Becoming music teacher educators: Learning from and with each other in a professional development community

Abstract

During this heuristic phenomenological inquiry, we examined our lived experiences as five women (three doctoral students, two early career faculty) in the process of becoming music teacher educators participating in a year-long, online, group-facilitated professional development community (PDC). Data included recorded meetings via Skype, journal entries via a private Facebook blog, and written introductory and final reflection statements. The three core themes that emerged from the data were as follows: (a) self-doubt and fear of failure as researchers; (b) struggle to establish balance; and (c) the PDC as a safe place. The essence of our lived experience in the group was developing our identities as music teacher educators through interactions in our PDC, which was a safe place for us to discuss our thoughts, concerns, and insecurities. We offer suggestions for PDCs, including future research and participation, as well as international sharing, collaboration, and community.