Toward Mindful Music Education: A Response to Bennett Reimer

A reply to Bennett Reimer on the teaching of philosophy to K-12 students is presented. The author of this article poses two problems linked to pedagogy and philosophy in undergraduate teacher preparation. First, philosophy in undergraduate teacher preparation tends to be decontextualized. They have both practical and research based evidence to suggest that undergraduates perceive teaching from the student perspective. They already have philosophies of music and education, whether they have articulated them or not, and whether teacher educators like them or not, based on their experiences as students. Most undergraduates do not yet perceive teaching from the point of view of teachers; in fact, they are generally worried about being perceived as teachers themselves. From their perspective as students, undergraduates conceive of philosophy as a paper be written or an assignment to be completed rather than as thinking that shapes practices. Furthermore, teacher educators perpetuate the problem when they teach about philosophy decontextualized from practice and as a thing to be learned rather than a habit of mind. Second, the author proposes that their focus on philosophy with undergraduates is a two-legged stool, and a two-legged stool is a very unstable perch for any teacher, let alone a novice teacher. (Contains 5 notes.)