The Effect of Instruction on Eighth Grade Band Students’ Understanding of Practice
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THE EFFECT OF INSTRUCTION ON EIGHTH GRADE BAND STUDENTS’ UNDERSTANDING OF PRACTICE by STACEY C. KOLTHAMMER Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements For the degree of Master of Arts in Music Education Thesis Adviser: Dr. William I. Bauer Department of Music CASE WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY May 2009 CASE WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STUDIES We hereby approve the thesis/dissertation of _____________________________________________________ candidate for the ______________________degree *. (signed)_______________________________________________ (chair of the committee) ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ (date) _______________________ *We also certify that written approval has been obtained for any proprietary material contained therein. 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES …………………………………….…………….................. 4 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS …………………………………………………… 6 ABSTRACT …………………………………………………………………… 7 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ………………………………………….. 9 Definition of Practice ……………………………………………..... 9 The Complex Nature of Practice ………………………………….... 10 Developing the Practice Skills of Students ……………………….... 12 Need for the Study ………………………………………………..... 13 Purpose of the Study ……………………………………………….. 14 Research Questions ……………………………………………….... 14 Definitions of Terms …..………………………………………….... 15 Delimitations ……………………………………………………….. 16 CHAPTER TWO: REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE …………………. 17 Developmental Stages of Practice …………………………………... 17 Practice Skills of Professional Musicians …………………………... 18 Practice Skills of Young Musicians ………………………………… 19 Leon-Guerrero (2004) ………………………………………………. 20 Intrinsic Motivation and Self-Efficacy ……………………………… 21 Goal Setting …………………………………………………………. 23 Planning and Organization ………………………………………….. 24 The Role of Teachers ……………………………………………….. 25 Summary ……………………………………………………………. 28 CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY ………………………………………. 29 Preliminary Study I ………………………………………………… 30 Preliminary Study II ………………………………………………... 31 Participants …………………………………………………………. 32 Measurement Instruments ………………………………………….. 32 Questionnaire …………………………………………………… 32 Music Excerpts …………………………………………………. 34 Practice Lab Treatment …………………………………………. 35 Verbal Protocol Analysis …………………………………………… 36 Procedures …………………………………………………………... 37 Session One - Questionnaire A …………………………………. 40 Session Two – Practice Observation A …………………………. 41 Session Three – Treatment, Experimental Group Only ………… 42 Session Four – Questionnaire B & Practice Session B …………. 43 2 Data Analysis ……………………………………………………….. 43 Quantitative Data ……………………………………………….. 44 Qualitative Data ………………………………………………… 45 CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS ………………………………………………….. 49 Demographic Data …………………………………………………... 49 Comparison of Pre-test Questionnaire Data by Group ……………… 53 Research Question 1: Students’ Understanding of Practice ………… 55 Research Question 2: Differences in Practice Perceptions Based on Gender ………………………………………………… 61 Research Question 3: Differences in Practice Perceptions Based on Private Lesson Experience ……………………………. 62 Research Question 4: Differences in Practice Perceptions Based on Instrument Family ……………………………………………. 64 Research Question 5: Observed Practice Strategies ………………… 65 Research Question 6: Reported Practice Strategies …………………. 69 Research Question 7: Comparison of Observed and Reported Practice Strategies ……………………………………... 73 CHAPTER FIVE: DISCUSSION ……………………………………………….. 81 Limitations of the Study ……………………………………………... 81 Administration of the Treatment …………………………………….. 82 The Role of Private Lesson Experience ……………………………... 85 Effect of Treatment on Practice Questionnaire Responses ………….. 86 Students’ General Understanding of Practice ……………………….. 89 Significant Differences in Participant Response by Gender ……….... 91 Significant Differences in Participant Response by Private Lessons .............................................................................. 93 Significant Differences in Participant Response by Instrument Family ……………………………………………….. 95 Observed Practice Behaviors ………………………………………... 97 Retrospective Verbal Report Data …………………………………... 102 Differences between Reported and Observed Practice Behaviors ….. 104 Developmental Stages of Practice …………………………………... 105 Conclusions …………………………………………………………. 107 APPENDICES …………………………………………………………………... 110 A: Questionnaire ……………………………………………………. 110 B: Music Excerpts ………………………………………………….. 115 C: Treatment ……………………………………………………….. 121 D: Letter to School Administrators ………………………………… 129 E: Letter to Band Directors ………………………………………… 131 F: Letter to Parents/Guardians …………………………................... 134 3 G: Student Assent Form ……………………………………………. 136 H: Diagram of Practice Room …………………………………… 139 I: List of Codes with Transcript Examples …………………………. 140 REFERENCES …………………………………………………………………... 147 4 LIST OF TABLES Table 3.1 Proportionally Stratified Sampling for Practice Session Observations……………………………………………………… 37 Table 4.1 Demographics of the Experimental and Control Groups………… 50 Table 4.2 Distribution of Instruments in Experimental and Control Groups……………………………………………………………. 51 Table 4.3 Experimental and Control Groups by Private Lesson Experience………………………………………………………... 52 Table 4.4 Significant Differences by Group in Pre-test Questionnaire Responses………………………………………………………… 54 Table 4.5 Post-Test Practice Strategies That Differed Significantly Between Groups.....................................……………………….… 56 Table 4.6 Eighth Grade Band Students’ Understanding of Practice………... 58 Table 4.7 Usefulness of Suggested Practice Strategies………….………….. 59 Table 4.8 Student Perceptions of Practice……………….………………….. 60 Table 4.9 Ranked Strategies for Practice Problem Scenarios……………...... 61 Table 4.10 Significant Differences in Practice Strategy Responses Based on Gender………………………………………………………… 62 Table 4.11 Significant Differences in Responses Based on Private Lesson Experience……………………………………………………….. 63 Table 4.12 Pre-Treatment Significant Video Observation Frequencies……… 66 Table 4.13 Non-significant Observed Video Frequencies by Group………… 67 Table 4.14 Post-Treatment Significant Retrospective Verbal Report Frequencies………………………………………………………. 70 Table 4.15 Non-significant Reported Audio Frequencies by Group………… 71 Table 4.16 Codes Removed from Comparison of Reported and Observed Practice Behaviors…………………………………………........... 75 5 Table 4.17 Control Group Significant Differences in Observed and Reported Practice Behaviors………………………....................... 76 Table 4.18 Experimental Group Significant Differences in Observed and Reported Practice Behaviors…………………............................... 77 Table 4.19 Observed and Reported Practice Behaviors by Group…………... 78 6 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I offer my sincerest gratitude to the people that provided support as this document was written. None of this work would have been possible without the students and band directors who volunteered to participate in this study. Next, the Case Western Reserve University Department of Music offered years of educational and professional guidance. I am grateful to Dr. Gary M. Ciepluch who served as a mentor and fostered my growth as a music educator. In addition, I’d like to thank my thesis committee members, Dr. Kathleen A. Horvath and Dr. Lisa Huisman Koops, for their input and contribution to this study. I am especially appreciative of the immense amount of inspiration provided by my thesis advisor, Dr. William I. Bauer. Without his tremendous teaching abilities, commitment to innovative music education research, and great attention to detail, this document would not have been possible. Finally, I’d like to thank my family and friends for their everlasting support and encouragement. 7 The Effect of Instruction on Eighth Grade Band Students’ Understanding of Practice Abstract by STACEY C. KOLTHAMMER The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of a practice strategy treatment on eighth grade band students’ practice habits. Participants were eighth grade band students (N = 56) from two middle schools within the same Northeast Ohio school district. The students were split by the school they attended into experimental (n = 26) and control (n = 30) groups. A pre-test/treatment/post-test research design took place over a 10 week period during normal band rehearsals. The pre- and post-tests included a researcher-designed questionnaire on practice perceptions and video/audio recorded practice sessions of a smaller group of participants (n = 12), chosen using random proportionally stratified sampling. The practice observations used a retrospective verbal protocol analysis technique (see Ericsson & Simon, 1993) to provide a rich description of how intermediate musicians practice a given exercise. The treatment was designed by the researcher and consisted of a four week series of lesson plans on a series of practice techniques (mental rehearsal, goal setting, a clap and count method, and a repetition method) that were taught by the cooperating director of the experimental group. Significant differences were found among questionnaire items based on gender, private lesson experience, and instrument family. Within the audio and video practice observation footage, participants were more likely to address notes and rhythms in the piece than expressive elements such as dynamics. There was a low prevalence of goal 8 setting, and the goals that