"Many North American music education programs exclude in vast numbers students who do not embody Euroamerican ideals. One way to begin making music education programs more socially just is to make them more inclusive. For that to happen, we need to develop programs that actively take the standpoint of the least advantaged, and work toward a common good that seeks to undermine hierarchies of advantage and disadvantage. And that, inturn, requires the ability to discuss race directly and meaningfully. Such discussions afford valuable opportunities to confront and evaluate the practical consequences of our actions as music educators. It is only through such conversations, Connell argues, that we come to understand “the real relationships and processes that generate advantage and disadvantage”(p. 125). Unfortunately, these are also conversations many white educators find uncomfortable and prefer to avoid."

Often, I think these leadership skills are more beneficial than the 3 Rs when it comes to real-world application for students. It is more effective to mold students to be compassionate and empowered as we give them the skills and tools needed to make social, political, and environmental changes in the world. It's not always what we teach, but how we teach it.