Tuning in

“Wait… where’s the teacher?” a third-grade girl asked me as I stood in the hallway to greet my first group of students. 

It was the summer of 2016. I had signed up to teach music at HomeFront’s Family Campus, a homeless shelter and resource center in Ewing, N.J.

“I am Miss Murphy, and I will be your music teacher all summer,” I explained. 

“Really?” the child replied. She seemed quite concerned. 

“Of course!” I exclaimed with an outward confidence that was at odds with my inner self-doubt. 

Who was I, I wondered, to try and teach some of my community’s most underserved children? I was only a college student, with little real-world teaching experience. My self-doubt doubled as I realized how desperately I wanted my new students to like me. I did not talk like them. I did not look like them. For the first time in my life, I was the ethnic minority in a classroom. 

This was how my journey as a culturally responsive music teacher began. The experience was the most challenging and riveting of my undergraduate career. I had received a $5,000 grant to conduct research under the supervision of Dr. Donna Gallo and Dr. Sharon Morrow of the music education faculty at Westminster Choir College, thanks to an Undergraduate Research Scholarship Award from Rider University.

My project, “Finding A Home in Music: Culturally Responsive Teaching for Homeless Youth,” was an attempt to learn how the principles of culturally relevant teaching apply to homeless students. Gloria Ladson-Billings, who coined the term “culturally responsive or relevant teaching,” defined it as a pedagogy “that recognizes the importance of including students’ cultural references in all aspects of learning.” It requires that educators understand their students’ cultures and backgrounds. 

To become culturally competent, I conducted formal interviews and field observations at the shelter and then planned a music curriculum to teach there. I asked children, parents and staff members about their backgrounds, favorite music, interests and families. During the field observations, I was amazed by the children’s jubilance and endless interests.

Like most children, my future students were thrilled with the prospect of learning to play instruments. Many of them believed their music classes at school were “too hard.” After chatting, we discovered together that these music classes were not too hard, but were actually under-stimulating. Students did not tell me that reading music was too challenging for them; instead, they explained that it is difficult to sit still and focus on the board for the duration of music class. These conversations, paired with literature reviews, helped me plan a culturally responsive music curriculum.

Reading literature and conducting interviews formed my initial lessons and expectations for the class. However, some things must be learned through experience. Jumping headfirst into teaching children whose backgrounds differed from mine was the most impactful part of my project. Each week, my instruction became more meaningful. Students learned to play the ukulele, shared their musical tastes by creating personal “musical worlds,” discovered legends of Puerto Rico’s El Yunque Rainforest and composed using percussion instruments. Musical instruction was based upon what students already knew and liked, which made learning fun. 

I gained as much from my students as they gained from the class. Exposing myself to experiences beyond my comfort zone changed my perspective as an educator and a musician. I believe it is vital to learn how to teach all students — not just the ones within easy reach.

I am in the process of reviewing additional literature and drawing conclusions about how the ideals of culturally responsive teaching have the power to transform education for homeless children. Although I still have a lot to learn, my service project leads me to believe that while what we teach is important, how we teach is invaluable. When students feel that they have an impact on their learning, they are empowered to work toward success. Investing the time to understand the cultures and backgrounds of students made all the difference.  γ