Freaks and frauds or beating the odds? Exploring notions of visibility and validation for transgender music teachers

Rowland, M.R.

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/120113 Copy

Description

Title

Freaks and frauds or beating the odds? Exploring notions of visibility and validation for transgender music teachers

Author(s)

Rowland, M.R.

Issue Date

2023-04-26

Director of Research (if dissertation) or Advisor (if thesis)

Nichols, Jeananne

Doctoral Committee Chair(s)

Sweet, Bridget

Committee Member(s)

• Beauchamp, Toby
• Megill, Andrew

Department of Study

Music

Discipline

Music Education

Degree Granting Institution

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Degree Name

Ph.D.

Degree Level

Dissertation

Keyword(s)

• Music Education
• Transgender
• Visibility
• Validation
• Teachers
• Narrative

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to seek insight into the music teaching experiences of transgender music teachers and understand the importance of human connection as it intersected with their perceptions of visibility and validation in the classroom. The study was framed around two research questions that asked how transgender teachers perceived their trans identities as visible in their music classrooms and how those perceptions of visibility and validation impacted their ability to make human connections with those around them. The participants of this study included three music teachers representing many facets of music education. Two of the three participants worked in independent or charter schools while the third taught in an urban setting. They were intentionally selected for their confidence in being out as trans in their school community. Data generation for this study included the use of semi-structured interviews, journals, observations, and participatory conversations through weekly text messages. The data were then analyzed through the writing and re-writing of each person’s chapter and finally through their connections to the research questions. The findings revealed that when these transgender music teachers were seen as human beings, that their abilities to make connections with their students and colleagues saw a marked improvement. Expanding notions of what it means to be a human being requires a questioning and challenging of traditional beliefs and understandings of the “many ways there are to be a human being” (Feinberg, 1998, p. 5). And since humanity is often shaped by the social environment, it was important that the participants made positive human connections with the people with whom they worked.

Graduation Semester

2023-05

Type of Resource

Thesis

Copyright and License Information

Copyright 2023 M.R. Rowland

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