FROM CLASSROOM TO CAREER IN GHANA: RETHINKING MUSIC EDUCATION IN A CULTURE OF ECONOMIC ASPIRATION

บทคัดย่อ

This study examines the prevalent undervaluation of music education in Ghana, where formal training in the arts is frequently perceived as economically imprudent and socially peripheral. This paper employs a mixed-methods approach, incorporating document analysis, surveys, and interviews with music graduates, to investigate the perceptions, structures, and funding of music education within Ghana’s educational system. This research utilises Amartya Sen’s Capability Approach and Decolonial Education Theory to identify significant patterns of underfunding, social stigma, and curricular exclusion. Research indicates that music graduates often face financial difficulties and social stigma, despite acknowledging personal development and their contributions to their communities. The exclusion of music as a fundamental subject in national curricula has intensified these perceptions, separating music education from Ghana’s overarching development strategy. Comparative policy reforms in Africa suggest that music education can enhance cultural identity, foster social cohesion, and contribute to the development of the creative economy. The paper concludes by presenting practical strategies for repositioning music as a developmental asset instead of a non-essential luxury.