). Learner centredness: An analytical critique. South African Journal of Education, 29, 511–525. Retrieved from http://ajol.info/index.php/saje/article/viewFile/47745/34118 Google Scholar | |
|
Kincheloe, J. (1991). Teachers as researchers: Qualitative inquiry as a path to empowerment. London, UK: The Falmer Press. Google Scholar | |
|
Mathews, W. (2003). Constructivism in the classroom: Epistemology, history and empirical evidence. Teacher Education Quarterly. Retrieved from http://www.teqjournal.org/backvols/2003/30_3/matthews.pdf Google Scholar | |
|
Polkinghorne, D. (1995). Narrative configuration in qualitative analysis. In Hatch, J. A., Wisniewski, R (Eds.), Life history and narrative (pp. 5–21). London, UK: Falmer. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
|
Prince, M., Felder, R. (2006). Inductive teaching and learning methods: Definitions, comparisons, and research bases. Journal of Engineering Education, 95(2), 123–138. Google Scholar | Crossref | ISI | |
|
Schwandt, T. (1998). Constructivist, interpretivist approaches to human inquiry. In Denzin, N., Lincoln, Y. (Eds.), The landscape of qualitative research: Theories and issues (pp. 221–259). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE. Google Scholar | |
|
Seddon, F. (2004). Inclusive music curricula for the 21st century. In Bartel, L. (Ed.), Questioning the music education paradigm (pp. 212–227). Waterloo, ON: Canadian Music Educators Association. Google Scholar | |
|
Selley, N. (1999). The art of constructivist teaching in the primary school: A guide for students and teachers. London, UK: Fulton. Google Scholar | |
|
Stake, R. (1995). The art of case study research. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE. Google Scholar | |
|
Wiggins, J. (2009). Teaching for musical understanding (2nd ed.). Rochester, MI: Oakland University. Google Scholar | |
|
Young, M. (2008). Bringing knowledge back in: From social constructivism to social realism in the sociology of education. London, UK: Routledge. Google Scholar |
