Teaching Artists to Support Music Teaching and Learning in K–12 Music Settings: A Literature Review

Abstract

As schools become increasingly more diverse, music educators should incorporate students’ musical tastes, identities, and ideas to better engage students. Music educators can engage students from a variety of individual backgrounds by collaborating with teaching artists who offer more varied perspectives to traditional music classrooms. The purpose of this literature review was to identify and discuss prior investigations of music educator and teaching artist collaborations. We conducted a search related to teaching artists in K–12 music classrooms to gain insight into how partnerships between music educators and teaching artists contribute to music teaching and learning environments. Resulting themes included the impact of collaborative relationships on policy, pedagogy, and identity, as well as potential benefits and barriers. Understanding the effects of collaborations between music educators and teaching artists on classroom instruction, student learning outcomes, and professional development empowers music educators to enhance their practices and positively impact students’ learning experiences.