Dr. Anita Prest
Position
Dr. Anita Prest is an Associate Professor of Music Education in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction. Prior to joining the department in 2015, Dr. Prest worked as a K-12 music educator for 20 years. Dr. Prest has been a Research Fellow of the Centre for Youth & Society since 2017. Dr. Prest's research focuses on decolonizing and Indigenizing music education throughout British Columbia. Dr. Prest also works with an Indigenous steering committee with Indigenous Elders and members of partner organizations.
Dr. Prest's most recent project will bring music educators together with Indigenous leaders, Elders, culture bearers, and other interested parties for a large knowledge-sharing and -creation conference. The conference, which was originally delayed due to COVID-19, will take place over two days in February 2022. Following this conference, Dr. Prest's team plans to develop and maintain networks of communication for participants as they engage in their work and create knowledge mobilization resources to support this work.
When it comes to resources, most music teachers want music notation or text on paper which is probably not the best strategy. The most important thing is to develop relationships with people.
—Dr. Anita Prest
Previously, Dr. Prest has orchestrated a variety of similar events. In partnership with the Victoria Native Friendship Centre, Dr. Prest, along with co-researchers Dr. Scott Goble (UBC) and Dr. Adam Con (UVic), facilitated four sharing circles. During these meetings, Indigenous leaders, including Elders and knowledge keepers, and music teachers explored and discussed issues surrounding the creation of culturally appropriate resources for music educators to bring local Indigenous content to their classrooms.
Research snapshots
Embedding Indigenous Ways of Knowing in Classrooms via Music
Recent publications
Prest, A., Goble, J. S., Vazquez-Cordoba, H., & Tuinstra, B. (2021). Enacting curriculum “in a good way:" Indigenous knowledge, pedagogy, and worldviews in British Columbia music education classes. Journal of Curriculum Studies.Pre-published online, open access; DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00220272.2021.1890836
Prest, A., & Goble, J. S. (2021). Language, music, and revitalizing Indigeneity: Effecting cultural restoration and ecological balance via music education. Philosophy of Music Education Review, 29(1), 24–46. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2979/philmusieducrevi.29.1.03
Bates, V., Shevock, D., & Prest, A. (2021). Cultural diversity, ecodiversity, and music education. In A. A. Kallio, S. Karlsen, K. Marsh, E. Saether, & H. Westerlund (Eds.), The politics of diversity in music education, (pp. 163–174). Landscapes: The arts, aesthetics, and education series. Springer. https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007%2F978-3-030-65617-1
