Mitchell Robinson, Ph.D.

Welcome to my web page! 

 

I also blog on education policy and politics at Eclectablog, a Michigan progressive news and commentary website.

 

You may also use the links above to find resources on graduate study and advising at Michigan State University as well as information on our current doctoral students and graduates in music education.

 

There is also a link to a page devoted to the distribution of clinic and workshop materials, handouts, research presentations, and other music education resources. All materials are offered free of charge and may be duplicated as needed, with proper citations and acknowledgements.

 

 

 

See below for links to book chapters, articles, recent radio interviews and media coverage on education policy and other related issues.

Closing Schools Makes No Sense...For Children, on LA Progressive

I'm very excited to have my first publication in the LA Progressive! I’ve admired this publication for a long time, and am thrilled to have one of my articles appear on their website.

Radio Interview: Death Knell for Ed Reform?

Click here to listen to my radio interview with fellow education activist Denisha Jones on the Education Town Hall: BUS (Badass Teachers Association, United Opt Out, Save our Schools):

Death Knell for “Ed Reform”?


Mitchell Robinson, of Michigan State University, and Denisha Jones, of Howard University — both active in BadAss Teachers Association — discuss the disappointment of teachers and teacher educators, nationwide, as unions and others jump on the “teachers are the problem” bandwagon of #TeachStrong.


Jones explains how the new effort fails to include many experienced schools of education, possibly in recognition of the fact that previous attempts to privatize and control schools has been thwarted by teachers and teacher educators.


Robinson also argues, however, that recent changes of tack for ed reformers, including Gates Foundation teacher prep funding, suggest reformers’ frustration because “they have not done one thing” and consequent flailing. Signaling, perhaps, a death knell for combative and unsuccessful strategies. 

"Can it Get More Absurd?", on The Conversation

An article of mine on music teacher evaluation, Can it get more absurd? Now music teachers are being tested based on math and reading scores, was published on The Conversation—a new media platform designed to "Inform public debate with knowledge-based journalism that is responsible, ethical and supported by evidence.”


My goal with this effort is to share my scholarship with a wider audience, and try to influence the narrative around the issues that are important to the profession. This can be difficult with traditional academic venues, like research journals, that have a limited circulation, target only other music educators, and often require a paid subscription in order to access. I believe that we have an obligation as “public academics” to spread our scholarship in these ways.


The Conversation is an open access platform with online editions in the US, Australia, Africa, France and the UK, and has a monthly audience of 2.6 million users, and a reach of 23 million.


On the High Wire

I'm happy to share that my chapter, “A Tale of Two Institutions or... Myths and Musings on Work/Life Balance,” appears in the new book, “On the High Wire: Education Professors Walk Between Work and Parenting” from Information Age Publishing.


The purpose of the work/life balance series is to highlight particular challenges that higher education faculty face as they participate in the demands of the academy and try to prevent those demands from invading their personal lives. On The High Wire looks at a specific subset of university faculty, education faculty with school-aged children, and the specific professional/personal balance these faculty need to find. The title On the High Wire suggests the precarious nature of the “walk” for education faculty who are parents of school-aged children. We know that our identities are central to how we experience the world and how the world reacts to us. This reality is clearly visible in this book. These multiple identities and roles come into conflict at multiple points and in different ways. This book explores these identities and roles through autoethnographic accounts written by varied education faculty in order to make these tensions visible for the field to address.

The Inchworm and the Nightingale: On the (Mis)use of Data in Music Teacher Evaluation

Click here to read this article that appeared in Arts Education Policy Review.

When We Want to Improve Something...

The following post appeared on the Badass Teachers Association blog (http://badassteachers.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2014-12-04T09:29:00-08:00&max-results=7) on December 4, 2014


When we want to improve something--a product, a process, a project--in the business world, we devote more time, money and resources into research and development; we recruit talented people and pay them a competitive wage; we make sure we surround those persons with excellent facilities, equipment, materials, working conditions, benefits, and retirement packages; we treat those employees with dignity, respect and compassion.

When we want to improve something--teacher quality, student learning--in public education, we establish invalid and unreliable accountability measures that have been proven not to work; we eliminate teacher tenure, teacher unions, and minimum salary requirements; we make it easier for unqualified people to enter the profession, taking away jobs from more experienced (read = more expensive) teachers; we deregulate charter schools as we impose unreasonable demands and expectations on our public schools, teachers and students.

And then we blame teachers and students for the problems created by this mismanagement, and label them as "whiners" and "complainers" when they have the nerve to voice their concerns about the damage being done to public education.
Why?

Washington Post article on TFA

2014 Music Education Policy Summit

Over 50 music teachers, music teacher educators and music education advocates attended and participated in the Music Education Policy Summit at Michigan State University on June 14, 2014. It was inspiring to see and hear from so many passionate, dedicated individuals about their challenges, successes and hopes for the future of our profession. In the words of one panelist, "When people ask me how things are going in Michigan, I always say that it's amazing how much we get done with such bad music education policy in our state." So very true.

Building on this momentum we are excited to pursue the next steps in our agenda:

1. To propose and implement a K-5 music requirement for Michigan's public schools. We are currently one of 5 states to not have an elementary music mandate. This is unacceptable, and our kids and schools deserve better.

2. To strengthen teacher certification requirements that currently allow schools to replace certified music teachers (MI certificate JQ) with those who hold a K-8 "all subjects" certificate. This is unacceptable, and our kids and schools deserve better.

To learn more about the Partnership for Music Education Policy Development, and to support our efforts to influence music education policy in Michigan and nationally, please go to http://pmepd.weebly.com/

Oxford Handbook of Qualitative Research in American Music Education

Qualitative research has become increasingly popular in music education over the last decade, yet there is no source that explains the terms, approaches and issues associated with this approach. In The Oxford Handbook of Qualitative Research in American Music Education, editor Colleen Conway and the contributing music educators provide that clarification, as well as models of qualitative studies within various music education disciplines. The handbook outlines the history of qualitative research in American music education and explores the contemporary use of qualitative approaches in examining issues related to music teaching and learning. It includes 32 chapters that address a range of topics, from ways of approaching qualitative research and ways of collecting and analyzing data, to the various music teaching and learning contexts that have been studied using qualitative approaches. 

 

My two chapters are: 

 

6 ‐ Changing the Conversation: Considering Quality in Music Education Qualitative Research.

 

31 ‐ The Politics of Publication: Voices, Venues and Ethics.

 

To browse an online version of the Handbook, please go to: http://www.oxfordhandbooks.com/view/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199844272.001.0001/oxfordhb-9780199844272

Click below to hear my interview with Cynthia Canty on Michigan Radio's State Side on Feb. 19.

As Michigan moves into new, uncharted waters in terms of testing and evaluating those who hope to become teachers, there are many views on whether this testing and evaluation is fair, helpful, and an accurate measurement of how students, teachers, and schools are doing.

Mitchell Robinson is an associate professor and chair of music education at Michigan State University. A former teacher, his research is now focused on education policy and the mentoring of new music teachers. 

He believes test scores like the beefed-up version of Michigan's teacher certification test aren't telling us anything substantial about students or learning.

http://michiganradio.org/post/education-researcher-says-we-cant-blame-teachers-failing-schools

Click below to read my guest column on "Okemos Parents for Schools", a response to Thomas Friedman's piece, "Obama's Homework Assignment":

Music Education Advocacy


Experts at MSU take action and provide perspective


School districts across the nation are faced with challenging economic times. When tough decisions need to be made, arts funding is one of the first things some districts put under the microscope. Music Education at MSU looks at this through a different lens and plays a strong advocacy role for the arts in its community, across the state and nation.

In March of 2013, the Lansing School District announced it would cut more than 80 elementary art, music, and physical education teacher positions beginning in the fall of 2013. Faced with some tough budgetary issues and new State of Michigan Right-to-Work legislation, the school board and teachers union made the decision to eliminate teacher positions and supplement their programing by placing additional demands on existing teachers and seeking non-binding external subject matter resources and personnel.

Dr. Mitch Robinson, associate professor and chair of music education, and Rhonda Buckley, associate dean for outreach and engagement and executive director of the MSU Community Music School, took prompt action. They reached out to local and national arts organizations, teachers, parents, the MSU College of Education, and various associations to advocate for the centrality and importance of arts education in the general curriculum. New dialogues have evolved and relationships have developed as the College of Music continues to provide leadership on this issue.

Click here to read more on the College of Music’s perspective on this issue and listen to a radio interview with Mitch Robinson.

 

2013 Michigan Music Conference Features MSU Presenters, Clinicians and Conductors

The 2013 Michigan Music Conference will feature an impressive roster of presenters with MSU affiliations--just click to see a full size version of the poster!

 

We should all be proud of our friends and colleagues who will be sharing their knowledge and expertise with their colleagues in our schools at this event. See below for a listing of these sessions. 

 

I'd also like to point out three events for your special attention:

 

• Dr. Cindy Taggart will be presenting an all day (8:00am-4:00pm) pre-conference workshop, titled "Illuminating the Mystery: Music Learning Theory in Action. Cindy will be joined by two Spartan alums, Jennifer Bailey and Heather Shouldice, who will be co-presenters. This promises to be a terrific workshop!

 

• Dr. Kevin Sedatole, MSU's Director of Bands, will be conducting the Michigan All-State High School Band on Saturday. It will be great to have Dr. Sedatole share his musicianship and artistry with our state's young musicians. Congratulations Kevin!

 

• Dr. John Kratus will be receiving the MMEA "Award of Merit" for his contributions to the state's music education community, especially for his founding of the annual MMEA Honors Composition Concert, which will be held on Saturday, January 19. Congratulations to John for this well deserved honor!

 

Also, if you are planning to attend the MMC, please remember to join us for the MSU Reception on Friday. The reception will be held from 5:00-6:30pm in the Governors Room, and is a great way to catch up with old friends and touch base with the faculty and current students. We hope to see you there!

 

 

Congratulations to all of our presenters and clinicians, and thank you for sharing your expertise and ideas with your colleagues!

It's Out!

Click on the picture to the left to go to the Teachers College Press web page on our new book, What Every Principal Needs to Know to Create Equitable and Excellent Schools, edited by George Theoharis (Syracuse University) and Jeff Brooks (Iowa State University). My chapter is titled, "Music Teaching and Learning in a Time of Reform."

 

About the book. . . 

 

School leaders who succeed at creating a high-achieving learning community must also be committed to creating an equitable environment for all students. In this new book, key scholars across the content areas show how to put into practice a commitment to equity and excellence across the Pre-K–12 spectrum. Readers learn directly from experts in each of the content domains (literacy, mathematics, science, social studies, music, early childhood, special education, English language learners, world languages, and physical education) how a commitment to social justice and equity can be grounded in core subject areas, why each has a place in the school, and what they need to know and do in each subject area. This book is a critical instructional leadership resource for new and veteran principals who want to see all students succeed. 

 

“This book is a noble work of art; it is thoughtful, well written, and passionate. The authors and editors provide the pathway for all of us to contribute to social justice. It is a must-read!” 

—Sarah Jerome, superintendent, Arlington Heights, Illinois, and past president of the American Association of School Administrators (AASA) 

 

“By forging the linkage between equity and leader`s subject knowledge, Theoharis and Brooks provide a much needed and important extension in our understanding of instructional leadership.” 

—Joseph F. Murphy, Vanderbilt University 

 

“At last a book on what principals need to know that doesn’t sacrifice the idea of an education to develop the entire human being instead of workers who can compete with China.” 

—Fenwick W. English, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

 

“Bridges the gap between the intellectual considerations of academia and the everyday aspects of leadership practice. It is a must-read for principals, superintendents, curriculum specialists, and those who prepare them.” 

—Autumn Cyprès, The University of Tennessee 

 

“Finally, a thoughtful, well-crafted book that guides school leaders on promoting both high-quality teaching and learning and equity principles to improve student learning across content areas and needs.” 

—Terry Orr, Bank Street College of Education 

 

“WOW! Social justice leadership with explicit core content areas addressed all in one book. All principals hoping to improve student achievement and equity should consider this book when thinking about their leadership.” 

—Deborah Hoffman, principal, Lincoln Elementary School, Madison, WI 

 

“As a school principal in high-need schools for the past ten years, I truly recommend this book to anyone interested in improving the state of learning and increasing achievement scores.” 

—Rob DiFlorio, principal, Henninger High School, Syracuse, NY 

 

Contributors: Antonio J. Castro • Julie Causton-Theoharis • Virginia Collier • Katherine Delaney • Catherine Ennis • Virginia Goatley • Beth Graue • Rochelle Gutiérrez • Kathleen A. Hinchman • Anne Karabon • Christi Kasa • Dave McAlpine • Mitchell Robinson • Victor Sampson • Sherry A. Southerland • Wayne Thomas 

 

240 pages Paperback, $29.95 | 978-0-8077-5353-8 Hardcover, $76 | 978-0-8077-5354-5 

 

Table of Contents 

 

1. Literacy—Leading Literacy Programs That Foster Excellence in All Students 

2. Mathematics—Beyond the Achievement Gap: What It Takes to Become an Effective Leader in Mathematics for Marginalized Youth 

3. Science—Creating Effective School Leaders for 21st-Century Science 

4. Social Studies—Teaching Social Studies for Democratic Equity and Excellence 

5. Music—Music Teaching and Learning in a Time of Reform 

6. Early Childhood—Learning to Love Your Noisy Neighbor: A Principal’s Guide to the Education of Young Children 

7. Special Education—Leadership for Inclusive Education: What Every Principal Needs to Know 

8. English Language Learners—What Really Works for English Language Learners: Research-Based Practices for Principals 

9. World Languages—Understanding Foreign Language Instruction in Your School 

10. Physical Education—Innovative Practices and Programs in Physical Education

 

George Theoharis is an Associate Dean in the School of Education at Syracuse University and an Associate Professor in Educational Leadership and Inclusive Elementary Education. He is the author of The School Leaders Our Children Deserve. 


Jeffrey S. Brooks is Associate Professor and Program Coordinator of Educational Administration at Iowa State University. He is the author of Black School, White School: Racism and Educational (Mis)leadership. 

 

To order, call 800-575-6566 or visit www.tcpress.com 

Follow us @TCPress 

For special bulk sales, please contact TC Press at: (212) 678-3919 

For exam/desk copy requests go to: www.tcpress.com/form1.html 

 

Teachers College 

Columbia University