Parent-teacher relationships in group music lessons : a collective case study

Abstract

The relationship between a parent and a teacher in group music lessons can be fraught with difficulties because of the role conflicts that may result from the negotiations that occur between parents and teachers. The roles of teachers and parents as well as the expectations that teachers have of parents and parents have of teachers are often unclear, as different role players might have conflicting expectations of each others’ roles. This may result in role confusion for both parties. There is no research on this topic in group music lessons, nor in music education literature in West Malaysia. Therefore, the aim of this collective case study was to explore the relationship between teachers and parents of pre-school children in group music lessons in the Klang Valley2 of West Malaysia. This study situates role theory as a conceptual framework to explore the parents’ and teachers’ perspectives on their relationships. As such, this study describes the expectations of both parents and teachers of their respective roles in these group music lessons in order to understand the relationships better. Two semi-structured interviews were conducted with nine parents and three teachers of three group music classes for pre-school children. In this thesis, I discuss how the teachers’ roles, parental roles, and partnerships between parents and teachers are conceptualised by the participants. The research literature and the findings of my study show similarities in describing parental roles as supporters, home supervisors, role models, and consumers. Among the novel findings on the roles of the parent was the focus parents placed on the teachers; parents expected to show support, respect, fairness, understanding and adaptability towards the teachers. In addition, parents in the one-on-one setting were seen as playing the role of consumer as customers, drivers or pacesetters, and bargain hunters. Furthermore, a difference between research literature and the findings of my study lies in literature suggesting that parents play the roles of partners in education. However, apart from the finding that parents play the role of collaborators, the notion of parents being partners in education was absent in the findings of this study. The investigation of the various expected roles for teachers in music lessons, show that current research literature and the findings of this study on teacher’s roles are similar in describing the teacher’s roles as educators, professional musicians, multi-faceted professionals, authorities on music education, role models, and mentors. However, there are differences in that the findings of this study describe other roles for teachers, such as, entrepreneurs and communicators. A further difference lies in the teacher’s role as a partner in education, as described in the literature. A novel finding in the one-on-one setting showed that

there was considerable response from the parents and teachers on the role of the teacher as an entrepreneur. Teachers were perceived as customer service providers, even baby-sitters, and were expected to be generous with their time. In the area of parent-teacher partnerships, parent and teacher perspectives focussed on the need for trust and respect as two key values for successful parent-teacher relationships. It is evident from the parents’ perspectives that the presence of these values would naturally lead them to appreciate the teachers. Furthermore, in terms of attitudes, teachers expected parents to be cooperative while parents expected teachers to make them feel comfortable during their interactions with each other. Both the findings of this study and the general literature stressed the importance of communication between parents and teachers, which will clearly impact on the quality of parent-teacher relationships. This study argues that role theory is a helpful tool in order to help parents and teachers in West Malaysia to understand their relationships. An understanding of their roles can help parents and teachers to clarify the many positional and personal expectations they hold as well as the expectations that teachers have of parents and parents have of teachers. Futhermore, the concepts from role theory such as the principles of functionality, representationality and tenability in role differentiation can be employed for the reconceptualization of the roles of parents and teachers.