Welcome to the APME Memphis 2025 conference. Here, you’ll be able to register for the conference and update your Sched profile. The conference schedule will be available in late spring 2025. At that time, you can view the schedule and select the presentations you’d like to attend. If you have any questions, please visit our conference website or contact us at conference@popularmusiceducation.org We look forward to coming together as a community June 4–7, 2025.
The "schoolification" of popular music refers to adapting popular music to align with the formal structures and requirements of educational institutions. While music educators widely acknowledge popular music's musical, social, and engagement benefits, resistance to its inclusion in traditional music education still persists. This reluctance often stems from limited exposure to popular music in music educator preparation programs, a lack of diverse professional development opportunities, and concerns about declining enrollment in traditional ensembles. These challenges raise a critical question: how can educators integrate popular music into formal educational settings in a way that is both educationally robust and authentically inclusive? As popular music education continues to grow, it is essential to identify, explore, and critically evaluate innovative approaches to teaching and learning through popular music. This presentation will provide strategies for fostering student-centered and culturally relevant performance- and creativity-based popular music programs. The ideas presented are drawn from experiences with a university-level pop ensemble called Versatile. Established two and a half years ago, the ensemble comprises music and non-music majors who excel as musical code-switchers. By embracing more flexible and authentic practices, educators can ensure that popular music education remains vibrant, engaging, and meaningful for students.
