Vocational Music Education Institutions and Music Teacher Training in Turkey in the 21st Century

Abstract

In this study, the process of training music teachers working in primary, middle, and high schools affiliated with the Ministry of National Education in Turkey is examined. Within this scope, Higher Education Programs related to Music Education, Pedagogical Formation Education Certificate Program (PFECP) and Student Profile/Quality of Music Education Institutions were investigated to answer three fundamental questions. According to the findings obtained, it has been determined that there is a structure of music education in 16 different faculties with various names, apart from the Music Education program in the Faculty of Education, and students studying in these institutions have the right to be appointed as music teachers by completing the (PFECP). Furthermore, it was determined that the scores of the TYT (Basic Skills Test) determined for admission to 16 different faculties outside the Faculty of Education were very low/insufficient. The education process of the Pedagogical Formation Education Certificate Program does not meet the expected “competencies of the music teaching profession” in training music teachers. In our country, which has a tradition, experience, and accumulation of training music teachers for 100 years, there is a need to re-think and re-imagine the structure and policies of music teacher training in the 21st century. The Ministry of National Education (MONE), the Council of Higher Education (COHE), universities, academicians, civil society organizations, and all stakeholders in music education should take steps to correct the deficiencies, inconsistencies, and contradictions in teacher/music teacher training practices.