Authenticity, authority, and accountability in music education

Abstract

Music education researchers have produced a large body of literature arguing that music education programs should adapt their practices to respect and incorporate the multiculturally diverse range of musical backgrounds and ancestral musical traditions as they exist in the world and among the students we teach. Based on an examination of the music-focused non-governmental organization, Ethno World, this article problematizes issues of “multiculturalism” in music learning and teaching by contrasting the moral reasoning of formal (i.e., state-governed) instruction and non-formal (i.e., through non-governmental organizations) learning. Specifically, this article examines issues of accountability, authenticity, and teacher authority in multicultural music education, arguing that an obsession with original-copy conceptions of music teaching and demands for teachers to be “highly qualified” may deprive students of deeper learnings into what “getting it right” might mean.