Considering Antiracism in Student Teacher Placement

Student teaching represents the culmination of a preservice music educator’s preparation. In student teaching, notions of the transformative potential of music education may be reinforced or subverted. The placement of student teachers, an underresearched process in music teacher education, may be a space where teacher educators can work toward racial justice. In this article, I explore critical antiracist theory in music teacher education in two fictionalized vignettes. I apply an antiracist lens to the process of student teacher placement to suggest ways to interrogate problematic policies and practices. Avenues for antiracist praxis include (a) naming the racialized nature of an institution’s professional network, (b) mapping the racial landscapes of prospective placements, (c) addressing issues of representation in student teacher placement, and (d) becoming race-power conscious. Through this article, I illustrate how antiracist theory might guide music teacher education toward social action by addressing issues related to racism, racial representation, and school segregation