In the field of music teacher preparation, the transition from teacher to teacher educator can be a time of uncertainty and anxiety. Knowing the potential for struggle during formation of a teacher educator identity, we investigated our personal development as music educators at two points: (a) preparing to enter academia and (b) mentoring a future teacher educator. The purpose of this narrative inquiry study was to document the emergent identity of Vanessa, a graduate student transitioning to music teacher educator, working alongside Lisa, a professor transitioning to mentor and advisor. Through storying, we have identified several milestones in Vanessa's emergent identity as a teacher educator, concerns encountered by Vanessa in teaching her first major music education methods course, and types of interactions that were catalysts to Vanessa's development as a music teacher educator and Lisa's development as a mentor.

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The purpose of this grounded theory study was to understand the process of field experience lesson planning for preservice music educators enrolled in choral, general, and instrumental music education courses within three university contexts. Data sources included multiple interviews, written responses, and field texts from 42 participants. Four waves of data collection and analysis revealed a five-step process beginning with “learning the tasks of teaching” and “experiencing an authentic teaching context.” Participants articulated the central phenomenon as “embracing teaching as an interaction,” which led to “teaching more effectively” and “learning about teaching with my style.” The findings reflect that participants developed a situated understanding of how thoughtful preparation is connected to effective teaching. An implication for this study is that preservice teachers should be consistently immersed in authentic context learning environments during undergraduate education.

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