The current study focuses on what, how, and why music is being taught in the
practices of three Jewish Israeli music educators. Participants included three high school
music directors working in three main Jewish subsectors that constitute the main streams
of public education in contemporary Israeli society: secular, ultraorthodox, and national
religious. In contemporary Israeli society, these subsectors of Judaism are organized into
communities differing in nuanced religious affiliations, geographic locations, and
socioeconomic backgrounds. The subtle differences between these communities
constitute practical and philosophical conceptualizations of being Jewish in the
contemporary State of Israel. The government-mandated education system in Israel
recognizes these subsectors as separate and segregated streams of education, organized
into separate institutions, inspectorates, and curriculum. Music education in Israel,
however, is mandated through a single national curriculum for all socioreligious sectors.
The interest of this study is in the ways this single curriculum is enacted by various
sociocultural nuances of Judaism in contemporary Israeli society.
The research design was based on Scollon and Scollon’s 12-month framework of
nexus analysis, developed for explorations of cultural implications underlying everyday
actions. The study included three phases: (a) engagement—acclimation in practice sites
and contexts; (b) navigation—discovering the key elements and moving between the
individual and the social constructs that each practice entails; and (c) change—analysis
that challenges the existing practices and inspires transformation. Data accrued through
observation, interviews, and one focus-group session. The final stage focused on
participant involvement in data analysis and representation. Findings are presented
through a series of narrative texts: portraits of each participant, followed by scenes of
practice, annotated with narrative testimonials designed from the words of participants.
Introductory chapters address the main constructs upon which these narratives rest and
fuel the interpretations that follow each of the narratives.
Findings reveal interrelationships between music education and Jewish-Israeli
intrareligious tensions. Conclusions call for further attention to the cultural implications
of music educators’ situated work, in Israel and abroad.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bu.edu/oai:open.bu.edu:2144/27516 |
| Date | 22 February 2018 |
| Creators | Ehrlich, Amira |
| Source Sets | Boston University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis/Dissertation |
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