Flourishing is a multidimensional conceptualization of well-being where individuals function well and experience a sense of vitality. Music teachers can promote flourishing alongside academic achievement through integrating an approach known as "positive education." The purpose of this article is to describe the PROSPER framework, one such approach to positive education that centers positivity, relationships, outcomes, strengths, purpose, engagement, and resilience. By applying this framework in the music classroom, teachers can promote flourishing among their students. In this article, I discuss the role teachers play in supporting well-being, providing general considerations and specific strategies to support PROSPERing in music.

The purpose of this mixed methods study was to examine the use and perceived value of feedback on students' creativity among preservice (n = 164) and in-service (n = 246) teachers. As an explanatory sequential mixed methods design, the first phase of the study included a quantitative questionnaire that sought to examine music educators' (N = 410) attitudes, beliefs, values, and utility of feedback on creative tasks. The second phase of the study was qualitative and included two components: (a) a pre-interview task where teachers (n = 49) provided written feedback on two student compositions and (b) one-on-one interviews with preservice (n = 6) and in-service (n = 9) teachers. The primary purpose of the second phase was to examine the types of feedback teachers provide on creative tasks, such as composition, and to allow teachers to describe their thinking about giving feedback on creative tasks. Finally, we integrated findings from both phases. The participants in this study reported valuing process- and goal-oriented feedback over task-oriented feedback. However, teachers demonstrated a tendency to provide more task-oriented (or product-oriented) feedback than process- or goal-oriented feedback when responding to the student compositions. Implications and recommendations for the field are discussed.

Kindergarten through 12th-grade (K-12) music teachers spend much of their professional lives occupying physical workspaces like classrooms and offices. Given that teachers occupy these spaces for extended periods of time, the impact of these spaces on teacher well-being should be considered. This exploratory survey study examined the relationships between K-12 music teachers' workplace well-being and perceptions of the physical classroom spaces. A questionnaire was completed by 484 music teachers who were members of the National Association for Music Education. The questionnaire included the Workplace PERMA Profiler (a measure of workplace well-being) and the Structural, Physical, and Campus Environment Survey (a measure of teachers' perceptions of their classrooms). Higher levels of well-being were positively correlated with favorable perceptions of classroom space. Scale and aesthetics, the visual environment, and spatial environment elements were the strongest predictors of well-being. Taking statistical and textual data together, specific features including windows, good natural light, quality and controllable lighting, aesthetically pleasant (e.g., decorations and colors) rooms, ample space and storage, comfortable temperatures, good organization, and control over the classroom space had the largest positive impact on well-being among the participating teachers.

In every music classroom, nonverbal forces—including immediacy, ensemble setups, and teacher use of space—may impact student outcomes. Immediacy refers to a collection of nonverbal behaviors that communicate psychological closeness. The purpose of this survey study was to examine secondary choir teachers’ ( N = 137) self-reported immediacy behaviors, ensemble setups, and use of classroom space when teaching. Women reported significantly higher levels of immediacy than men, and all participants reported using proximity-related behaviors the least. Most participants reported using choir setups that limited teacher movement in contrast to setups that might help teachers move toward or among students. Participants reported spending most of their time at the piano instead of in other areas of the room. Finally, men spent significantly more time at the podium or behind the conductor’s stand than women. Recommendations for choir teachers to improve their immediacy, ensemble setup, and use of space are presented.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of closed and opened setup conditions on students’ and teachers’ reported immediacy, affect, motivation, and group cohesion in band and orchestra classrooms. A secondary purpose was to explore relationships among students’ and teachers’ reported immediacy, affect, motivation, and group cohesion. Six teachers and 379 of their students participated in the study. In this within-subjects experiment, teachers were asked to teach with their classrooms arranged in closed and opened setup conditions. In the closed condition, teachers used a traditional setup of arcs and were not asked to change their use of space when teaching. In the opened condition, an aisle was added to the ensemble setup and teachers were provided with strategies to encourage movement toward and among students when teaching. At the end of each condition, teachers and students completed measures of constructs related to immediacy, affect, motivation, and group cohesion. Results indicate the effect of the intervention increased negative affect among students, teacher proximity was associated with negative affect among students, and students’ perceptions of their teacher’s immediacy was found to have positive relationships with student affect, motivation, and group cohesion.

The purpose of this survey study was to explore the relationships between well-being and adaptability among music teacher educators in the United States during the 2020–2021 academic year. We used an online questionnaire to collect data related to demographics, well-being, adaptability, and academic year events. The 85 participants reported relatively high levels of psychological well-being and adaptability. Specific adaptability attributes (e.g., ability to draw on positive feelings and emotions when confronted with new situations in the classroom) were found to be significant predictors of overall well-being.

The purpose of this study was to survey secondary band and orchestra teachers (N= 436) in Colorado and Indiana regarding their self-reported immediacy behaviors, ensemble setups, and use of classroom space when teaching. Immediacy "refers to nonverbal teacher behaviors which increase nonverbal interaction with students and which communicate closeness." Female teachers and teachers of young ensembles reported higher levels of overall immediacy. Among component immediacy behaviors, teachers reported using proximity-related behaviors the least; females reported using proximity behaviors at higher rates than males. The majority of teachers reported using "closed" ensemble setups (i.e., setups that limit teacher movement among students) and remained in these setups for the majority of the school year. Teachers of young ensembles reported greater use of "opened" setups (i.e., setups that help facilitate teacher movement among students). Although teachers reported spending the majority of rehearsal time on the podium, female teachers, teachers of young ensembles, and teachers who used opened setups reported less time on the podium and more time moving among students. Implications for immediacy, ensemble setup, and teacher use of space in music education are discussed.

The purpose of this study was to explore features of university environments that support well-being as perceived by undergraduate lesbian, gay, bisexual, and questioning (LGBQ) music and art students. Data were drawn from the 2013–2015 administrations of the College Student Report (CSR) by the National Survey of Student Engagement. Responses of students who identified as music majors, music or art education majors, or as LGBQ ( n = 30,014) were extracted. CSR items regarding the students’ collegiate experiences corresponding with dimensions of Seligman’s well-being theory (i.e., positive emotions, engagement, relationships, meaning, achievement) were used to create composite variables for analysis. The data indicated similar ratings between heterosexual and LGBQ music/art students for positive emotion, engagement, and relationships. In contrast, non–music/art LGBQ students rated items pertaining to positive emotions and relationships lower than heterosexual music/art students and lower than both heterosexual students and LGBQ music/art students in engagement. Both LGBQ groups rated meaning items significantly higher than heterosexual music/art students. The data also indicated that heterosexual music/art students rated achievement items significantly higher than both LGBQ groups. These findings suggest that heterosexual and LGBQ music/art students may perceive better support for their well-being by their institutions’ environments than their non–music/art LGBQ peers.

The purpose of this action research study was to explore the use of problem-based learning (PBL) in a secondary instrument methods course. Six students enrolled in a woodwind methods course and participated in PBL activities—including video assessment, written scenarios, emergent performance scenarios in the classroom, group activities, and structured peer teaching—aimed at improving their ability to diagnose and solve instrument-specific performance problems. We examined students’ perceptions of PBL, including their teaching confidence, retention of course materials, and overall course engagement. The data collected suggest that students perceived themselves to be learning effectively in this PBL environment, and they felt generally confident in their ability to teach woodwinds. In addition, students appreciated opportunities for “real-life” teaching scenarios and expressed high levels of motivation, though they found this approach somewhat haphazard and unstructured. We suggest that PBL may be a viable method for educating preservice music teachers.

The purpose of this study was to explore a microanalysis technique for measuring instrumentalists’ self-regulation tendencies during music practice. A secondary purpose was to investigate whether an intervention informed by the features of the microanalysis technique would increase the students’ self-regulated learning tendencies. Three undergraduate instrumental music education majors volunteered to participate in this study. This study was designed as a multiple-baselines experiment spanning 15 consecutive days. Data sources included (a) entrance interviews; (b) daily practice efficacy ratings; (c) data gathered from pre- and posttest microanalysis sessions; (d) detailed behavioral analyses of video-recorded, pre- and posttest practice sessions; and (e) a focus group exit interview. The microanalytic intervention designed for this study involved a coaching session in which a member of the research team explicitly drew attention to the affective, behavioral, and metacognitive qualities related to effective practicing during a student’s practice session. The pretest microanalysis data revealed distinct learning profiles for each student that were corroborated with information from the other data sources. The intervention had modest effects that varied across participants, suggesting that it was useful for bringing to light and addressing individuals’ specific self-regulatory deficiencies in a manner respective to their needs.