The use of journaling in the development of student engagement and confidence with the teaching of music in an Australian early childhood and primary teacher education degree: A new perspective of an old problem

The National Review of School Music Education: Augmenting the diminished (Commonwealth of Australia, 2005) highlighted many issues pertaining to the training of generalist teachers in music education including their confidence in teaching music. However, generalist primary pre-service teachers are often disengaged from music before their education training begins, with many bringing to that training assumptions based on their own often negative experiences of music education. Developing approaches to teacher education that encourage pre-service teachers to interrogate these assumptions and engage in their own musical learning are therefore essential if their engagement and confidence in working with music is to be developed. This study presents the perceptions of students regarding the use of a reflective journal in a pre-service general primary teacher education unit in music. The journal was one method that I have employed in an effort to address the lack of confidence and engagement with the teaching of music amongst one group of pre-service teachers. In this paper the issues impacting student confidence in the teaching of music are presented, the perceptions of students regarding the benefits of their use of the journal are discussed, and conclusions drawn for the use of journaling in teacher education environments.