This investigation aims to explore the attitudes of adolescents towards learning music and to gauge the extent of their involvement in the activities of playing, singing, creating and listening to music. It also seeks to determine the views of adolescents on attributions for success in various activities, including music. Beliefs about selfconcept, or self-identity, and their relationships to academic achievement and musical involvement are explored. The review of literature spans various facets of self-perception, including selfconcept, self-esteem, self-efficacy, self-regulation, and self-concept development, and considers the role of music in self-concept development. The impact of self-perceptions on motivation, which is central to learning, achievement and engagement, is also considered. The basic principles of learning, and their application to learning in music, provide the foundation for specific aspects of music learning, namely, music literacy, learning to play a musical instrument, singing, music technology and informal learning. The relationship between music learning and academic achievement is reviewed. The particular importance of music in adolescence, and adolescent attitudes to school music, provide a backdrop to the analysis of the wide-ranging factors involved in self-concept development, motivation and learning principles, thus leading to an overview of the various approaches which can facilitate the engagement of adolescents in learning in general, and in high school music in particular. A researcher-designed Survey of Musical Experiences and Self-concept was administered to Year 9 and 10 students in three high schools in metropolitan Adelaide, South Australia. Data from the survey, along with academic results, were collected from the 282 participants in the study. The data provide background information about each participant, along with their perceptions about perceived areas of strength and reasons for success in these areas. Information about involvement in musical activities was collated for all students, with approximately half of the students not studying music at school. Measures for self-esteem (Rosenberg, 1965) and perceived competence (Chan, 1993) were included in the survey. Using a mixture of qualitative and quantitative methods, the data were analysed in relation to the extent of involvement in music, attitudes to learning music, students’ attributions for success, and strengths of the relationships between musical involvement, self-concept and academic achievement. Conclusions can be drawn based on the survey data and the literature review, and these emphasise the importance of the social nature of learning and of providing opportunities for creative work in classroom activities. The most outstanding finding to be highlighted from the study was the aspect of enjoyment as a reason for achievement which appears to feature prominently in students’ responses, yet it is less widely recognised in the literature. / http://proxy.library.adelaide.edu.au/login?url= http://library.adelaide.edu.au/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=1321529 / Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, Elder Conservatorium of Music, 2008

The purpose of this multi-site comparative study was to engage music educators in a process to uncover broader perspectives on their pedagogy by breaking down the barriers between general education pedagogy and music education. The curriculum planning and instruction of music teachers were observed through Schwab's Commonplaces framework to identify connections between their initial approaches and changes made during the beginning of the 2020-2021 school year. Participants were seven New York City middle school general music teachers. Data were collected from participants in two sets, each consisting of one questionnaire in Qualtrics, and one interview on Zoom for a total of four instruments. The data analysis process was as follows; (a) data organization, (b) first cycle structural coding, (c) second cycle coding, and (d) synthesis and cross-case analysis. The study addressed the following research questions: (a) How can the curriculum planning, and instruction of music teachers be observed in relation to Schwab's commonplaces? (b) What connections might be inferred between these observations and any later curriculum or instructional changes (or lack thereof) made by teachers? (c) How might the schooling changes resulting from the Covid-19 outbreak have impacted these decisions? (d) What impact and/or changes in student engagement and learning might be observed by teachers during the period of this study? The findings were as follows; (a) Commonplace lens/es for curriculum planning and instruction were misidentified by participants, Learner was the most emphasized Commonplace instruction lens and four participants were unable to differentiate between curriculum and instruction, (b) Teachers' more accurately identified the Commonplace lens/es in the second data set, Learner was the most emphasized Commonplace lens for curriculum planning and instruction, and student feedback and/or engagement influenced curriculum changes, (c) COVID-19 affected participants' emotions, attitudes, and decision-making, school reopening structures frequently changed, participants simplified curriculum content for remote and reduced instruction time, and altered curriculum and instruction to prioritize students' social-emotional well-being and engagement, and (d) Student engagement and learning looked different due to COVID-19 schooling changes, in-person students showed improved engagement and quality of work, other subjects affected student engagement and learning, which improved after curriculum changes.

The international drive among western countries to shift from industrial to knowledge economies has focussed considerable attention on education. United Kingdom government educational policy, influenced by the global knowledge economy, has shifted responsibility for learning work skills from the workplace to schooling and post-compulsory education. Government policy emphasises the importance of education's role in preparing students with the skills, knowledge and understanding required to enhance the United Kingdom's competitiveness in the global market. In contrast to the work-related emphasis of the wider educational context, music education emphasises the enrichment of experience. The value of music education is related to people's needs, and the functions it performs in their lives. Music education should be transformative, creative, enriching and relevant. Participation in music education is motivated by the intrinsic satisfaction of making music, rather than the extrinsic need for work-related competencies and qualifications. Music education competes for students with other subjects in the educational marketplace when the music curriculum ceases to be compulsory at age fifteen. Therefore, it is important to understand how students relate not only to music education, but also to the wider work-related educational context in which their subject participation choices are made. Therefore, the purposes of this study are twofold: (1) to establish an overview of how students perceive music education and the factors that influence their enrolment intentions, and (2) to establish an overview of how students perceive music within the wider context of education. Statements were chosen that were considered representative of the rationales for education presented by the government and the music education community. Questionnaires and interviews were developed using the statements, and were ii administered to a random sample of Year Nine and Ten (GCSE Music and non - GCSE Music) students Music was not a relevant subject for most students. However, the perceptions of a small percentage of students (mainly Music students) did find music education relevant in the ways the literature suggested it should be. The most common influences on enrolment were perceptions of ability and enjoyment (or lack of). Despite the strong emphasis on work-related skills and qualifications in the wider educational context, students generally agreed that Music was a subject better suited to enhancing life and lifestyle than career options. However, reflecting the wider educational context, Music was perceived as being more careers/future study orientated than transformative, creative, enriching and relevant.

University of Macau / Faculty of Education