A comparative study on music teacher preparation in Portugal and Brazil

Abstract

The preparation of music teachers in Portugal and Brazil is the focus of this text, which aims at presenting preliminary aspects of a study in progress in the context of higher education in both countries. Inspired by comparative education methodology, the present study is investigating official documents and academic curricula offered in Portugal and Brazil for the music teachers’ preparation to promote, in different ways, the comparative reflection with an emphasis on school education. The music teachers’ education in both countries was analyzed taking into account the following elements: educational context in Portugal and Brazil; music preparation prior to higher education, and the entrance criteria in the courses that are offered for music teachers; curricular elements of the courses; teaching practice and professional perspectives. The preliminary results of this comparative analysis demonstrate similarities and differences in the two contexts: 1) in both countries, music teachers for regular schools receive their degrees in higher education institutions, and in Portugal, beyond the Licenciatura in Music, a Music Education Master degree is demanded; 2) in both countries specific entrance tests are accomplished in the universities, demanding previous musical knowledge; 3) the balance among the musical and pedagogical preparation is one of the curricular objectives; 4) the teaching practice is an emphasized component in the teachers’ preparation; 5) in Portugal, student’s motivation for the work in the regular school appears to be larger than in Brazil.