| dc.description.abstract | The purpose of this study was to explore how influential social and professional factors, as well as preconceived perceptions of students and schools in urban, suburban, and rural settings contributed to pre-service music educators’ preferences in school setting for student teaching placements. The participants (N = 6), with two each from urban, suburban, and rural high school backgrounds, were pre-service music educators in their last two years of study in a music teacher preparation program at a large, Midwestern university. The participants were interviewed twice, two weeks apart, and answered questions regarding their ideal student teaching placement, influential social and professional factors, their perceptions of urban, suburban, and rural schools and students, and their preferred school settings. The researcher transcribed and coded all interviews, with key themes of personal comfort and preferences, facilitation of teaching and learning, and professional growth emerging. The findings indicated that pre-service music educators used the key themes as factors in order to inform them of potential suitability in different school settings for student teaching placements. The pre-service music educators most preferred suburban school settings, possibly due to personal comfort, possible availability of resources and funding, and the perception of these settings as most suitable for a successful student teaching experience. Implications and recommendations for future research were then discussed with consideration of these results. | |
