A Mixed Method Exploration of Culturally Responsive Music Assessment Among Music Teachers in the United States

Abstract

Both teacher and student cultural experiences influence decisions in the music classroom. As more music education scholarship examines these effects, especially through the lens of culturally responsive teaching, there is a need for more research examining the link between culturally responsive practices and music assessment. The purpose of this study was to examine the ways secondary ensemble teachers in the United States consider both musical authenticity and student culture in their assessment practices. The present study utilized both a quantitative survey and phenomenological interviews to address the issues surrounding this linkage. We analyzed each phase of the data collection separately and then interpreted them together to determine music teachers’ willingness and ability to integrate cultural responsiveness into their assessment practices. Music teachers were generally open to culturally responsive assessment practices yet relied mostly on the status quo in their design and implementation. Emergent themes included attempted adaptations for fairness, acculturation of practice, and good faith, but misguided attempts to incorporate culturally responsive principles in assessment.