Department of Music Education
Mission Statement
Don Wright Faculty of Music, Department of Music Education is dedicated to world-leading research and teaching. Our graduates are well educated musicians and scholars with a passion for and commitment to music education. As visionary musicians and educators they possess the musical and technological skills, knowledge and understandings necessary to advance music education around the world.
About Music Education at Western
The University of Western Ontario has a long and proud history as an international leader in the area of Music Education. Our Music Education programs are unique in Ontario, with a strong emphasis on the balance between music performance and academic training at the undergraduate level, and a flexible, research-based program at the graduate level. Degrees offered are the Honors Bachelor of Music in Music Education, the Master of Music in Music Education, and the Ph.D. in Music (with a music education emphasis). For more information about graduate studies in music education, including our new Summer Master of Music in Music Education program, please consult the Graduate Degree Programs section.
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News for BACHELOR OF MUSIC (HONORS IN MUSIC EDUCATION) students
Guaranteed Admission to the Bachelor of Education program at the Faculty of Education now possible
From September 1, 2010 it will be possible for some Honors Bachelor of Music in Music Education students to gain guaranteed entry to the Bachelor of Education program at Althouse College.
This will provide students with many of the bonuses of a concurrent degree program in music and education without sacrificing the concentrated musical study so beneficial to their future as music educators.
Guaranteed Admissions Application Form
Expectation of Teacher Candidates
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Undergraduate Music Education program
Honors Bachelor of Music in Music Education
This program is designed to help students develop their own individual musicianship through four years of weekly, hour-long, private lessons on their major instruments and participation in outstanding vocal and instrumental ensembles. At the same time, students build a strong academic foundation for teaching by taking part in a series of specialized seminars focusing on philosophy, psychology, methodology, and current issues in music education.
Music Education students have the opportunity to study as many as eight different instruments in the secondary instrument classes, along with instrumental and choral conducting. The Music Education department also offers courses in music and instructional technology, elementary methods, vocal methods, and numerous special topics of interest to our students. All of this is balanced with core courses in music history and theory and a large variety of non-music options. During their last two years of the program, music education majors have the opportunity to participate in the Extra-curricular Music Education Project -- a volunteer program through which students gain experience assisting local elementary and secondary music teachers.
An active Music Education Students' Association (MESA), which is a student chapter of the Ontario Music Educators’ Association, works to ensure that a sense of community is maintained within the Don Wright Faculty of Music. UWOMESA often sponsors special events and presentations of interest to music education students. The goal of Western's Music Education program is to help students to become well-rounded musicians who are prepared to go on to the next step in teacher preparation. Our graduates are much sought after by faculties of education and school boards and have a very high job placement rate in Ontario and across Canada.
Graduate Music Education Programs
MMus or PhD in Music Education
For more information on our graduate programs, please consult Graduate Degree Programs.
Links
Visit our section devoted to Music Education Links of Interest.
Contact Information
Department Chair
Dr. Ruth Wright
Phone: 519-661-2111 ext. 85358
E-mail: rwrigh6@uwo.ca
Department Assistant
Gayle Day
TC 118
Phone:
519-611-2111 ext. 85358
E-mail: gday@uwo.ca
Faculty
For a complete faculty listing, please visit Music Education Faculty & Staff.
Also from this web page:
About Us
by Eric Kular
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Sociology and Music Education
by Ruth Wright
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Just released book edited by Carol Beynon and Kari Veblen: Inspiring and insightful perspectives on Canadian music education offer a rich collection of essays that look critically at global issues. (more...)
