Professional development for applied studio pedagogues: experiences and reflections from current higher education practitioners

In the higher education music sector, it is often the case that high-profile performing musicians are recruited to instruct advanced students on an instrument or in voice and this form of learning usually occurs in one to one lessons in the applied studio and behind closed doors. The literature therefore refers to the potential isolation of the applied studio, for both students and pedagogues. In addition, many music instrument teachers rely on their own experiences of lessons or significant mentors they have had to inform how they work in the studio, with many having had no formal training in pedagogy. This paper reports on survey data obtained from 54 current music instrument teachers in higher education across five nations in the Asia-pacific region, in terms of their experiences of and reflections on professional development opportunities relevant to working in the studio. The findings reveal a relative lack of opportunity for current teachers to engage in formal professional development in studio pedagogy, as well as potential strategies institutional leaders might pursue in order to provide increased opportunities for their music instrument teaching staff to maintain continuing professional development