The Lived Experience of Children's Musical Identity
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Georgia State University ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University Department of Middle-Secondary Education and Middle-Secondary Education and Instructional Instructional Technology (no new uploads as of Technology Dissertations Jan. 2015) Winter 12-20-2012 "Music is Waiting For You:" The Lived Experience of Children's Musical Identity Michelle Mercier De Shon L. Michelle Mercier-De Shon Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/msit_diss Recommended Citation Mercier, Michelle De Shon, ""Music is Waiting For You:" The Lived Experience of Children's Musical Identity." Dissertation, Georgia State University, 2012. https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/msit_diss/100 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of Middle-Secondary Education and Instructional Technology (no new uploads as of Jan. 2015) at ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Middle-Secondary Education and Instructional Technology Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. ACCEPTANCE This dissertation, “MUSIC IS WAITNG FOR YOU: THE LIVED EXPERIENCE OF CHILDREN’S MUSICAL IDENTITY, by L. MICHELLE MERCIER-DESHON, was prepared under the direction of the candidate’s Dissertation Advisory Committee. It is accepted by the committee members in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy in the College of Education, Georgia State University. The Dissertation Advisory Committee and the student’s Department Chair, as representatives of the faculty, certify that this dissertation has met all standards of excellence and scholarship as determined by the faculty. The Dean of the College of Education concurs. ______________________________ ______________________________ Joyce E. Many, Ph.D. David E. Myers, Ph.D Committee Co-Chair Committee Co-Chair ______________________________ ______________________________ Dana L. Fox, Ph.D Jodi Kaufmann, Ph.D. Committee Member Committee Member ______________________________ Date ______________________________ Dana L. Fox, Ph.D. Chair, Department of Middle-Secondary Education and Instructional Technology ______________________________ R.W. Kamphaus, Ph.D. Dean and Distinguished Research Professor College of Education AUTHOR’S STATEMENT By presenting this dissertation as a partial fulfillment of the requirements for the advanced degree from Georgia State University, I agree that the library of Georgia State University shall make it available for inspection and circulation in accordance with its regulations governing materials of this type. I agree that permission to quote, to copy from, or to publish this dissertation may be granted by the professor under whose direction it was written, by the College of Education’s director of graduate studies and research, or by me. Such quoting, copying, or publishing must be solely for scholarly purposes and will not involve potential financial gain. It is understood that any copying from this publication of this dissertation which involves potential financial gain will not be allowed without my written permission. _____________________________________ L. Michelle Mercier-De Shon NOTICE TO BORROWERS All dissertations deposited in the Georgia State University library must be used in accordance with the stipulations prescribed by the author in the preceding statement. The author of this dissertation is: L. Michelle Mercier-De Shon 2940 Browns Mill Rd. SE Atlanta, GA 30354 The director of this dissertation is: Dr. Joyce Many Department of Middle-Secondary Education and Instructional Technology College of Education Georgia State University Atlanta, GA 30302-3980 VITA L. Michelle Mercier-De Shon ADDRESS: 2940 Browns Mill Rd. SE Atlanta, GA 30354 EDUCATION: Ph.D. 2012 Georgia State University Teaching and Learning: Music Education M.M. 2006 Georgia State University Music Education B.M. 2001 Georgia State University Music Education PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE: 2010-2011 Instructor, Art and Music in the Classroom Georgia State University 2006-2010 Teaching Assistant Georgia State University 2004-Present Sound Learning Site Coordinator Georgia State Univeristy 2001-2004 General and Choral Music Specialist Centennial Place Elementary School, Atlanta, GA PRESENTATIONS; 2009 “The Lived Experience of Children’s Music Learning” Georgia Music Educators Association Conference 2009 “Come Together: An Overview of Innovative Music Education Programs” Georgia Music Educators Association Conference 2003-Present Sound Learning Professional Development for Musicians and Teachers Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Atlanta-area Elementary Schools PROFESSIONAL SOCIETIES AND ORGANIZATIONS Music Educators National Conference ABSTRACT “MUSIC IS WAITING FOR YOU:” THE LIVED EXPERIENCE OF CHILDREN’S MUSICAL IDENTITY by L. Michelle Mercier-De Shon This phenomenological study of lived experience (Van Manen, 1990) explored the perspectives of four 4th grade children as they live in and live through music to formulate their musical identities. Framed within perspectives of symbolic interaction theory (Blumer, 1969), communities of practice (Wenger, 1998), and figured worlds (Holland, et al., 1998), data were collected using methods consistent with qualitative inquiry. These included: observations of quasi-formal music learning settings, in musical playgroups and during professional musicians’ presentations; close observations of children’s daily school lives; and planned discussion group interviews (O’Reilly, 2005). Findings emerged from the data via a bricolage of existentialist (Morrisette, 1999; Holyroyd, 2001) and interpretative phenomenological analyses (Smith, 2003). Children in my study explored and expressed their musical identities through self- directed engagement across multiple modalities of singing, listening, performing on instruments, and creating music. They engaged with these modalities in individualized and shared ways. Singing was situated, by context and in concert with social and gender comparisons. Listening, performing, and creating encompassed a trajectory from experimentation to intentionality, with continually embedded exploration and musical play. Findings indicated that children in middle childhood may actively shape their musical identities within a dynamic nexus of individualized and social continuums of music experience and learning. These continuums may be understood along three dimensions: development; components, i.e., music participation and learning; and processes. The developmental spectrum of children in middle childhood provides a fluid context for understanding musical identity, revealed not as a fixed entity, but through interweaving elements of their past, present, and future musical lives. Self-directed music participation and learning may shape musical identity and provide a context for its expression through both musical and social roles, as children enact musical behaviors through social interaction. Finally, children’s musical identity may be understood as a process, in which personal dialogue meets external discourses, as children continuously negotiate self-conceptions of musicality within and among their musical worlds. Findings indicate that music teachers may offer opportunities for exploration and musical play as a basis for concurrently nurturing the development of musical identities and fostering musical understanding. “MUSIC IS WAITING FOR YOU:” THE LIVED EXPERIENCE OF CHILDREN’S MUSICAL IDENTITY by L. Michelle Mercier-De Shon A Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment of Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Teaching and Learning: Music Education in the Department of Middle-Secondary Education and Instructional Technology in the College of Education Georgia State University Atlanta, GA 2012 Copyright by L. Michelle Mercier-De Shon 2012 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Throughout my dissertation journey, the words of John Lennon echoed in my head, as he sang, “life is what happens to you when you’re busy making other plans.” Were it not for the guidance of my colleagues and the enduring support of my family, this story of four musical children might not have been told. I would like to thank those four special children who openly shared their musical lives with me, and thank the teachers and administration at Drake Charter School for opening their doors to me. I would like to thank Dr. David Myers for his mentorship and sustained encouragement across the miles. I would also like to thank my committee members, Dr. Jodi Kaufmann, Dr. Joyce Many, and Dr. Dana Fox for their continued support. My friends in the doctoral program, Todd, Elise, David, and Bernadette shared hours of thoughtful insight and moments of laughter and tears that I will always cherish. I offer special thanks to Doug Stevens for helping me with music notation and sharing his thoughts about children’s musical engagement. I would like to thank my mother and father, Luetta and George, for always believing in me and supporting my educational and musical goals throughout my life. To my wonderful husband Freddy, thank you for holding my hand and for your unconditional love. Thanks to my extended family: Gerti, Markus, Mee Hyang, Felicia, Eli, and Joe for always reminding me, “you can DO it!” This dissertation is dedicated in loving memory of my brother Tim and my father- in-law Dr. Fred De Shon. Tim, you took me to my first rock concert and shared your albums with me. You will always be a part of my musical