Towards a Jazz Pedagogy: Learning with and from Jazz Greats and Great Educators

Abstract

ABSTRACT Throughout this article we argue that collectivity and soul inform the work of the expert teachers who we refer to as Jazz Pedagogues. Jazz’s complicated history, like teaching, calls for a consideration of the painful, the messy, the beautiful, and the healing. We, a team of university researchers and classroom teachers, examine the ways jazz can serve as one way to understand how Black-centric, anti-racist English teachers draw on their pedagogical prowess to skillfully engage with students with love, care, and a clear focus on justice. Informed by Black Feminist and Black Studies theories, we analyze a jam session/kitchen table talk between Jazz Pedagogues and theorize towards a framework for Jazz Pedagogy.