Achievements, difficulties, and goals of the Spanish Society for Music Education (SEM-EE): A phenomenological study

Abstract

The Spanish Society for Music Education ( Sociedad para la Educación Musical del Estado Español, SEM-EE in its Spanish acronym), has been dedicated to music education for almost half a century. Even so, it is currently difficult to find studies on its activity or impact. The aim of this study is to learn about the achievements, difficulties, and goals for SEM-EE that have emerged along the way and will come in the future. This has been done through a qualitative phenomenological study, analyzing 18 interviews carried out with members of the boards of directors, and codified through Atlas.ti software program. The results show that some of the greatest achievements of this organization have been to carry out activities, facilitate the connection between professionals from different fields of music education, and the promotion of music research. The lack of support, both institutional and from the educational community, along with scarce economic resources were some of the most noted difficulties. Future goals point to promoting more dialog with the administration, and the improvement of technological resources. The implications of this work can be relevant for music teaching professionals interested in the advancement of music education based on bringing together different collectives.