“I Want to Be a Better Person and a Better Teacher”: Exploring the Constructs of Race and Dis/ability in a Music Educator Collaborative Teacher Study Group

Abstract

The purpose of this collective case study was to examine a collaborative teacher study group (CTSG) that explored narratives of race and dis/ability in music education. Participants were eight public school music educators from across the United States. The group met 11 times in Fall 2021, completed three individual interviews, and wrote in a private online journal. Initially, participants displayed a broad spectrum of agreements and dissonances between their words and actions regarding race and ability. At the end, participants described changes resulting from participation in the CTSG, including becoming more aware of the ways that racism and ableism operated in their teaching and personal lives. Primary factors that contributed to change were building connections with other music teachers, experiencing emotional intensity, space and time to grapple with difficult materials, as well as the structure of the CTSG. I offer implications and recommendations for practice.