Laura Hicken, Ph.D.

Biography

Laura K. Hicken, Assistant Professor of Music Education, joined the faculty of Towson University in 2019 as an instrumental music education specialist. Hicken earned her Ph.D. in Music and Human Learning at the Butler School of Music at The University of Texas at Austin, her Master of Music degree in Music Education at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and her Bachelor of Music Education degree at Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina. Prior to joining the faculty at Towson, Hicken taught high school and middle school band, middle school general music, and elementary music in South Carolina and Florida.

As an active clinician, Hicken has presented sessions at state and national teacher in-service conferences and at professional development meetings for local school districts. Hicken’s research is in the area of music teacher cognition. She is especially interested in how eye movements reveal information about teacher thought processes and decision making in various teaching situations. Hicken is also interested in teacher perceptions and practices of including students with disabilities in music classes. Her research has been presented at state, national, and international conferences, and is published in The Orff Echo, The Journal of Music Teacher Education, and The Journal of Research in Music Education.

Hicken’s professional memberships include the International Society for Music Education (ISME), The National Association for Music Education (NAfME), Maryland Music Educators Association, the Society for Research in Music Education, and the Society for Music Teacher Education.

At Towson, Hicken teaches undergraduate music education courses and graduate research courses, and she is the faculty sponsor for the Collegiate NAfME chapter.