Honoring Trans and Gender-Expansive Students in Music Education

More about the book

Trans and gender-expansive youth deserve a safe and empowering space to engage in high quality school music experiences. Supportive music teachers ensure that all students have access to ethically and pedagogically sound music education. In this practical resource, authors Matthew L. Garrett (he/him) and Joshua Palkki (he/him) encourage music educators to honor gender diversity through ethically and pedagogically sound practices. Honoring Trans and Gender-Expansive Students in Music Education is intended for music teachers and music teacher educators across choral, instrumental, and general music classroom environments. Grounded in theory and nascent research, we provide historical and social context, and practical direction for working with students who inhabit a variety of spaces among a gender identity and expression continuum. Trans and gender expansive students often place their trust in music teachers, with whom they have developed a deep bond over time. It is essential, then, for music teachers to understand how issues of gender play out in formal and informal school music environments. Stories of trans and gender expansive youth and their music teachers anchor practical suggestions for honoring students in school music classrooms and more general school contexts.