A study of a pilot support program for first-year elementary music teachers / by Barbara A. Stevanson.
Date
2005-05
Authors
Stevanson, Barbara A.
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Abstract
The purpose of this study was to identify the needs and concerns of beginning elementary music teachers and to determine how those teachers perceived the support that was provided them through a pilot mentoring program. The study utilized three frameworks from existing literature for the investigation of the issues affecting the novice music teachers, examining The Stages of Concern, The Hierarchy of Needs, and The Categories of Support.
The pilot program consisted of three beginning elementary music teachers being mentored by a highly experienced elementary music teacher. The participants engaged in interviews, focus groups, and the Novice Teacher Induction Program. These activities served as the data sources for the study which took place over the second semester of the novices' first year of teaching.
The major findings of the study were:
1. Group mentoring has advantages over individual mentoring.
2. Elementary music teachers have unique needs that typically are not met in generalized mentoring programs.
3. Elementary music teachers are often conflicted in their roles as both teachers and performing musicians.
4. There is a mismatch between mentoring programs and the novice teacher's needs. The issues most often cited by the novice music teachers were related to personal needs and concerns. Mentoring programs often focus on curriculum and management problems.
The voices of first-year elementary music teachers who participated in this study are portrayed through their comments and perceptions as collected in the research. The analysis of the data is presented in qualitative form, including the actual words of the participants, and supported by quantitative evidence through charts and graphs.
The novice teachers viewed the mentoring program as effective in supporting their emotional needs, largely through the group meetings that were a part of the mentoring program.
Description
Keywords
music, music teachers, instruction and study of music
Citation
Stevanson, B.A. (2005). A study of a pilot support program for first-year elementary music teachers (Unpublished dissertation). Texas State University-San Marcos, San Marcos, Texas.