The purpose of this study was to describe the practice motivation and regulation of sixth-grade instrumentalists (11–12 years of age). A sample of 224 US band and orchestra students, representing 85 elementary schools, completed a 36-item practice inventory and produced two narratives depicting a typical practice session and a practice episode involving a difficult piece of music. Factor analysis of practice inventory responses demonstrated that motivation and self-regulation are distinct dimensions of music practice. While orchestra students reported significantly higher levels of practice motivation, there were no significant differences between band and orchestra students' self-reports for frequency of practice, amount of practice, or practice regulation. Practice motivation and regulation were associated with the quality of home environment in which students typically practice. Written narratives revealed that some students employ a range of practice and regulatory strategies, while others follow practice routines that cannot be considered strategic. Practice motivation was reflected in student comments about personal interest, effort, and emotional responses experienced while practicing.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the status and development of juniorlevel preservice music teachers' concerns using Fuller and Bown's teacher concerns model. Participants were 11 junior-level instrumental practicum students from a large American university. Data sources included a goals essay, lesson plans, teaching DVDs, self-evaluations of teaching, and a reflection on the original goals essay. Data were coded according to Fuller and Bown's concerns categories (i.e., self, task, student impact). Analyses indicated that participants had a variety of concerns within each concern category specific to music education. Overall, there was an emphasis on task concerns, as participants appeared to be more concerned with pedagogical execution than with their personal characteristics or student impact. Rapport, content knowledge, and motivation were the most frequently coded self, task, and student impact concerns, respectively. Comparisons were also drawn between (a) written assignments to determine whether participants' concerns changed in quantity or quality during the semester and (b) concerns identified in written assignments and concerns observed while teaching. Teaching DVDs were also analyzed for pivotal events contributing to the development of concerns. Four cases are presented representing varied developmental profiles that both support and challenge Fuller and Bown's model.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the development of preservice music teachers' concerns using Fuller and Bown's model. Participants were 8 instrumental teachers who participated in the previous Berg and Miksza (2010) study. Data sources included goals essays, journals, a midterm growth plan, and teaching observation reports with accompanying lesson plans that were collected over a 1.5-year period. The participants expressed less concern for self-survival and more concern for making an impact on students as time progressed from their junior-level practicum experience to the end of student teaching. Concerns regarding basic competencies and professionalism ultimately gave way to specific contextual aspects of the participants' teaching placements and more nuanced instructional issues. Results indicated that the focus of the participants' concerns also was greatly affected by their teaching context. Implications for music teacher preparation as well as extensions of Fuller and Bown's model are discussed.

The purpose of this research was to examine the development and implementation of the ASTA Mentor Program. Research questions included: (a) How did ASTA staff, leadership, and Mentor Preparation Workshop providers describe the opportunities and challenges associated with the development of a national level mentor program?, (b) What were the perceived successes and benefi ts of the Mentor Preparation Workshop?, and (c) What suggestions did mentor teachers have for future ASTA Mentor Preparation Workshops? Data were collected via interviews, a workshop evaluation, and researcher logs. Potential program opportunities included targeted mentoring leading to student growth, lifespan professional development for ASTA members, increased ASTA member recruitment and retention, and association-level leadership. Implementation challenges included mentor effectiveness, design and implementation of processes and supports, and long-term sustainability. The workshop was perceived to be successful and benefi cial through mentors' increased understanding of novice teacher needs, development of effective observation and conferencing skills, and increased ability to help beginning teachers prioritize string-specifi c instruction. Suggested workshop improvements included more hands-on activities, access to all workshop materials, and more opportunity for interaction among the mentors.

The Music Mentor Plus program was designed to introduce mentoring strategies teachers can implement during supervision of student teachers and early field experience interns, while also fostering connections between field-based modeling and university methods course content. Throughout the 2015–2016 school year, seven music teachers and two university music education faculty members engaged in a series of live workshops and ongoing electronic communication. Participants joined in discussions and role-play activities and completed readings and reflection assignments. In this article, we present an outline of the program as well as reflections on the experience from the faculty leaders and participating teachers.