published_or_final_version / Sports Science / Master / Master of Science in Sports Science

published_or_final_version / Sports Science / Master / Master of Science in Sports Science

published_or_final_version / Sports Science / Master / Master of Science in Sports Science

published_or_final_version / Sports Science / Master / Master of Science in Sports Science

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

published_or_final_version / Education / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / abstract / Human Performance / Master / Master of Philosophy

The accompanied vocalise has been a vehicle for voice training since the "golden age of 'bel canto' thinspace". These vocalises or exercises enable the student to concentrate on using pure tone and to develop various aspects of technical skill and musical style. The use of these accompanied vocalises can detect perceived problems or weaknesses before the students encounters them in songs and arias. The pedagogical and instructional value of the selected vocalises are examined for their possible efficacy in strengthening a student's perceived weakness. In order to determine the relevance of these accompanied vocalises, arias of five representative composers have been chosen. These songs and arias are examined to identify bel canto characteristics, some of which may be problematic for students. Passages reflecting these stylistic characteristics are paired with specific vocalises of similar musical construction. For each example, there are excerpts from three different vocalise composers. The examples contain only a few measures, but it is assumed that the repeated practice of the entire composition will further the acquisition of the desired vocal trait. The five bel canto characteristics examined in depth are: agility, long legato phrases, ornamentation, co-ordination of the registers, and strength and control of the tonal range. The vocalises utilized are limited by the availability of printed sources. A compilation of the instructional vocalises examined is provided in an addendum to the study.

The purpose of this study is to examine the development of writing in first grade children. It provides information about the changes that take place in the children's writing over an eight-month period. The writings of the entire classroom were collected; from these six children's writings were chosen for cross-sectional analysis. Two children from this group were further selected for in-depth case studies. Interviews, parent surveys, and observations were employed to monitor the children's writing development. The data are categorized according to (1) the child's general background, (2) the child as a writer, (3) the child's use of conventions of the writing and spelling systems, and (4) an overview of the child's construction of meaning. The subjects already had a rich, though varied, background of experience with writing when they entered first grade. Many invitations to write were given during the year, which resulted in three major types of writing: journals, notes, and stories. The children were eager to communicate in writing. They grew and developed during the year in a way similar to the way they once learned to speak, learning how to write through their interactions and experiences with others. They became aware of the needs of an audience, could determine the type of writing appropriate to a particular setting, used syntactic features that other writers use, and wrote to fulfill personal needs. As the children wrote, they discovered that certain conventions, such as spelling and punctuation, are used by writers to allow their message to be understood. The rate of development varied according to how critical these conventions were to the ability to communicate. The study demonstrated that children who have a message to communicate construct meaning as their first priority. As they use writing, they gain knowledge of the writing system and change occurs in their understanding of the syntactic, semantic and orthographic systems, allowing them to create more complex meanings for their readers.

This study is designed to analyze in depth, the behaviors that accompany the writing process in six third and fourth grade Native American children. The children's writing, collected over a two year period, was observed by a team of researchers who carefully recorded revisions, rereading, subvocalization, resource use, stop-and-thinks, interruptions, and related talk while writing was taking place in the regular classroom setting. Four groups of questions were posed as a result of the observations focusing around the kinds of resources young writers use, the way they revised, the role of oral language during composing, and the relationship among the various observed behaviors. Young writers use both human resources and a wide variety of inanimate resources such as dictionaries, bulletin boards, and other classroom print to assist themselves and each other in spelling words, and making various other decisions about their writing. The subjects have differing strategies for revising their texts, but have spelling and neatness as their highest priorities. Children use more resources more extensively when they are encouraged to, when the materials are accessible, and collaboration among classmates is promoted. Approximately 90% of all oral language that takes place as children write is related directly to their writing. Oral language is a part of and seems to be important to all phases of writing, including strategies for consideration of what to write, collaboration with others and finding an audience. The use of oral language demonstrates that all aspects of the composing process including pre-writing, text generation, and revision or reconsideration of text are dynamically interacting as writers compose. There are important co-occurrence of types of behaviors including stop-and-thinks with interruptions, revisions with subvocalization, and revisions with resource use.