Social Justice and Music Education

Abstract

At the heart of teaching others is the moral imperative to care. Social justice education begins with adopting a disposition to perceive and then act against indecencies and injustices. Teachers are public figures entrusted by a democratic society to act in the best interests of the children in their care. Music educators must embrace this social contract by “going public” or “coming out”—reaching beyond incomplete musical engagements and into larger and more intertwined social, artistic, and political domains. The authors refer to this stance as a public music pedagogy.