Ecology-focused aesthetic music education as a foundation of the sustainable development culture

Abstract

ABSTRACT Overcoming the current spiritual and ecological crisis plaguing the globe is impossible without changing the paradigm of aesthetic music education. Music should play an important role in achieving the goals of sustainable development, rather than be a utilitarian product of consumer society. Therefore, attention should be drawn to the music teacher education and to a new paradigm of education that is ecology-focused, aesthetic, and enables sustainable development at the urban, suburban, and rural levels. The study examines issues around the ecology-focused aesthetic music education in the context of sustainable development culture. This study aimed to substantiate an integration framework for ecological rationality, aesthetic education, and musical ecology in order to build a new educational paradigm from international experience. This is a review of the survey findings reported by the Country Music Association Foundation. The survey involved 468 music teachers from 392 primary, secondary and high schools in the United States. The weighting procedure used ensured that the sample of responding schools was nationally representative along the two dimensions of school locale/urbanicity (e.g. urban, suburban, town/exurbun, rural) and the grade levels (e.g. primary, middle, high, or some combination). The contemporary approach to education should be improved to extend ecological and integrated methods and ideas of thinking and hence bring the art of music to a new horizon with a higher goal of creating a sustainable community of ecologically responsible individuals. This study offered an integration model for ecological rationality, aesthetic education, and musical ecology in order to build a new educational paradigm. The proposal represents a framework that is built around five components of society, ecological rationality, teachers, sustainable development, and musical ecology.