MENC: The National Association for Music Education

Teaching Music as Democratic Practice

Author(s): Lisa C. DeLorenzo
Source: Music Educators Journal, Vol. 90, No. 2 (Nov., 2003), pp. 35-40
Published by: Sage Publications, Inc. on behalf of MENC: The National Association for
Music Education
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3399932
Accessed: 05-02-2018 16:09 UTC

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Teaching Music As Democratic Practice
- -- -- --- -am - - -- -- - - -- - -- - - - -- -- -- - - - - -- - -

By Lisa C. DeLorenzo

democratically ba
T w wenty years ago, as a beginning public school music
thinking nor music
teacher, I put all my energy into searching for the perfect
lesson plan, quite certain that the lesson itself was the excellence must be
key to good teaching. Given this premise, I spent most of
my beginning years trying to create no-fail teaching
subservient to one
sequences for traditional concepts of music. Unfortunately, the
question, "How can I break this music concept into a successful
learning sequence?" moved squarely into the foreground while the
more important query, "What is an educated person?" and then,
"How can teaching music contribute to a good society?" shifted
quietly to the background. That teaching had a purpose beyond
exclusively musical concerns fell well outside my rigid definition
of good music teaching. Moreover, my teacher education programs
hardly prepared me for the dual responsibility of teaching with
excellence as well as preparing, with equal fervor, students to be
thoughtful citizens in a democracy.1
Today, I teach at a university that takes the preparation of
teachers in a political and social democracy seriously. Immersed in
this rich, ongoing inquiry into teaching, I now realize that music
should not be an isolated branch of knowledge but, rather, an aes-
thetic deeply embedded in a social political context where democ-

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Problem solving, fairness, and justice are vital components of teaching and learning music.

NOVEMBER 2003

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 Teacher X is a m
specialist. During an orchestra
rehearsal he passed out a new piece of
music by a Latino composer. One of
the students made a loud joke about
Latino people. Others laughed and
joined in with additional comments.
Teacher X, seeing a teachable
moment, stopped rehearsal and began
a nonconfrontational dialogue with
,
L
the students about racial stereotypes.
He helped students recognize that
--
.= comments, even in jest, were hurtful.
t-
Students began to talk about their
own experiences with put-down lan-
guage, whether racial or in other
areas. This conversation was a starting
di
o

place for thinking about the important

.
perspectives that diverse cultures
bring to a democratic community.
Skilllaredinmu - c afthl
Skills le.arned in music class can affect the lifelong performan

music instruction, andplay

racy and its moral underpinnings from the real
a key role. The idea that teaching decision-making responsibilities that
music prepares students for lifelong students have in the classroom to For music teachers,
musical as well as knowledgeable par- advocacy for the arts. In order for our
social and political system to prosper,
ticipation in a democratic society has
democratic practice has
had enormous impact on my work at music teachers, in addition to other implications in almost every
the school and university setting. educators, must provide students
with an educational environment area of pedagogy.
What Does Democracy Mean? that allows for independent thinking,
The term "democracy" has many appreciation for the common good,
definitions. Further, a person's social, and the ability to become change
cultural, or racial context often agents for social justice. Consequent-
strongly influences its meaning. ly, I argue that democratic practice
When asked to talk about democracy, not only strengthens music teaching
some teachers initially equate democ- by creating opportunities for examin-
racy with government. It takes a bit ing social issues, but also develops Teacher Y is an elementary instru-
more probing for them to consider thinking, sensitive musicians. mental teacher who was frustrated by
the ideals of democracy such as her students' lack of motivation to
essential freedoms that ought to Teachable Moments in practice and rehearse. With the spring
ensure human dignity in a good soci- Democratic Practice concert one month away, Teacher Y
ety. The term "democracy" is ever Recently I taught a graduate class
was understandably anxious and dis-
evolving with no one agreed-upon for music teachers that focused on tressed. She tried various talk-oriented
definition. developing democratic music class-strategies (expressing concern, repri-
All this is to say that if we want to rooms. As these graduate students mands) but nothing worked. Taking a
sustain a citizenry that protects the became sensitive to ways of democra- different tack, she involved her stu-
rights and freedom of the community, tizing their classroom, I saw a gradual dents as equal partners in the prob-
then our teaching must be anchored paradigm shift from thinking primari- lem-solving process. Students were
to beliefs about how to develop ly about state music standards to given a writing project with the
schools that value democratic prac- developing a learning environment prompts, "If I could change one thing
tice. For music teachers, democratic that addressed the standards while about my instrumental lesson or band
practice has implications in almost also providing avenues for problem rehearsal it would be ..." and "Please
every area of pedagogy. Examples solving, fairness, and justice through
state one way that you can improve
range from the diversity of music that the arts in our society. Listed belowyour personal or individual progress."
we select for our curriculum to the are some examples that class members Given the responses, Teacher Y com-
access that our students have to shared with our group: piled a list and asked students to circle

36 MUSIC EDUCATORS JOURNAL

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the two items that they felt were most responses angered and bewildered the National Network for Educational
important in improving practice and students. If ever there were a teach- Renewal (NNER), has developed a
rehearsing skills. Summarizing this able moment, this was it. model for helping teachers become
project, Teacher Y wrote: The class and I met to discuss what leaders of school renewal.2 This
had happened. While the students had model includes four strands of
Some of the democratic prac- logical reasons for their choices, there responsibility for the school and for
tices that I applied to my class- were a number of important questions the teacher. Two strands represent the
room instruction during this that needed to be discussed. Here areschools' responsibilities: (a) encultur-
project empowered the students some questions that emerged in the ation of the young into a social and
by allowing them to identify prac- discussion: When does art step over political democracy and (b) access to
tices that could impact and the line? Has art offended the publicknowledge. The other two strands
improve their musical experi- in the past, and does art have the represent what teachers must provide
ence. The students were involved power to teach even through negativeto maintain a level of excellence: (c) a
in an activity that advocated free- reaction? How do clothes, gestures, pedagogy that is nurturing and (d)
dom of speech and allowed them and language limit the power of stewardship that strengthens the edu-
to have a voice and make changes women? Does the dancing that you cational mission.
within the group. They were see on MTV empower or degrade Suffice it to say that this model
involved in a problem solving women? challenges teachers not only to teach
process that required critical their subject well but also to realize
thinking skills and allowed for that a healthy democracy involves,
personal choice and freedom to among other things, principles of free-
express the changes they felt were dom, access to knowledge for all, a
necessary for the good of the caring ethic, critical thinking, and the
group. This activity encouraged ability for citizens to become change
the students to have ownership of
Democratic practice not agents for fairness and justice. From
their learning.
only strengthens music an arts standpoint, this might involve
peer-teaching activities for students,
An example from my own teaching teaching by creating small-group performances for school
comes from a recent yearlong sabbati- staff (e.g., cafeteria aides), or opportu-
cal teaching general music to ninth opportunities for examiningnities to learn about the social impli-
graders in an inner-city high school. social issues, but also cations of songs from oppressed cul-
In one unit of study, we studied the tures or groups.
development of rhythm and blues and develops thinking, sensitive
its influence on other popular music A Guide for Music Teaching
musicians.
forms from the 1930s to the present. In terms of democratic practice,
After many hands-on activities and lis- Goodlad's model can provide a frame-
tening strategies, each class was given work for curricular decisions, content
a specific decade (e.g., 1950s) and stu- selection, and debate about how we
dents were challenged to prepare a treat children and how we decide
performance or presentation based on what issues are worth fighting for. It is
that decade. The discussion was raw yet ener-a means for examining fair and just
At the end of the project, the entire gizing. In discussing questions abouteducational practice in the school or
ninth grade gathered in an assembly classroom. Here are some ways that
art, students began to recognize a ten-
to share their work with each other. It sion between freedom of speech and we might translate these ideas to
was a wonderful program that show- public approval. In discussing ques- music teaching:
cased not only students' research but
tions about the role of women, it was Enculturation of the young. Encul-
also their ability to make presenta- clear that students had never consid-
turating the young into a democratic
tions in front of an audience. ered these issues. The input of malessociety addresses questions of what it
However, in one of the last perform-
in the class was particularly sensitive means to live in a free society and how
ances, a dance illustrating music of
and insightful. Given this experience, we participate in our own governance.
the present, students had chosen there is no doubt in my mind that On one level, such ideas might trans-
dance moves and costuming that fac- what students learned in this conver- late into how our classroom rules are
ulty deemed offensive and inappropri- sation enriched their musical learning, conceived. On another level, these
ate. Without my knowledge, students both artistically and democratically. ideas might become a springboard for
made some unfortunate last-minute discussing issues of freedom of
decisions to use unedited rap and cos-A Paradigm for Democratic expression regarding an artwork in
tume changes that, while not sexuallyPractice both democratic and totalitarian soci-
explicit, did push the limit of appro- John Goodlad, noted for his long- eties. They might also underlie goals
priate dress and language for school.
standing commitment to school for listening to and evaluating music-
The faculty was upset, and their reform and as the founder of the that students learn how to critique

NOVEMBER 2003 37

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 about the place of arts in our culture,
but also about the rightful access to
arts literacy for all students.
When access to arts literacy is mis-
* Do we select music literature to represent disenfranchised groups as well as understood or ignored in schoolwide
those composers from the recognized canon? decision making, it highlights an igno-
rance about the role that arts play in
* Do we maintain our classrooms in such a way that students have some deci- providing a way of knowing that is
sion making in musical problem solving or classroom policies? distinctly different from other areas.
Hence, the essential question underly-
* Do we present a global picture of the arts rather than only a traditional
ing all arguments about arts education
Western practice?
boils down to the following: What is a
* Is our music program and performing ensemble accessible to all students- good education? and, further, Where
even those with disabilities-in the school? do the arts fit in this picture?

* Do we ask that students substantiate their musical opinions with thoughtful

criteria?

What students learn can

music objectively and develop broader tion between democratic practice and
acceptance for music of other cul- music teaching. Such questions may enrich their musical
tures. intrigue some teachers while angering
learning, both artistically and
Access to knowledge. Access to and frustrating others. I believe that
knowledge means that all students teachers' frustration is often justified, democratically.
deserve the opportunity to learn with particularly in schools that have
similar levels of resources and teacher strong authoritative operations or a
quality. Comparisons between affluent severe lack of support for teaching of
suburbs and urban settings often the arts. Whereas some music teachers
reveal stark differences between the have a tremendous amount of control
musical resources available to stu- over their teaching situation, others
are micromanaged so severely that
dents and the level of community sup- Example: Imagine a well-sub-
port for the arts. even the teaching process of a music scribed districtwide string program
lesson is predetermined. Our ability to about to be eliminated due to high
A pedagogy that is nurturing. A nur-
turing pedagogy can be viewed both engage in democratic classroom prac- costs of running the program. While
as a caring ethic in terms of the tice when our school's mission runs money saved may temporarily allevi-
teacher-student relationship and as a counter to democratic practice influ-ate financial strain, such a decision
call for excellence in teaching. One ences our freedom to respond empath- neglects the higher societal costs. That
issue might include how we select ically to the issues raised throughout
is, children without access to free
children to perform in special events. this article. It is, for instance, nearly
music instruction through the public
Is our decision based primarily on impossible to democratize learningschool system have no option to learn
musical ability, or do other criteria experiences in a school that rewards
a string instrument except through
play an important role? In terms of factual recall over problem solving or
the private sector (e.g., private studios
excellence in teaching, we might authoritarian mandates over collabo- or community music schools). For
honor the teacher who continues to rative decision making.3 families who typically provide their
demonstrate thoughtful and innova- children with a lot of enrichment
tive teaching in the classroom. Dilemmas in Democratizing a opportunities, music lessons are no
Stewardship that strengthens the Music Program
edu- more a financial issue than karate,
cational mission. Stewardship, the As music educators, we are fre- horseback riding, or swim team. For
fourth dimension, is a concept that quently confronted with dilemmas families who must make painful deci-
beckons educators and administrators that test our responsiveness to demo- sions about which bills to pay in order
to examine schools for best practice. cratic practice in the school. Many to maintain a subsistence level of life,
From a democratic platform, this music teachers do not know from one however, music lessons surely come in
embraces all of the dimensions year to the next whether their pro- at the bottom of the list. Consequently,
described above. gram will remain funded. That arts eliminating music programs becomes
The Democratic Practice and Music programs must continually defend an issue of social justice, one that con-
Teaching sidebar offers a few more their value and worth in the school tributes to the creation of an elite class
examples of questions (not in any par-curriculum, for instance, demon- and an underclass in terms of the
ticular order) that capture the connec-strates a misunderstanding, not only
opportunity to play an instrument.

38 MUSIC EDUCATORS JOURNAL

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 In less public, but no less signifi- tal rental. Others, who can afford Example 3. One of my graduate stu-
cant venues, many practicing music it, pay the full fee. Most impor- dents presented an intriguing general
teachers, when faced with democratic tant, all students now have access elementary lesson using "The Drinking
dilemmas in their teaching, intuitively to instrument lessons. Gourd," a spiritual, as the basis for
rely on moral criteria in the process of guiding her students through a move-
reaching a decision. That is, they Example 2. This example is about a ment experience about the Under-
wrestle with the questions, What is veteran high school orchestra director ground Railroad. She explained that
the right thing to do? Will my deci- in a small, affluent school district. I her students, primarily Caucasian, had
sions as a teacher help sensitize stu- visited a rehearsal with some students little experience with persons of color.
dents to the dispositions that charac- and enjoyed the musical and techni- She felt that they needed to go beyond
terize democratic practice? In my cally competent performance. After the text of the song (dealing with slav-
experience, such teachers rarely use each piece, however, the student ery) into an affective, kinesthetic expe-
the term "democratic practice" to musicians quietly rotated to other rience about traveling through the
describe their work in the classroom, stands. The teacher explained that, dark, hiding, feeling fear in being dis-
even though their work is character- traditionally, the best players got the covered, and so on. With the lights
ized by the kind of thinking and prob- flashy, virtuosic, and melodic parts turned off and her quiet voice narrating
lem solving that models democratic while other students primarily played how the children would move through
practice. Some of those teachers' dis- supporting harmony He found that the room, she was able to capture an
positions include intense reflective- the good players got better but the emotionally significant moment in
ness about their teaching and its weak players got worse. In other history with students, many of whom
impact on students, sensitivity to words, as in many cases of tracking in had never thought deeply about sto-
issues of equity and fairness, and a reading or mathematics, the gap ries beyond their own culture.
continual struggle to weigh what is between low and high ability became This teacher did not enter the pro-
good for the community versus what greater rather than smaller. ject easily She was, in fact, scared
is good for the individual. Moreover, about approaching issues of diversity
these extraordinary teachers, in all with her students. She recognized,
pockets of America, view music edu- however, that her role as a teacher
cation as part of a larger scheme in As music educators, we are necessitated helping her students find
building a good society meaningful connections between
frequently confronted with music, themselves, and different eth-
Real Teachers Engaged in Real nic identities.
Democratic Practice dilemmas that test our
The following events took place Democratizing Your Classroom
responsiveness to
over a series of years and illustrate Teaching music from a philosophy
music teachers engaged in democratic democratic practice in the rooted in social justice has many com-
practice. These stories are included to plex issues, and one would dramati-
demonstrate that democratic practice
school. cally shortchange the integrity of
often takes place in tiny steps rather these ideas by suggesting that a demo-
than giant leaps: cratic classroom can be attained
Example 1. This example is about a quickly and simply. On the other
fourth-year elementary instrumental The teacher decided to choose hand, theory must be balanced with
teacher in a working-class neighbor- music so that different groups ofpractice,
stu- and practice demands some
hood. Here is an excerpt from his dents could play the lead parts. The starting places. The follow-
concrete
story: level of music for each piece was ing
care-
considerations may help teachers
bring
fully chosen to support the ability of such theoretical ideas into a
When I first started, all of the the primary players. In addition, he classroom format.
practical
kids rented instruments for a fee. felt that the strong players needed We
to can think about democratiza-
I noticed that many of the chil- understand more about supporting
tion in the classroom on three levels.
dren could not afford the rental musical parts. Consequently, the able the beginning level has to do
First,
fee and were automatically musicians benefitted along with their with how we structure our class-
excluded from the instrumental less able peers. One might argueroom. that At this level, we want to work
program. In my mind, this was orchestras in the "real" world operatewith our students in a learning envi-
not right. I didn't think it fair that differently; however, this teacherronment
real- that promotes fairness,
some kids could not participate ized that a school ensemble, unlike a trust, and respect for others in the
in my program, so after some professional ensemble, has specific class. An important component of
investigating, the principal and I obligations to learners and that these this level is the way that we help stu-
set up a sliding fee program based obligations are grounded in the moral dents embrace those of different
on those students who were eligi- purpose that talent doesn't necessarily races, sexual orientations, or reli-
ble for free lunch. Now, some stu- need to represent the sole criterion for gions. All of the above are easier said
dents pay nothing for instrumen- playing challenging music. than done-especially with students

NOVEMBER 2003 39

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who have been raised in an environ- ocratic practice in the music class-
ment of confrontation, humiliation, room may appear sound in philoso-
or parental autocracy. phy but absurd in practice. The pur-
Some ideas for starting to democra- pose of this article, however, is to
tize the classroom might include the demonstrate just the opposite-that
following: (a) asking your ensemble to democratic practice provides an
make some interpretative decisions in a arguable foundation for every aspect
piece of music during a rehearsal, (b) of a music program while musician-
having different elementary students ship continues to remain central to MUSIC
listen to a class song and provide con- the music program. Democratically TOGETHER'
structive critique, or (c) listening to a based thinking and musical excel- THE JOY OF FAMILY MUSICTM
piece of music composed by an openly lence are just different components of
gay musician and discussing whether comprehensive and authentic music Your eyes will change ...
this makes a difference in how students teaching. You will see music and children
listen to the music. Additionally, my aim in this article in a new way.
The second level of democratizing has been to provoke thought about
the classroom focuses on critical think- how we prepare our students not TAKE AWORKSHOP
ing. This means critical examination only as musicians but also as active AND LEARN TO:

not only of music and musical struc-
tures but also of how democratic issues
impact musical culture and personal
freedom. Some of the aforementioned
examples include elements of critical
thinking. Other examples might
include stories about and the music
of musicians during the Cultural
Revolution in China or the Holocaust
and how music continued to survive
despite the atrocities committed
against artists who did not follow the tions charged with the education of
party line.
The third level involves social jus- democracy.
tice and advocacy. This is a level in
which students develop leadership
skills for advocating fair practice and
contributors to a good and just socie- * lead the music that children love
ty. The arts will always require artic- * understand music development
birth through age five
ulate leaders who can argue the need
* help parents nurture musical growth
for a culturally rich society within a * support a new generation of
political democracy. When we use the musically competent children
phrase "giving students voice," we
often mean something about singing.
For a workshop near you-
The phrase, however, could have
WWW.MUS I CTOG ETH E R.COM
multiple meanings if educators
(800) 728-2692 X329
believe that the task of schooling
levies significant weight on institu-
181aB 1,iaBirSatS61 .iXi Si
our children in a social and political
THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH DAKOTA
_# COLLEGE OF FINE ARTS
Notes e__"- %DEPARTMENT OF MUSIC
1. Michael W. Apple and James A. ANNOUNCES

access to music in the school, in the
community, and beyond. One idea
includes music performances for socialCurriculum Development, 1995).
causes (e.g., world hunger) where stu-
dents are clearly aware of how their (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1984); John I.
music contributes to awareness of the
social cause.
Closing
As music teachers face the con-
stant demands of students, achieve-
ment standards, and other teaching
issues, coupled with the ever-present
tension of concert preparation, dem-
Beane, eds., Democratic Schools (Alexan-
dria, VA: Association for Supervision and
2. John I. Goodlad, A Place Called School
Goodlad, Educational Renewal (San
Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1994); John I.
Goodlad and Timothy J. McMannon, eds.,
The Public Purpose of Schooling (San
Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1997).
3. Landon E. Beyer, "The Moral
Contours of Teacher Education," JournalGRADUATE
of
Teacher Education 48, no. 4 (1997):
245-54. a
ZChe El aWi ns Qiaco Crio
Susan Keith Gray, piano
John Thomson, violin
Richard Rognstad, cello
THIRD COMPACT DISC RELEASE
FALL 2003
Albany Records, Albany, NY
available at fine record stores everywhere
including amazon.com & towerrecords.com
STRING AND PIANO
CHAMBER MUSIC FELLOWSHIPS
Undergraduate Scholarships also available
for piano, violin and cello

inquire at
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o m
z z or phone

lONgW MENC Resources 605.677.5274

the university of south dakota.

It may be useful to use music to explore what democracy is. Go to http://menc
DEPARTMENT OF MUSIC
.org/guides/classictale/LincolnPortrait.html to see a lesson exploring democracy
414 EAST CLARK STREET
and music using Aaron Copland's Lincoln Portrait. VERMILLION, SD 57069-2390

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