An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis of the lived experiences of eight gay cisgender PK–12 music educators
OA Version
Citation
Abstract
In this study, I examined and described the lived experiences of eight gay music educators teaching in PK–12 public schools in the United States. Using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA), I sought to examine and understand the complexities of participants’ lived experiences and how the participants made meaning of those experiences. Highlighted in this study are the challenges and contexts that gay music educators face within the structures of patriarchal and heteronormative educational environments. Using semi-structured interviews, the participants disclosed how they made meaning of their lived experiences as gay, cisgender males who were also music educators. Using IPA, I elicited from the participants their interpretation of—and perspective on—their personal, professional, and social relationships. I uncovered the phenomenological, hermeneutic, and idiographic effects of working as a music educator in a public school system where White patriarchal and heteronormative values have long predominated. In turn, the examination of the lived experiences of these eight gay music educators is essential for aiding educational policymakers and administrators in shaping policies and practices supportive of a specific minority group while also encouraging the need for the study of other minority groups through this research method.
Description
2025
License
Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International