TN Musician Vol. 71 No. 2

and some immigration trends (Kena et al., 2016) mean
that Black and Hispanic students disproportionately
come from families with low income and/or educational
attainment. Moreover, location is important, as poverty
is concentrated both among inner city and rural schools,
and both concentrated and generational poverty are particularly
challenging for students, families, and schools.
In MI, 48.7% of Black students attend schools in which
90-100% of student enrollment is non-White (Orfield, Ee,
Frankenberg, & Siegel-Hawley, 2016). Such highly racially
segregated schools have disproportionately high rates
of student poverty, leading to “double segregation.” This
matters
…because of massive and growing research evidence
that (1) segregation creates unequal opportunities
and helps perpetuate stratification in the society
and (2) diverse schools have significant advantages,
not only for learning and attainment but for the creation
of better preparation for all groups to live and
work successfully in a complex society which will
have no racial majority (p. 1) …[and] When students
are socialized in schools in which few students have
benefited from the advantages and power that middle
class families possess and exercise on behalf of
their children, they are poorly prepared for a society
where colleges/universities and good jobs are strongly
white and middle class institutions (Orfield, Ee,
Frankenberg, & Siegel-Hawley, 2016, p. 6).
Michigan’s 20.8% of students who are served in rural districts
are also disproportionately low SES (Kena et al.,
2016).
(DIS)ABILITY. In 2014-15, 13% of all public school students
in the US (6.6 million children ages 3-21) received
special education services (Kena et al., 2016). In the same
year, 12.9% of MI students received special education
services, most frequently for Specific Learning Disability
(30.8%), Speech or Language Impairment (25%), Other
Health Impairment (12%), Cognitive Impairment (9.6%),
or Austism Spectrum Disorder (8.7%) (MDE, n.d.).
GENDER AND SEXUALITY. While it is difficult to conjecture
about trends, it is fair to say that students are
increasingly open about their gender expression and
sexuality diversity. In addition, girls and boys are treated
differently in schools and have different outcomes as
a result (e.g., Freudenthaler, Spinath,& Neubauer, 2008;
Myhill & Jones, 2006; Sadker & Sadker, 2010). Moreover,
pressure to conform to gendered ideals for appearance
and behavior is associated with bullying, eating disorders,
depression, and suicide, particularly (although not solely)
among LGBTQ youth (e.g., Griffiths, Murray, & Touyz,
2015; Good & Sanchez, 2010; Mustanski & Liu, 2013).
INTERSECTIONALITY. Intersectionality refers to the
way that social identities (such as those listed above) are
not separate, but instead coexist and even co-construct
one another. That means that when we describe people
in terms of membership in social groups (whether or not
these are things they can change), the whole is greater
than the sum of the parts. For example, my notions about
being female (and your perceptions of me as female) are
informed and created in part by my ethnicity and my socioeconomic
status. Moreover, as I navigate the systems
and structures of our world, some parts of my intersectional
identity are associated with dominant culture and
some parts are not. Successful efforts to increase inclusion,
equity, and justice in music education must consider
intersectionality in addition to understanding individual
aspects of social identity.
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO
HAVE “ACCESS” TO MUSIC EDUCATION?
In their position on Inclusiveness and Diversity, NAfME
wrote,
A well-rounded and comprehensive music
education program should exist in every
American school; should be built on a curricular
framework that promotes awareness of, respect
for, and responsiveness to the variety and
diversity of cultures; and should be delivered
by teachers whose culturally responsive
pedagogy enables them to successfully design
and implement such an inclusive curricular
framework (2017b).
This statement addresses two aspects of access: (1)
the presence of a program in every school and (2) the sociocultural
and practical accessibility of that program.
Although we must continue to fight for the presence of
music education in every school, this article is primarily
written for practicing teachers, so I will focus on the second
type of access.
In US high schools that offer music, about 21% of students
participate in ensembles (Elpus & Abril, 2011).
26 | TENNESSEE MUSICIAN | 2019 | Volume 71, No. 2