The Rewards of Teaching Music in Urban Settings

Abstract

great deal has been written about the challenges facing music educators who work in urban settings.1 The scarcity of instruments, textbooks, and other resources; a lack of parental and administrative support; and difficulties with classroom management are just a few of the issues that confront mu sic teachers who work in urban communities.2 However, many music educators who teach in urban settings find their work to be a source of deep satisfaction and pride. Their positive stories have been noticeably absent from pub lished writings about urban music education. This article presents a conversation among five music teachers who work in two large cit ies in the northeastern United States as a way of highlighting the rewards of teaching music in urban settings. The discussion took place at a recent panel session at a state in-service con ference for music educators. I served as the facilitator for the panel, which was attended by more than fifty music educators from across the region.3 Three main themes emerged from the discussion: