The purpose of this study was to examine early childhood and elementary classroom teachers’ music integration practices. The study included 395 California early childhood and elementary educators. Using a survey administered via Qualtrics, I assessed the frequency of music integration in their classrooms. The findings revealed that participants integrated music into language arts (51.9%), math (43.0%), morning carpet time (51.9%), and free time (50.4%). Significant differences occurred between gender and frequency of music integration into physical education; age and other subjects; age and classroom activities; years of teaching experience and classroom activities; and formal training in music and language arts, history-social science, spelling, and classroom activities. The study also addresses potential implications for further research in this area.
BarrettM. S.FlynnL. M.BrownJ. E.WelchG. F. (2019). Beliefs and values about music in early childhood education and care: Perspectives from practitioners. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 724. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00724
2.
BattersbyS. L.CaveC. (2014). Toward integrating music in the elementary curriculum: Preservice classroom teachers’ preconceived attitudes, confidence, beliefs, and self-efficacy. Update: Applications of Research in Music Education, 32(2), 52–59. https://doi.org/10.1177/8755123314521033
3.
BergethonB.BoardmanE.MontgomeryJ. (1986). Musical growth in the elementary school (5th ed.). Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
4.
BerkeM.ColwellC. M. (2004). Integration of music in the elementary curriculum: Perceptions of pre-service elementary education majors. Update: Applications of Research in Music Education, 23(1), 22–33. https://doi.org/10.1177/87551233040230010104
5.
BreslerL. (1993). Music in a double-bind: Instruction by non-specialists in elementary schools. Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education, 115, 1–13.
6.
BreslerL. (1995). The subservient, co-equal, affective, and social integration styles and their implications for the arts. Arts Education Policy Review, 96, 31–37. https://doi.org/10.1080/10632913.1995.993456
7.
BurakS. (2019). Self-efficacy of pre-school and primary school pre-service teachers in musical ability and music teaching. International Journal of Music Education, 37(2), 257–271. https://doi.org/10.1177/0255761419833083
8.
ByoS. J. (1999). Classroom and music specialists’ perceived ability to implement the National Standards for Music Education. Journal of Research in Music Education, 47, 111–123. https://doi.org/10.2307/3345717
California State Department of Education. (2023, July5). Grade spans. Grade Spans - Teaching & Learning (CA Dept of Education). https://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/gs/
11.
ColwellC. M. (2008). Integration of music and core academic objectives in the K-12 curriculum: Perceptions of music and classroom teachers. Update: Applications of Research in Music Education, 26(2), 33–41. https://doi.org/10.1177/8755123308317954
12.
CreswellJ. W. (2009). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches (3rd ed.). Sage.
13.
CreswellJ. W. (2012). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches (2nd ed.). Sage.
14.
DawsonC. M. (2007). Factors affecting elementary teachers’ beliefs about arts integration and their practices [Doctoral dissertation]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses database. (UMI No. 3259684)
15.
de VriesP. A. (2015). Music without a music specialist: A primary school story. International Journal of Music Education, 33(2), 210–221. http://doi.org/10.1177/0255761413515818
16.
EggerJ. (2019). Effects of cooperative learning on preservice elementary teachers’ interest in and integration of music into core academic subjects. International Journal of Music Education, 37(4), 608–621. https://doi.org/10.1177/0255761419852173
17.
GilesA. M.FregoR. J. D. (2004). An inventory of music activities used by elementary classroom teachers: An exploratory study. Update: Applications of Research in Music Education, 22(2), 13–22. https://doi.org/10.1177/87551233040220020103
18.
HardimanM.RanjiniM. J.CarranD. T.SheltonA. (2019). The effects of arts-integrated instruction on memory for science content. Trends in Neuroscience and Education, 14, 25–32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tine.2019.02.002
19.
HippJ.Sulentic-DowellM-M. (2019). Challenges and supports to elementary teacher education: A case study of preservice teachers’ perspectives on arts integration. Journal for Learning Through the Arts, 15(1). https://doi.org/10.21977/D915144538
20.
HoldenH.ButtonS. (2006). The teaching of music in the primary school by the non-music specialist. British Journal of Music Education, 23, 23–38. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0265051705006728
21.
KirbyA. L.DahbiM.SurrainS.RoweM. L.LukG. (2023). Music uses in preschool classrooms in the U.S.: A multiple-methods study. Early Childhood Education Journal, 51, 515–529. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-022-01309-2
22.
LauW. C. M.GrieshaberS. (2018). School-based integrated curriculum: An integrated approach in one Hong Kong kindergarten. British Journal of Music Education, 35(2), 133–152. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0265051717000250
23.
LevinowitzL. M. (1999). The importance of music in early childhood. Music Educators Journal, 86(1), 17–18. https://doi.org/10.2307/3399571
24.
MikszaP.GaultB. M. (2014). Classroom music experiences of U.S. elementary school children: An analysis of the early childhood longitudinal study of 1998-1999. Journal of Research in Music Education, 62(1), 4–17. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022429413519822
O’KeefeK.DeardenK. N.WestR. (2016). A survey of the music integration practices of North Dakota elementary classroom teachers. Update: Applications of Research in Music Education, 35(1), 13–22. https://doi.org/10.1177/8755123315569739
29.
OreckB. (2004). The artistic and professional development of teachers: A study of the teachers’ attitudes toward and use of the arts in teaching. Journal of Teacher Education, 55(1), 55–69. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022487103260072
30.
ÖzgülI. (2016, September2). Integration in general music education [Conference session]. Conference of the International Journal of Arts & Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.
31.
RegisterD.HumpalM. (2007). Using musical transitions in early childhood classrooms: Three case examples. Music Therapy Perspectives, 25(1), 25–31. https://doi.org/10.1093/mtp/25.1.25
32.
RichardsC. (1999). Early childhood pre-service teachers’ assessments of elementary education methods. Update: Applications of Research in Music Education, 8, 28–31.
SparksD.ZhangJ.BahrS. (2015). Public elementary and secondary school arts education instructors. National Center for Education Statistics. https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2015/2015085.pdf
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
