A study of preservice music education students : their struggle to establish a professional identity

The purpose of this research was to gain an understanding of how music education students come to think of themselves as music educators. Guided by the thematic framework, "learning from experience", which draws upon research relating to constructivist theory and biographical inquiry, as well as literature pertaining to construction of images of self, this study explored four music education students' perceptions of themselves as musicians and as educators. Believing that self-perceptions are rooted in personal biographies, autobiographical and journal writings were investigated to establish links between participants' perceptions and biographies. Issues encountered by participants as they began to think of themselves as music educators were uncovered.Participants' perceptions of their "selves" were rooted in childhood memories and models of practice. They interpreted, internalized and practised the tacit expectations of their models of practice. Subsequently, participants' images of self-as-musicians and self-as-educators were connected by a common thread, that of image of self. Participants who viewed self-as-performer encountered conflict between their identities as musician and as educator. Other participants constructed images of self-as-participants. As such, they experienced a sense of unity and resonance between their identities as musicians and as educators.Issues directly related to their self-perceptions surfaced as participants began to think of themselves as music educators. The study considered the implication of these issues for teaching practice, and the relationship between these issues and preservice teacher training. This study concludes with a discussion of research implications and directions for reforming music teacher education