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Music Education: Current Changes, Future Trajectories

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A special issue of Education Sciences (ISSN 2227-7102).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2025) | Viewed by 11615

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Lucy Green

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Guest Editor

Institute of Education, University College London, 20 Bedford Way, London WC1 0AL, UK
Interests: the sociology of music education in relation to ideology; musical meaning; inclusion and diversity; gender; informal learning; innovative pedagogies

Dr. Avra Pieridou Skoutella

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

C.C.R.S.M. Cyprus Centre for the Research and Study of Music, Lefkosia, Cyprus
Interests: musical identities; interculturalism and early childhood music education; interculturalism; empathy; flow and innovative pedagogies; leadership in the development of the music and music education prof

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Papers are invited to address current changes and future trajectories in music education’s multivarious roles in music and society.

The current times pose challenges, with wars, ecological disasters and threats, financial crises, intense migration phenomena, while the voices of various economic, gendered, racial, , differently abled, and other groups are being raised. The world of music is marked, on the one hand, by hurdles related to issues such as these, but, on the other hand, by greater access, appreciation, and valuing of a wider range of musical styles and genres than ever before.

It is with such contexts in mind that we invite papers on, but not limited to, topics such as:

Music education’s current and future ethos and ethics, including global and local, societal, and cultural changes, and transformations in humanity's future (social justice, human rights, cultural democracy, well-being, inclusivity, migration and refugee issues, ecology, centre versus periphery, politics, artistic citizenship, and other synergistic issues).
Changes in access and opportunities relating to music education, in relation to factors such as music identity, professional identity, gender identity, ethnicity, disability and different abilities, religion, and humanism.
Challenges to music education when music is used as a channel of identity on one hand, or of protest and resistance on the other.
The changing nature of and relationships between formal, non-formal, informal, or other pedagogies, and their relationship to transformations also in curriculum content.
Creativities and their definitions and re-definitions in light of areas such as access, assessment, and qualification issues.
Technologies and their likelihood of widely blowing open opportunities on one hand, or creating sects and cults within narrow or exclusive areas on the other, and their implications for issues such as creativities, assessment, and qualifications.
Boundaries between music education and other cognate areas of research and practise, such as music therapy, media studies, ethnomusicology, or community music, including what music education could potentially learn from these fields.
Teacher preparation, training, and the recruitment of music teachers across a range of contexts and musical styles, along with the employability of musicians from an ever-widening pool of workers across fields including zero-contract, freelance, or other modes of work.
Advocacy, philosophy, and leadership, including how music education is being valued in different contexts (e.g., in Saudi Arabia the government is currently increasing investment in formal music education whereas, in many Western/ised parts of the world, it is decreasing).

Articles selected for this Special Issue will consider how such factors, and other synergistic concepts, relate to ongoing changes in music education, and the likely opportunities and obstacles confronting music education in the foreseeable future, either internationally, cross-culturally, or within a culture.

Prof. Lucy Green
Dr. Avra Pieridou Skoutella
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Education Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

music education
philosophy and values
inclusion and diversity
identity
protest
pedagogies
creativities
technologies
teacher preparation
advocacy and leadership

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Published Papers (9 papers)

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Research

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15 pages, 281 KB

Open AccessArticle

Norm-Challenging Pedagogy as, Through and in Music Education

by Cecilia Ferm Almqvist and Linn Hentschel

Educ. Sci. 2026, 16(2), 273; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci16020273 - 9 Feb 2026

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 663

Abstract

In this article we highlight and discuss how norm-challenging pedagogy in music education can be encouraged and executed from three different angles. We primarily focus on activities such as democratic learning situations for pupils and teachers, to be explored as safe and brave spaces. With a starting point in norm-critical pedagogy, we explore the possibility of using norm-challenging pedagogy as, through and in music educational settings. Norm-challenging pedagogy as music education can challenge dominant ways of assimilating, processing, and expressing knowledge, whereas norm-challenging pedagogy through music education concerns how traditional views on, for example, gender, race, or disability identities can be challenged through music activities. Norm-challenging pedagogy in music education critically reflects on who has the right to learn and express themselves musically and in what ways, related to gender, race or disability. The article is based on a phenomenological view of aesthetic experience and music education as a life of equal value, where de Beauvoir’s concepts of freedom, facticity, and ambiguity constitute crucial analytical concepts. The author’s own experiences of ambiguous norm-challenging situations as, through and in music education will be used and discussed in relation to the philosophical framework. The results of the exploration will be critically reflected upon in relation to organisational, collegial, didactic and relational aspects of music education. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Music Education: Current Changes, Future Trajectories)

23 pages, 551 KB

Open AccessArticle

‘Fun Music with My Friends’: ‘Musicking-as-Play’ in the West End Theatre

by Tim Palmer

Educ. Sci. 2026, 16(2), 189; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci16020189 - 26 Jan 2026

Viewed by 727

Abstract

Musicking-as-play is an ontological conceptualisation that equips us to look at music-making practices in new ways in order to reveal future potentials for music education. This article discusses a theory-testing case study which applies the ‘musicking-as-play’ lens to what is, from the outside, often viewed as the least creative and most restrictive professional music-making context: the highly repetitive environment of the musical theatre band. If ‘musicking-as-play’ is present there, the thinking goes, then the conception is sufficiently robust to be applied more generally and to influence how music performance is taught. Following detailed observations of their working practices, five band members of a long-running West End musical in London and an experienced musical director were interviewed about their professional experiences. Many of these musicians had performed the show well over 1000 times, up to eight times a week for many years. Questions were based on a theoretical framework which sets play in relief alongside ritual, work and communitas. Findings confirm that the musicians perceived their work as a form of play, and a number of context-specific characteristics of play are identified. Implications for conservatoire pedagogies are discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Music Education: Current Changes, Future Trajectories)

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15 pages, 555 KB

Open AccessArticle

Validating the Music Wellness Model: Evidence from Expert and Public Perspectives

by Jazz Walia, Sinead George, Daisy Sun, Bev Foster, Lee Bartel and Chelsea Mackinnon

Educ. Sci. 2026, 16(1), 152; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci16010152 - 19 Jan 2026

Viewed by 569

Abstract

Rising rates of mental health concerns worldwide highlight the need for accessible and effective support. Music wellness, defined as “interacting with music in a way that contributes to holistic health and flourishing,” may help address this gap when integrated into education. In 2024, this research team conducted a Delphi study to establish this definition and propose a four-dimensional music wellness model (catalyst, act, outcome, and skill). The present study builds on that work by evaluating the model’s clarity, relevance, and real-world applicability through a mixed-methods validation study. Semi-structured interviews with five experts assessed conceptual coherence and clarity, and a survey of 160 adults examined whether the model reflected everyday uses of music for well-being. Experts confirmed the model’s logic and utility while suggesting refinements to improve clarity. Survey responses showed high overall agreement (mean = 85.6%) across items representing all four dimensions, and all participants reported daily engagement with music and positive emotional effects. These findings support the model’s validity and applicability, providing an evidence-based foundation for integrating music wellness into curricula that promote lifelong health and flourishing. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Music Education: Current Changes, Future Trajectories)

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14 pages, 264 KB

Open AccessArticle

Curriculum Devolution Under Neoliberal Pressures: The Case of Senior Secondary Music in Victoria, Australia and Its International Resonances

by Renee Crawford and Jane Southcott

Educ. Sci. 2026, 16(1), 79; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci16010079 - 6 Jan 2026

Viewed by 481

Abstract

Under the pressures of neoliberalism, in Australia, the Victorian senior Music curriculum has been diminished. Neoliberal reforms have prioritised accountability, employability, and standardised outcomes, leading to a re-prioritisation of musical content and knowledge. This has led to reductions in musically specific content and increased focus on non-musical transferable skills. Concomitant has been an emphasis on informal processes within formal curricula. Highlighting implications for creativity, cultural diversity, and pedagogical practice, we contextualise changes to the Victorian example with curricula in the UK and US. Findings reveal a global trend toward more balanced, hybrid models integrating formal and informal learning. The findings inform debates on curriculum design, pedagogical practice, and policy development, highlighting the need for balanced approaches that preserve musical depth while accommodating broader educational goals. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Music Education: Current Changes, Future Trajectories)

16 pages, 253 KB

Open AccessArticle

From Panopticon to Possibility: Rethinking Music Education Through Biesta’s World-Centered Lens

by Xiao Dong

Educ. Sci. 2025, 15(12), 1576; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci15121576 - 23 Nov 2025

Viewed by 923

Abstract

This paper reflects on how the traditional structures of Western classical music education, long reinforced by hierarchical authority and the “expert gaze,” are increasingly unsettled in contemporary practice. Drawing on Foucault’s panopticon as a metaphor, I show how performance-centered, teacher-dominant approaches have disciplined both students and parents while leaving little room for students’ development of subject-ness. Through a real teaching story, I reveal the emerging cracks in this long-standing system, where digital technology, alternative pedagogies, and shifting cultural values have begun to erode the conservatory’s insulated authority. To interpret this change, I draw on Biesta’s three functions of education—qualification, socialization, and subjectification—and his notion of world-centered education. I suggest that music education must not only prepare students with skills and cultural knowledge but also facilitate subjectification—the capacity for agency, responsibility, and freedom. The discussion highlights implications for practice, including teacher judgment, more balanced power relations, and reflective, technology-mediated pedagogies, suggesting that the future of music education lies in creating spaces where learners encounter the world not as passive recipients but as subjects in the process of becoming with it. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Music Education: Current Changes, Future Trajectories)

18 pages, 2213 KB

Open AccessArticle

The Impact of the Soundscape on University Life: Critical Music Education as a Tool for Awareness and Transformation

by José Salvador Blasco-Magraner, Pablo Marín-Liébana, Amparo Hurtado-Soler and Ana María Botella-Nicolás

Educ. Sci. 2025, 15(5), 600; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci15050600 - 13 May 2025

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2588

Abstract

This study explores the impact of soundscapes on the emotional and academic experiences of preservice teachers enrolled in music education courses within an elementary education degree program. It focuses on the framework of critical music education and future teachers’ reflections on soundscapes, emphasizing the importance of fostering awareness of the acoustic environment. The study uses a mixed-methods approach, including a quasi-experimental design and group discussions, to assess the emotional and cognitive effects of listening to natural versus urban soundscapes among preservice teachers (n = 89). The results indicate that listening to natural soundscapes significantly increases positive emotions and reduces negative emotions, while urban soundscapes have the opposite effect. Group discussions revealed that university campus soundscapes, often dominated by traffic and construction noise, negatively impacts students’ socialization, relaxation, and concentration, potentially affecting their academic performance. The study suggests incorporating soundscape awareness and critical listening into music education programs to foster both environmental and social awareness among students and to support the development of critical consciousness in future educators and citizens. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Music Education: Current Changes, Future Trajectories)

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13 pages, 235 KB

Open AccessArticle

Multiselfing in Music Education

by Radio Cremata

Educ. Sci. 2025, 15(1), 55; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci15010055 - 8 Jan 2025

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1839

Abstract

Multiselfing is a form of musicianship where one person digitally clones themself into several single selves, creating layers and a musical collective that would otherwise be impossible without the mediation of technology. There are various kinds of multiselfers. This article categorizes them as the following: singers, instrumentalists, loopers, live performers, and hybrids. While these five categories are presented distinctly here, they may often overlap. This article explores the notion of multiselfing and its implicit potential when situated in music education to develop comprehensive music skills. Comprehensive musicianship is important because it enables students to grow in broad musical knowledge and skills at all levels of instruction by synthesizing the musical materials they are working with and by making conceptual connections through performance, analysis, and composition. In addition to including many examples, this article also includes lists of resources and applications to help schoolteachers better understand how to integrate multiselfing into their pedagogic practices. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Music Education: Current Changes, Future Trajectories)

Other

Jump to: Research

9 pages, 195 KB

Open AccessEssay

Cultural Diversity in Music Education: An Agenda for the Second Quarter of the 21st Century

by Huib Schippers

Educ. Sci. 2026, 16(4), 585; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci16040585 - 7 Apr 2026

Viewed by 460

Abstract

In the late 1990s, there was much speculation on what music and music education would look like at the beginning of the 21st century. Few predicted the level of change that we have witnessed since then. In fact, developments in technologies, demographics, societies and global relations that have taken place in the world over the past 100 years would have been neigh unimaginable decade by decade, and keep coming with ever-increasing intensity. Travel, trade and technology have connected people and cultures in myriad and often wonderful ways. But inequities, divisions, and conflicts also reached new heights, with the first half of the 2020s subject to a seemingly endless stream of natural and manmade disasters and conflicts. Inevitably, all of these developments impacted on the world of music in general, and also on music education. In this essay, I try to summarise some key experiences and observations of my own first fifty years of living musical diversity (a world that started to open before me when I began learning Indian sitar in Amsterdam in 1975), and efforts across five continents that I have been involved in or researched. Juxtaposing this with key literature on the topic provides a broad basis for presenting ideas and views on progress towards giving musical practices from across the globe an appropriate place in music education at all levels: in community settings, schools, and institutions for professional training of performers and educators. In that process, I identify three critical junctures which can simultaneously present obstacles and opportunities for positive change: (1) terminologies, social inclusion, and the politics of diversity; (2) musical dynamics, technology, and institutional change; and (3) evolutions and revolutions in music learning and teaching. These inform a challenging but clear agenda for scholars, policy makers, institutional leaders, practising musicians and music educators worldwide who strive for more inclusive, diverse, equitable and relevant practices. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Music Education: Current Changes, Future Trajectories)

11 pages, 1089 KB

Open AccessPerspective

Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy Through Popular Music and Media in Elementary Music Education

by Martina Vasil

Educ. Sci. 2026, 16(4), 560; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci16040560 - 2 Apr 2026

Viewed by 618

Abstract

Elementary music teachers in the United States face many challenges today, including an increasing cultural divide between teachers and students, worsening student behavior, and excessive exposure to technology in children’s lives. These challenges are magnified due to the hundreds of students elementary music teachers see weekly, the lack of teaching and planning time, and inadequate teaching resources, making it difficult to fully understand the culture and learning needs of every child. However, music educators may find culturally sustaining pedagogy (CSP) a useful tool for meeting the needs of a diverse student body. Further, when teachers engage in kid culture, the environments and activities that only children have, there is a plethora of music and media to use that children prefer that can help increase engagement and reduce behavioral problems. In this Perspective article, I provide three sample lessons that model instructional strategies that challenge current systems of power and representation in music education and center student agency through singing, chanting, moving, playing, and creating. Using repertoire that students already know and prefer, such as “Old Town Road,” Fortnite dances, and the song “See You Again”, draws from children’s funds of knowledge. Moving away from the Western art music canon and traditional formal education structures (like standard notation) in favor of learning by ear, peer collaboration, and improvisation decolonizes the curriculum. Critical reflexivity occurs when the teacher acts as a learner, constantly adjusting lessons to ensure student agency and addressing ethical issues, such as the intellectual property rights of creators whose work is used in media like Fortnite. By using melodies, songs, and video game movements children already know, music teachers can use the materials and learning processes in kid culture to engage in culturally sustaining pedagogy. I aim to inspire educators and researchers to reflect on sustaining children’s dynamic, cultural practices and better understand how to authentically bring popular music and media into elementary music lessons to provide a more engaging, relevant, and transformative music education. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Music Education: Current Changes, Future Trajectories)

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