Date

8-9-2024

Department

School of Music

Degree

Doctor of Music Education (DME)

Chair

R. Rose

Keywords

mentoring, recruiting, pre-collegiate music educators, orchestra, collaboration

Disciplines

Education | Music

Abstract

The looming crisis of teacher shortages has garnered attention from music education stakeholders worldwide. The search for causation and resolution of this critical issue has inspired innovative approaches to hiring, training, and the support of professional educators. While mentoring has been lauded by education experts as an essential component of educator career fulfillment, and mentorship programs designed for novice teachers have been recognized within the profession's ranks as effective tools in this pursuit, there has been little research evaluating the impact of mentorship programs designed to identify and recruit pre-collegiate future educators. This study aims to advance the cause for early interventions and make recommendations for effective mentorship programs starting in secondary education by asking questions regarding the long-term career outcomes and potential challenges to implementing future educator mentorship programs in music education in South Carolina. Information gathered here was collected through a mixed-method explanatory sequential design, employing surveys to collect data and establish trends with follow-up interviews using open-ended questions exploring opinions, behaviors, and experiences. Interview subjects were orchestra classroom teachers who have participated in mentorship partnerships highlighting the success of formal and informal program models in South Carolina schools. While this step is only one of many to be taken to secure the future of our educational institutes, it is crucial to realize the implementation of early intervention mentorship programs. This study provides much-needed data on the efficacy of robust, well-designed, and content-specific pre-collegiate mentorship programs.

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