Mindfulness for Pre-service Music Teachers

Teaching can be a very challenging occupation and a number of teachers experience stress and burnout due to factors including demanding workloads, time constraints, student behavioural issues and wider systematic and organisational factors. Ironically, the more committed, dedicated and caring teachers are in their work, the more likely they are to experience emotional exhaustion. Graduate teachers in particular are at risk of an emotional roller-coaster as they typically enter the profession with an idealistic vision about teaching. For music teachers the problem is compounded as they are prone to anxiety, low self-esteem and perfectionism due to the constant judgment on their playing abilities by their teachers, examiners and peers throughout their developmental years.

Recent decades have seen the salutary effects of mindfulness practice in diverse fields such as clinical psychology, neuroscience, sport and K-12 education. This qualitative study aimed to explore the influence of mindfulness practice on pre-service music teachers in terms of their music practice and performance, music teaching and learning, and personal lives. A 5-week Mindfulness workshop tailored for pre-service music teachers was developed and implemented. Data was collected through pre- and post-workshop individual semi-structured interviews, practice journals, a closed Facebook forum and a 6-month follow-up questionnaire. Preliminary findings suggest the utility and relevance of mindfulness practice for pre-service music teacher training. Emergent themes may contribute toward filling the gap in music teacher training and mindfulness literature and may offer a practical, hands-on approach that may be adapted and/or infused into the existing curriculum or school wellbeing program.