Music teacher mothers’ career navigation during the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

The purpose of this narrative case study was to re-present and re-story the experiences, particularly related to career navigation, of music teacher mothers in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic. We explored how music teacher mothers had to adjust the balance between work, family, and personal life during the pandemic, in what ways the pandemic may have changed the way music teacher mothers parent, and how the pandemic may have affected, or already changed, music teacher mothers’ long-term career goals. Three participants, selected based on the diversity of their family structures, teaching backgrounds, and locations, shared their stories through a series of two interviews conducted via Zoom. Participants’ stories illuminated the relational, vocational, financial, and health-related struggles brought about by the nexus of teaching music during the pandemic. We explore resonances between their stories related to priorities, boundaries, career decisions, and financial considerations.