Developing professionalism in the absence of music teacher education A major contextual issue framing practitioners’ envisioning of music education

practices in Kathmandu Valley schools is that the music teaching profession is itself in its infancy. The discussion in the music education literature varies in regards to considering teaching as “a semi-profession, striving to become a profession” (Georgii-Hemming, 2013, p. 204) or considering music teaching as a profession on the basis of its organisational and performative sides and its relation to society and knowledge

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professional preparation program in higher education, or its equivalent, for entry into DSURIHVVLRQ6LPLODUO\%U¡VNH'DQLHOVHQDQG-RKDQVHQELGHQWLI\WKHPXVLF education profession as politically constructed, with “the right to teach music” being regulated on the basis of passing music teacher education (p. 34).

If this is the criteria for a profession, however, how could music teaching be considered, or even become, a profession in a context where there is no such higher education available and where the development of such a program is likely to still take some time? This constitutes a central contextual issue as without formal music teacher education in Nepal the participating musician-teachers expressed challenges proving their competence, and described administrators being uncertain how to determine a PXVLFWHDFKHU¶VTXDOL¿FDWLRQUHVXOWLQJLQWKHFXUUHQWVLWXDWLRQZKHUHPXVLFWHDFKHUV are often hired on the basis on artistic merit only. It is therefore not surprising that the PXVLFLDQWHDFKHUVHQYLVLRQHGVRPHNLQGRIWHDFKHUFHUWL¿FDWLRQRUTXDOL¿FDWLRQLQ the co-constructed vision “To develop an internationally recognised music and music HGXFDWLRQPXVLFWHDFKHUWUDLQLQJFRXUVHLQ1HSDOWKURXJKD൶OLDWLRQVZLWKDQRXWVLGH university for Nepali, eastern and western musics” (Treacy, 2020, p. 208). This vision was not only held by the participating musician-teachers, in initiating the co-operation with the Sibelius Academy that led to the Global Visions project, the Nepal Music

&HQWHUFRXOGDOVREHVHHQDVVKDULQJWKLVYLVLRQ,QWKHDEVHQFHRIVXFKFHUWL¿FDWLRQLW seems that the participating musician-teachers envisioned music institutions taking a potential regulatory role through providing guidance to music teachers, as represented in the vision “To develop unity between the major music institutions in Nepal so that DFWLYLWLHVEHFRPHPRUHFRQWUROOHGH൶FLHQW´ (Treacy, 2020, p. 208) and discussed in Section 5.3 above.

From the perspective of musician-teachers in the Kathmandu Valley, most of whom started their careers as musicians and later also became teachers, SURIHVVLRQDOLVPUHTXLUHV¿UVWDQGIRUHPRVWDVWURQJPXVLFDOEDFNJURXQG*XUXQJ Treacy, 2017). This perspective can also be seen outside of Nepal, particularly among conservatory music teachers, who have long considered being a good musician to be the most important, or only, prerequisite for being a good music teacher, believing that mimicry is the pathway to learning (Holgersen & Burnard, 2013). In one of WKHZRUNVKRSGLVFXVVLRQVKRZHYHUPXFKWLPHZDVVSHQWDGGUHVVLQJWKHFRQÀLFW between being a good artist and a good music teacher, particularly in regard to the time required for self-practice to maintain one’s skills as a performer. Indeed, that music

teachers need more than just performance ability has been widely recognized by music HGXFDWLRQVFKRODUV%U¡VNH'DQLHOVHQDQG-RKDQVHQEIRUH[DPSOHUHIHUWR³WKH misguided belief that if you know music, you also know how to teach it” (p. 39).

The participating musician-teachers also recognized the need for enhanced pedagogical abilities of music teachers expressed in the vision “Music teachers would use a variety of teaching and learning techniques in the classroom to make learning easier for students because no one method will work for every teacher or every student” (Treacy, 2020, p. 208). This vision could be seen also in relation to teaching practice supporting justice, as Cochran-Smith (2010) asserts “a theory of WHDFKLQJSUDFWLFHWKDWVXSSRUWVMXVWLFHLVQRWDERXWVSHFL¿FWHFKQLTXHVRUEHVWSUDFWLFHV but about guiding principles that play out in a variety of methods and strategies, depending on the particular circumstances, students, content, and communities” (p.

456). Such enhanced pedagogical abilities could also address one of the challenges LGHQWL¿HGLQ$UWLFOH,,ZKHUHLQFOXGLQJSXEOLFSHUIRUPDQFHVLQVFKRROLQJZDVSDUWRI WKHMXVWL¿FDWLRQIRUWHDFKLQJPXVLFLQWKHVFKRROV:KLOHWKLVZDVSHUFHLYHGE\VRPH musician-teachers and administrators to divert attention away from a quality music education, rather than just having the competence to prepare students to perform successfully in a concert or competition, professional music teacher competence could also involve a philosophical grounding and strategies to develop such performances and the preparations for them “as an integral part of teaching learning activities”

(Government of Nepal, 2007, p. 27). Recent literature has explored professional NQRZOHGJHLQPXVLFWHDFKHUHGXFDWLRQHJ*HRUJLL+HPPLQJHWDOGH¿QLQJ professional knowledge as “the ability to perform work with competence and skill”

(Georgii-Hemming, 2013, p. 203) and identifying a range of dimensions and levels of music teacher’s professional knowledge (Georgii-Hemming, 2013). Burnard DIRUH[DPSOHLGHQWL¿HVWKHQHHGIRU³FRQWHQWNQRZOHGJHJHQHUDOSHGDJRJLFDO knowledge, curriculum knowledge, pedagogical content knowledge, knowledge of learners and their characteristics, knowledge of educational contexts and knowledge of educational ends” (p. 2). The ability to integrate various kinds of knowledge has also been described as central to professionalism in music teaching (Holgersen &

+ROVWSSDUWLFXODUO\WKHLQWHJUDWLRQRISUDFWLFHNQRZOHGJHDQGVFLHQWL¿F knowledge, which has also been recognized as being particularly important for GHYHORSLQJUHÀHFWLYHSUDFWLFH+ROJHUVHQ %XUQDUGVHHDOVRHJ%U¡VNH Danielsen & Johansen, 2012b).

As music teacher education programs do not yet exist in Nepal, however, the question remains of how music teachers could develop the required professional

knowledge. In this regard, thinking, as the participating musician-teachers did, in terms of professionalism and professionalization also holds potential. Burnard (2013a) OHDQLQJRQ-RKQVRQVXJJHVWVVKLIWLQJWKHIRFXVIURPZKDWTXDOL¿HVDVD profession to a focus on “‘professionalism’ as an ideology and ‘professionalization’ as the process by which an occupation–in this case, music teaching–seeks to advance its status and progress towards full recognition within that ideology” (Burnard, 2013a, p.

5). Similarly, Georgii-Hemming (2013) describes professionalization as “The social process that takes place when an occupational group, through collective mobilization, raises its status and achieves a higher position in society” (p. 204). Indeed, the vision above for music teacher education can also be interpreted in relation to its potential for elevating the status of music teachers in society. This could also be said for the vision,

“To create a music community that brings all music lovers to work together and create professionalism” (Treacy, 2020, p. 208) as organising into professional organisations is one way music teachers globally have worked to legitimize their professional claims

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Based on the workshop discussions, however, I interpret the vision for creating a music community more in relation to its potential for contributing to the development professional knowledge. Not only is there no initial music teacher education in Nepal, there is also a lack of professional development opportunities. Many individuals are already working as music teachers in private schools, music institutes and private homes, and while some have had opportunities to participate in music teacher ZRUNVKRSVRUWUDLQLQJSURJUDPVVXFKDVWKHSURJUDPSUHYLRXVO\R൵HUHGE\WKH Nepal Music Educators’ Society, most have had to learn to teach on the job. In such a context, in-service or ongoing professional development is of heightened importance.

Thus, the vision can be interpreted as arising from the experience in the workshops of learning from and with each other. This interpretation is further supported as one of the envisioned tasks for this community was facilitating collaborative learning, thus R൵HULQJDPHDQVRIRQJRLQJSURIHVVLRQDOGHYHORSPHQW0RUHRYHUDVWKHQDWXUHRIWKH work of music teachers in the Kathmandu Valley is often characterised by part-time teaching in a number of private schools, institutions and homes, with few opportunities for collaborating with colleagues, this vision is also related to the relative isolation of music teachers common not only in Nepal but also in many parts of the world (see e.g.

Bates, 2011; Burnard, 2013a; Sindberg, 2011; Schmidt & Robbins, 2011).

Sustaining such a music teacher community itself, however, appears to have a number of contextual challenges. As reported in Article III and Section 5.3 above H൵RUWVZHUHPDGHWRVXVWDLQWKHQHWZRUNLQLWLDWHGLQWKLVUHVHDUFKSURMHFWDQG\HW

participation continued to decline. Possible contextual challenges were suggested by the musician-teachers already when envisioning a music community and, based on my experiences facilitating these workshops, I have also suggested the need for institutional support. In addition, based also on my experiences in this project collaboration across institutional boundaries proved challenging. Though I aspired WR¿QGZD\VWREULQJPXVLFLDQWHDFKHUVIURPGL൵HUHQWLQWXLWLRQVWRJHWKHULQWKH workshops, the groups remained quite separate throughout Stage Two, with their interaction being limited to me sharing ideas that arose in across the groups. However, the desire for institutional collaboration was evident in the musician-teachers’ co-constructed visions.

6.1.2 Navigating past, present and future musical practices in a changing