Introduction

The introduction to this volume on trauma and resilience in music education first explores the ubiquity of trauma in human experience. Next, the chapter defines trauma, discusses its characteristics, and describes the many types of trauma that affect educational settings, including primary and secondary trauma, as well as individual and societal trauma. The discussion then turns to the question of trauma as a pedagogical problem, exploring the ways that it affects learning. Following a brief interrogation of the trauma discourse, the chapter turns to music and the role of music education in working through trauma. The chapter concludes with a brief overview of the contributions from the authors.