MULTICULTURAL MUSIC EDUCATION IN THE GERNAL MUSIC CLASSROOM 1

Multicultural Music Education in the General Music Classroom

Mary Shea Kealey Kustas

University of Maryland, College Park

Multiculturalism in music education has long been a point of both celebration and

contention in the music education world. This concept is especially prevalent in the

general music education classroom where the foundation of many musical concepts is

laid. How do we as educators teach these foundational western musical concepts with a

diverse selection of repertoire and musical experience? To answer this question, I

consulted studies that explored the effects of multicultural music education on students,

teachers’ receptivity to incorporating multicultural elements in their lessons, and the most

effective ways of creating bridges between musical concepts and cultural education. This

concept is important to me as a future music educator because my philosophy centers

around celebrating differences and cultivating tolerance though diversity. I hope to

improve my teaching in general music through this research by realizing different ways

to connect with students and more effective ways of exposing students to a variety of

repertoire. In this paper, I describe each article I consulted and then provide a synthesis of

the articles’ research and perspectives. I conclude with the implications for my future

music classroom and the classrooms of all music educators.

Literature Review

In “Cultural Consciousness in Teaching General Music,” Campbell (1992)

explores different ways in which multicultural music can be incorporated into already

existing methodologies. For example, Orff methodology can use West African music that

features call and response, polyrhythmic compositions, non-pitched percussion

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instruments, and stories with choral and movement-based response (Campbell, 1992). In

Kodaly methodology, teachers can use both folk music and dance to teach solfege,

movable do, hand signs, and rhythmic syllables (Campbell, 1992). Dalcroze, with its

emphasis on rhythm and movement, can use similar and contrasting music from around

the world to allow the body to move in a myriad of ways (Campbell, 1992). For example,

compare and contrast Jamaican soca (soul calypso) and Japanese koto concert repertoire

(Campbell, 1992). Campbell (1992) believes that multicultural music fits easily into our

already existing methodologies and enriches these practices.

“Multicultural Issues in Music Education” by Gonzo (1993) investigates the

origins of multicultural music education and the contrasting viewpoints this concept

elicits based on teacher philosophy. Multiculturalism itself developed with the American

Melting Pot analogy in 1909, which was then coined “cultural pluralism” in 1916 by John

Dewey at the National Educators Convention (Gonzo, 1993). The idea received renewed

momentum with the 1960s/1970s civil rights movement (Gonzo, 1993). Gonzo (1993)

discusses the four viewpoints that arose from this movement in both society and

simultaneously in education. According to Gonzo (1993), assimilationists believe that

immigrants should shed their diverse characteristics when they enter America.

Assimilationist teachers orient their philosophy and lessons to encourage a homogeneous

culture (Gonzo, 1993). In contrast, cultural pluralists reject the idea of one central culture

and strive to celebrate diversity through incorporating multicultural aspects into their

lessons and overall learning process (Gonzo, 1993). Similarly, anti-racism teachers

monitor teacher’s evaluations, reactions to and treatment of minority students in order to

promote equal treatment (Gonzo, 1993). Finally, Globalism, according to Gonzo (1993),
MULTICULTURAL MUSIC EDUCATION IN THE GERNAL MUSIC CLASSROOM 3

emphasizes that students’ exposure to different cultures shapes their future social and

political values. Gonzo (1993) concludes by explaining that the ever-growing divide

between assimilationists and cultural pluralists contributes to the arguments over the

music curriculum. From Gonzo’s (1993) perspective, multicultural music education is not

so much a matter of fitting into already existing methodologies; it concerns the teacher’s

personal philosophies.

“Learning Outcomes of Two Approaches to Multicultural Music Education” by

Abril (2006) explores the impact of direct experience with multicultural music on

elementary-school students. Abril (2006) found that these experiences can increase

elementary-school student’s preference for unfamiliar music. The study investigates two

different groups of students; one group focused on musical content and the other focused

on sociocultural content (Abril, 2006). Both groups used the same music and instruments

but differed in how they discussed each piece of music. The sociocultural group

discussed how music and culture intertwined, exploring the cultural implications of the

music they were playing/singing (Abril, 2006). The music content group discussed the

musical concepts addressed in their repertoire and learned facts about the songs like the

origin, translation of text, and language. Both groups of students submitted two written

responses at the end of the experiment: “I learned that…” and “I learned how…” (Abril,

2006).

The responses were measured by their relevance to the following: musical or

sociocultural skill: perceived ability to do something of a musical or sociocultural nature;

musical or sociocultural knowledge: concepts, facts, understandings, and principles of

musical or sociocultural nature; sociocultural or musical affect: an attitude, value, or

MULTICULTURAL MUSIC EDUCATION IN THE GERNAL MUSIC CLASSROOM 4

disposition towards something of a sociocultural or musical nature; and other (Abril,

2006). The written responses showed that there was no significant difference between the

groups regarding musical skill, but the musical concept group demonstrated more musical

knowledge than any other category while the sociocultural group demonstrated more

sociocultural knowledge (Abril, 2006). There were few responses regarding

musical/sociocultural affect, but most of these responses came from the sociocultural

group (Abril, 2006).

This study shows that students learn a lot from the type of music they perform and

explore in the classroom (Abril, 2006). However, they learn more from the lens through

which they study it, this lens being either musical or sociocultural. Teachers should not

assume that different music alone will increase tolerance in their students; however, not

introducing students to different types of music will foster a negative feeling towards

unfamiliar music (Abril, 2006). Since students in the music concept group learned more

about music and students in socio-cultural group learned more about culture, we should

strive to create a curriculum that promotes both types of lessons (Abril, 2006).

“An Emergence of Children’s Multicultural Sensitivity: An Elementary School

Music Project,” by Howard (2018) is another study that investigates the impact of

multicultural music education on students in general music. In this study, Howard (2018)

teaches music through a cultural context. Howard (2018) teaches 52 lessons ranging from

30 to 60 minutes each, bringing in a total of four culture bearers that align with the

cultural theme for the study: the African diaspora. Within the African diaspora, Howard

(2018) studies five musical cultures: Ghanaian, Puerto Rican, Jamaican, and traditional

African American spirituals and hip hop culture. Howard (2018) presents her findings
MULTICULTURAL MUSIC EDUCATION IN THE GERNAL MUSIC CLASSROOM 5

through the reactions and words of her students organized into three categories: social

bias (cultural appropriation and racism), music as identity, and discrimination.

These students interact with multicultural subjects through a myriad of ways including

significant forms, texts, instruments, dance movements, stories, discussions, and culture

bearers, allowing them to realize the connections between the music and the culture

(Howard, 2018).

Howard (2018) uses a series of vignettes to speak to each of these themes.

Through these vignettes, Howard (2018) shows that by adopting a “culture-and-music”

curriculum, the students not only recognize their own biases but also the possibility for

mutual respect for the greater global community. This study’s limitations include its

restricted timeframe, only exploring one culture and failing to provide any long-term

implications. The students are mainly white and are all elementary students (Howard).

Howard (2018) references a 2016 long-term study by Neto F., Pinto M., and Mullet E. on

the effects of music education on racial prejudice, sighting that music education focused

on marginalized societies helps to reduce student’s prejudice. Through both short and

long-term studies, it seems that music education can have a positive impact on students

by helping to increase their multicultural sensitivity and awareness.

Finally, “General Music Teacher’s Attitudes and Practices Regarding

Multicultural Music Education in Malaysia” by Wong (2016) looks at music educator’s

opinions regarding multicultural music education. Since Malaysia is a very ethnically and

culturally diverse country, most music educators agree that this diversity should be

reflected in their music education curriculum (Wong, 2016). However, survey results

showed that most music educators did not feel supported enough to add this facet to their
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curriculum when considering their training as educators, the support provided by their

administrators, and the professional development opportunities offered regarding

multicultural music education (Wong, 2016).

Article Synthesis

Both Campbell (1992) and Gonzo (1993) explore how multicultural music

education fits into the current music education world, either through philosophy or

methodology. Campbell (1992) seeks to incorporate multicultural music education into

an already existing collection of methodologies (Orff, Kodaly, Dalcroze) so that all

teachers can implement multicultural aspects in their own way. In contrast, Gonzo (1993)

explains multicultural education through a difference in teaching philosophy. These

philosophies differ in that one favors assimilation and the other favors diversity. This

contrasts with Campbell’s (1992) idea that music education can be adapted to all theories

of music education.

Abril (2006) and Howard (2018) articles are similar in that they both look at the

effects of multicultural music education on students. They believe that in order to

cultivate tolerance and empathy, it is important for teachers to have discussions regarding

the social and cultural backgrounds of each piece, not only facts of pronunciation and

origin. These discussions can include slavery in spirituals or diaspora in Romani folk

songs (Howard, 2018). Abril (2006) and Howard (2018) agree that students will not

cultivate a sense of deeper understanding and respect for these cultures if teachers only

“expose” their students to foreign songs. They must extend their musical exploration to

cover cultural implications and host class discussions and responses about these issues.

Howard (2018) and Abril (2016) are different in that Abril is more focused on
MULTICULTURAL MUSIC EDUCATION IN THE GERNAL MUSIC CLASSROOM 7

learning outcomes while Howard is more focused on attitude and preference. Howard

(2018) uses experiential evidence through vignettes to support her findings. Abril (2006);

however, uses written responses and evaluates these responses based on musical

knowledge/skill, sociocultural knowledge/skill, and affect. Abril (2006) contends that

music alone will not make students more tolerant. Abril’s research also shows that the

musical concept group wrote more about musical knowledge than the sociocultural group

(2006). These results indicate that teachers lose music for music’s sake when they only

teach through a multicultural lens. Howard (2018); however, only presents a curriculum

with multicultural tenants and shows the positive impact on her students. She does not

indicate a lack of musical knowledge learned even though her lens features an

exclusively sociocultural understanding.

Conclusion and Implications

In review of the above literature, I have concluded that in order for multicultural

music education to be effective, teachers must not only “expose” their students to

unfamiliar and culturally diverse repertoire, they must foster discussion, response,

exploration, creation, evaluation, and first hand accounts of the cultures they study.

Howard (2018) and Abril (2006) agree that multicultural music education student

discussion is more valuable than exposure. Since Wong’s (2015) research shows that

many teachers feel underprepared and unsupported in creating their own new curriculum,

teachers can use the already existing templates of Kodaly, Orff, and Dalcroze to help

realize musical concepts through multicultural repertoire (Campbell, 1992). Although

Gonzo (1993) shows that philosophy plays a major part in a teacher’s receptivity to

multicultural education, I believe that through music education theories like Kodaly,
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Dalcroze, and Orff, they can see the value of introducing a variety of musical concepts

and literature.

I plan to incorporate multicultural music education in my general classroom

because of the lessons it teaches in diversity, musical concepts, and tolerance. I strive to

make my students open-minded musicians and citizens. Therefore, I must foster an

environment that goes beyond exposure to exploration and dialogue about diverse

concepts and cultures. After reading these articles, I am left with the question of what a

proper balance looks like between strictly music concept centered lessons and those that

incorporate other discussions regarding culture. I hope to learn this balance as I continue

my education towards becoming an open-minded music educator who values diversity in

her classroom.
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References:

Abril, C. R. (2006). Learning Outcomes of Two Approaches to Multicultural Music

Education. International Journal of Music Education, 24(1), 30–

42. https://doi.org/10.1177/0255761406063103

Campbell, P. (1992). Cultural consciousness in teaching general music. Music Educators

Journal, 78(9), 30-36. Retrieved from http://web.a.ebscohost.com.proxy-

um.researchport.umd.edu/ehost/detail/detail?vid=2&sid=324728c4-42a5-4eaf-

9e63-613351e7c266%40sdc-v-

sessmgr06&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d

Gonzo, C. (1993). Multicultural Issues in Music Education. Music Educators

Journal, 79(6), 49-52. doi:10.2307/3398551

Howard, K. (2018). The emergence of children’s multicultural sensitivity: An elementary

school music culture project. Journal of Research in Music Education, 66(3),

261-277. doi:10.1177/0022429418784594

Wong, K., Pan, K., & Shah, S. (2016). General music teachers' attitudes and practices

regarding multicultural music education in Malaysia. Music Education

Research, 18(2), 208-223.