Exploring teaching strategies of Turkish primary teachers in music education

Abstract

Contemporary literature suggests that there is a growing body of research in music\neducation, however, research on the teaching processes and effective teaching\nstrategies of primary teachers in teaching music is highly limited and highlights the\nneed for qualitative research in the pedagogy of music. Thus, with reference to music\nas one of the foundation subjects of the Turkish primary curriculum, this study aims\nto investigate primary teachers' teaching strategies in Turkish primary classrooms. In\nthe study the 'qualitative' research approach was adopted in order to fulfil the aims\nand objectives of the study. The study was carried out in two state primary schools in\nTurkey. A total of six primary school teachers with different educational backgrounds\nparticipated in the study. As one of the research instruments, a semi-structured\ninterview schedule was prepared and participant teachers were interviewed regarding\ntheir perceptions about music education and experiences in the classrooms. As a\nsecond means of data collection, classroom observation was used as an instrument.\nEach teacher was observed during their music lessons for a period of two hours (two\nlessons). The analysis of the qualitative data suggests that there are ranges of factors\ninfluencing teachers' music teaching activities in negative ways in classrooms.\nNegative factors influencing the classroom were found to come from the students,\ncurriculum, lack of teacher competencies, inadequate facilities and resources for\nmusic education, limited support from parents, and the negative effects of audiovisual\nmedia. Data obtained from classroom observations reveal that although\nteachers employ a range of teaching strategies in music lessons, there is limited\nvariety in the type of strategies used. In all the music classes similar practices could\nbe seen. The findings suggest that in the field of music education teachers need more\nsupport in improving their pedagogical skills in teaching music as well as their\ntechnical skills in the subject. It is suggested that due to the lack of confidence and\ncompetence of primary teachers, music specialist teachers should be assigned to the\ntask of delivering music curriculum. In addition, it is recommended that education\nfaculties should take a more active role in training teachers, and more in-service\ntraining activities should be provided for teacher development in music education.

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