Canadian Music Educator Journal
The journal covers the broad range of approaches, methods, musics and delivery systems used in Canadian schools, community and post-secondary institutions. It also reflects the ongoing research activities of Canadian music education researchers.
The Canadian Music Educator was founded in 1959 as the official publication of CMEA. It has published several research symposia and the proceedings of the International Research Seminar in Music Education (Melbourne, Australia). A newsletter was launched in 1968; convention news appeared in CMEA from 1976 to 1988.
Articles
Since its inception, the journal has published a wide range of articles dealing with music education issues and research. Articles include practical, non-peer reviewed (practice-based) and peer-reviewed scholarly papers that deal with teaching approaches and philosophies, instructional techniques, current trends and issues in school and community music programs, and the latest in products and services.
Canadian Music Educator has also published several books. These include Music and Learning: Perspectives in Theory and Practice (1999) and Leadership, Advocacy, Communication: A Vision for Music Education in Canada (2000), both edited by Patrick Schmidt, professor of music education at Western University in London, Ontario, Canada. Schmidt is on the editorial board of Action, Criticism, and Theory for Music Education, the International Journal of Community Music, and the editor-in-chief of the Oxford Handbook of Technology and Music Education.
Music education is a complex enterprise that involves thousands of schools, community groups, colleges and universities, and participants from infancy to old age in formal and informal settings. Despite its scope and scale, research in music education is comparatively sparse. Traditionally, research activities have been confined to projects initiated by faculty members in music or education departments and the supervised theses of graduate students. The CMEA continues to advocate for the funding of purposeful research and maintains representational relationships with other national and international organizations involved in the field.
Reviews
The Canadian Association of Music Libraries, Archives and Documentation Centres (CAML) publishes the peer-reviewed journal CAML Review twice a year. It features articles, reports, news and essays, and offers a Canadian perspective on the world of music education and research.
Juliet Hess is a music educator who teaches elementary school vocal, instrumental, and “world” music at a public school in the Greater Toronto Area. Her academic research focuses on anti-oppression education, activism in music and music education, and the question of ethics in world music study. Her work has appeared in numerous journals, including Music Educators Journal, Contributions to Music Education, and Update: Applications of Research in Music Education.
Dr. Mantie’s teaching and scholarship emphasize connections between schooling and society, with a focus on lifelong engagement in music. He has published numerous peer-reviewed papers in scholarly journals and has contributed book chapters to texts published by GIA, MIT Press, Rowman and Littlefield, and Oxford University Press.
The CMEA is a national organization central to a network of provincial music educators’ associations. It serves and connects music educators, fosters the advancement of teaching and learning, and raises the profile of music in Canada. The CMEA also celebrates Canadian musical content through the Pat Shand Essay Competition, which recognizes undergraduate and graduate students for their research on music education in Canada.
Interviews
Music education is a vast enterprise, involving thousands of teachers and hundreds of millions of students in countless public schools, community groups, colleges and universities, and other formal and informal settings. Yet, despite the vast number of music programs and the enormous student population, academic books and journal articles with a Canadian focus are scarce.
Since its inception in 1959, the CMEA’s chief aim has been to unify and inform Canada’s teachers of music through a series of national conventions, publications and a newsletter. In its role as official Canadian representative to the International Society for Music Education, it also publishes the proceedings of international research seminars (such as the 12th IRME held in Melbourne, Australia) and original research studies that have a strong Canadian interest.
The CMEA also promotes its member interests through a variety of awards, including the Builders Award and Jubilate Awards conferred annually to a teacher from each affiliated province or territory, as well as the National Music Award of Excellence for Lifetime Contributions. Its Resource Centre provides members with reprints, general information and reference services, and materials for non-commercial displays at conventions and workshops. The CMEA is central to a network of provincial music educators’ associations and fosters the advancement of teaching and the lifelong learning of music.