Thesis (Ed.M.)--Boston University / PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis or dissertation. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you. / 2031-01-01

Thesis (M.M.)--Boston University / PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis or dissertation. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you. / 2031-01-01

Thesis (M.M.)--Boston University / PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis or dissertation. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you. / 2031-01-01

Thesis (Ed.M.)--Boston University / PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis or dissertation. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you. / 2031-01-01

Thesis (D.M.A.)--Boston University / PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis or dissertation. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you. / 2031-01-01

Master of Music / Department of Music, Theatre, and Dance / Ruth Gurgel / This lesson plan was based on my music education philosophy including the aspects of experience, socialization, application, and relevance. Students used aural skills while sight reading new music and singing dominant to tonic chords during warm up exercises. They created movement emphasizing different musical concepts and analyzed new music. I have grown exponentially as a teacher since I started the Masters’ program at Kansas State University. The two major developments in my teaching have been the paradigm switch from product to process and the cultivation of an environment where students take ownership of learning. My students have become independent musicians due to practicing aural skills, learning music theory, and activating higher-order thinking.

Performance of repertoire is a defining curricular aspect in the band area of music education, upon which students will spend significant time. The act of repertoire selection is a potentially complicated one, carrying the norms, values, and beliefs of the overall band area and band directors themselves. A band director’s personal ensemble experience is steeped in aesthetic traditions and canonical notions of repertoire’s quality and its use in band settings, and these notions may be incompatible with highly varied teaching situations. In this study, I examine these issues using Bourdieu’s concepts of habitus and field. The research questions were: is there a tension between the established norms (habitus) regarding the repertoire used in public schools, and practicing band directors’ professional contextual realities? If so, what is the cause of the tension, what do band directors do in response to it, and is the experience or non-experience of tension manifested differently in distinct professional contextual realities? I used a multi-method design to answer the research questions, collecting survey and interview data. Survey participants were randomly sampled from across New York State. The interview participants were purposefully sampled for variation in teaching situations. The data revealed that a tension exists and is manifested in elemental/structural issues and differences in expressed musical/educational goals. Consistent themes were the influence of collegiate ensemble experiences as main drivers of the tension and a resulting expressed reverence for core repertoire, even though it might not be what participants program. These phenomena did not appear to manifest differently across varied contexts. In addressing the tension, participants expand their habitus to include other repertoire that is more suitable or appropriate for their own situations, regardless of normative notions of quality or core repertoire. Music educators may benefit from a reorientation in teacher education programs that acknowledges the potential for this tension and that prepare them to enter their professional contextual realities and evaluate and choose repertoire in a tension-free process. Such a process would be free from a “one size fits all” conceptualization of repertoire’s quality and its role in a band program. Keywords: band, repertoire selection, tension, Bourdieu, habitus, field, hermeneutic phenomenology.

As a result of the Good Start, Grow Smart Initiative (GSGS) in 2002, states began developing Early Learning Guidelines (ELGs), which are utilized by state funded programs for children ages 3 to 5. Although GSGS recommended that states include literacy, language, and pre-reading skills in ELGs, many states developed more comprehensive documents that included broader ranges of skills and activities consistent with each state's conceptualization of what constitutes quality learning environments for this age group. Consequently, music content, if included in ELGs, may vary from state to state. Three national standards documents may have informed music standards included in ELGs, such as The National Music Standards for Prekindergarten, Head Start Child Development and Early Learning Framework, and the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) All-Criteria Document. I conducted a content analysis of state ELGs: 1) to determine what musical behaviors and activities states have codified as official knowledge within quality learning environments for young children, and 2) to ascertain the extent to which the musical content reflects music standards included in national prekindergarten standards documents. Findings indicated that the broadly-framed Head Start and NAEYC music indicators were well-represented in state ELGs. The majority of ELGs have addressed two of the Content Standards of The National Music Standards for Prekindergarten, "Singing and Playing Instruments" (88%) and "Responding to Music" (74%). The Content Standards "Creating Music" and "Understanding Music" were addressed in far fewer ELGs (27% and 33%, respectively). The more prescriptive Achievement Standards were less frequently included in ELGs. Additionally, 14.33% of all music-related indictors included in state ELGs did not reflect the music content of any of the national standards and guidelines; rather, the indicators represented additional music content (for example, audience skills), music activities that promote social and emotional development, and facilitating learning in other curriculum areas. When ELGs were examined through a conceptual framework of policy and Developmentally Appropriate Practice, a co-mingling of standards and guidelines constructs was found, suggesting that state ELG committees attempted to balance the opposing segments, resulting in re-contextualization of the content selected for inclusion in the ELGs.

The purpose of this study was to observe and document peer-mentoring and its function in music classes in The International School of Kuala Lumpur (ISKL). Specifically, this study examined the influence of peer-mentoring on the socialization of secondary international school children while documenting and analyzing the perception of the students, faculty, and administration of ISKL towards peer-mentoring. Qualitative methodology in the format of a case study that included interviews and observations was selected to examine the experiences and views of both students and faculty at ISKL in relation to peer mentoring in the music department. The researcher served as a participant researcher as he was employed by ISKL as an instrumental music instructor during the time of data collection. Results yielded by the study revealed a number of themes. Peer-mentoring occurred on the campus of ISKL both formally through the structures set in place by the instructors, and informally as students assisted classmates on their own initiative. There was limited administrative awareness of the mentoring taking place. Scheduling appeared to be a significant obstacle to the development of the program. The common instructional language of English and the eclectic nature of the school culture caused the linguistic and cultural variances to be less of a factor. One theme that emerged as the data was triangulated was the role that the transient nature of the school played in the peer-mentoring process, as there was significant turnover from year to year of both students and faculty at the school. Bonds formed between mentors and mentees relatively easily and quickly. Conversely, the short tenure of the music instructors involved hampered the development of the program, as they were no longer present to continue supporting the program.

<p> This qualitative study was designed to evaluate the impact internationalization initiatives in U.S. institutions of higher education have had on a school of music. The critical approach of intercultural communication served as the conceptual framework to guide understanding of internationalization initiatives or efforts within higher education institutions toward preparing students, in particular music graduates, for the global society (Issa, 2015). Data collected from questionnaires and interviews with various stakeholders, organizational documents and the institution&rsquo;s website provided a more thorough understanding of the approach to, and challenges and benefits of internationalization initiatives in a school of music. This data was coded for consistencies and emerging themes in terms of approaches to, challenges, and benefits.</p><p> The results of this study could create social change for society and communities in better understanding the impact of internationalization initiatives implemented within higher education music departments toward enhancing the artistic and intellectual abilities and contributions of individuals, institutions, and the field of music as a whole. Findings from this study will also inform practices of administrators of music departments within higher education toward attracting and preparing international students as well as preparing current domestic students for a globalized society.</p><p>