Research-to-Resource: A Tripartite Model of Cultural Humility-Music (TMCH-Music) in Music Education

Abstract

A Tripartite Model of Cultural Humility-Music (TMCH-Music) includes three tenets, which are essential to forming a humble character: (a) commitment to lifelong, critical self-reflection; (b) recognition and mitigation of power imbalances; and (c) mutually beneficial partnerships with communities. In this model, I situate cultural humility as a mindset that necessitates careful consideration relating to educational context, content, and pedagogy in music education. Adopting a humble mindset, music teachers may acknowledge their own biases, stereotyping, and prejudices relating to educational context, content, and pedagogy. A commitment to lifelong introspection through self-reflection and critique may help teachers continue to investigate new ways to redress power imbalances inherent in music education, as well as build their relationships with communities bidirectionally. I describe each dimension of the model and provide suggestions for how music educators may use this humble mindset of TMCH-Music in practice.