Transcript Research Poster 36 x 48 - C

Influence of Preservice Teacher Instrumental Background upon
Effectiveness of Teaching Episodes in Secondary Instrument Classes
Dr. Joseph Manfredo, Illinois State University
Dr. David W. Snyder, Illinois State University
INTRODUCTION
Despite the significance of the
secondary instrument techniques
class for teacher preparation, there
are many issues regarding their
structure and delivery, including the
qualifications of the instructor,
instrument groupings and course
content.
Of special interest are the
instructional priorities of these
classes, and how the instructor
balances the course curriculum in the
three major areas of playing skills,
teaching skills and pedagogical
content knowledge.
While music education faculty
typically include teaching the
instrument(s) as a key part of the
course, it is difficult to determine
other factors that influences teacher
effectiveness.
The enrollment of the typical
secondary instrument class includes
both specialists and non-specialists
on particular instruments
Music education faculty must
consider if PST instrumental
background, including previous
teaching and playing experiences,
influences PST effectiveness in the
secondary instrument class.
The fundamental purpose of this
study was to examine the influence
of instrumental background
(specialist versus non-specialist)
upon the pedagogical effectiveness
of teaching episodes in a secondary
instrument techniques class. In
addition, this study investigated the
impact of private lesson teaching
experience upon teaching
effectiveness.
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A review of literature on the topic of secondary
instruments in music education curricula yields few
results, though there appears to be greater interest
in this topic in recent years. Previous research
efforts in secondary instrument classes have
focused on describing the structure and delivery of
the classes, perception of the value and relevance
of these courses by experienced teachers and
PSTs, and the role of these classes in the music
education degree program.
However, one important issue in secondary
instrument classes has not been researched. There
has not been an attempt to investigate the influence
of PST instrumental background upon teaching
effectiveness. It would be useful to determine the
extent to which PST teaching and playing
experience has an impact upon teaching
effectiveness.
METHODS AND MATERIALS
• Four music education faculty from three
universities
• Two brass and two woodwind techniques classes
• 45 music education majors (11 specialists and 34
non-specialists)
• PST taught a ten-minute lesson to a beginning
level student
• PST provided verbal instruction, nonverbal
instruction, and verbal feedback
• Eight proficiencies of fundamentals of tone
production
• Instrument Assembly
• Posture
• Instrument Carriage
• Hand Position
• Breathing
• Embouchure Formation
• Mouthpiece to Mouth Relationship
• Tonguing
• Each lesson was video recorded and evaluated
by all four faculty members
• Teaching effectiveness (excellent, satisfactory, or
unsatisfactory)
• Pedagogical content knowledge (correct,
incomplete, wrong, or did not do)
• Student experience in teaching and playing
secondary instruments was also considered
• Multivariate statistical analysis
Dr. Sean R. Powell, Columbus State University
Dr. Molly A. Weaver, West Virginia University
RESULTS
Background Data
• 45 participants: 3 freshmen, 26 sophomores, 13
juniors, 2 seniors, and 1 graduate student
• 47% have taught private lessons previously
Teaching Effectiveness and Pedagogical
Content Knowledge
• No significant difference in the teaching
effectiveness or pedagogical content knowledge of
specialists (e.g., woodwind principals enrolled in a
woodwind course) and non-specialists in any
category.
• PSTs with private lesson teaching experience
scored significantly higher (p < .05) than PSTs with
no private lesson teaching experience in the
modeling category only (no significant difference
was found in other categories of verbal instruction
or verbal feedback).
• Scores for verbal feedback were significantly
lower (p < .05) than scores for verbal instruction
and modeling for both groups.
• Scores for students enrolled in woodwind courses
were significantly higher (p < .05) than those for
students enrolled in brass courses in every category.
DISCUSSION
Research Question 1: Can PSTs effectively teach
an instrument family with which they have had
no experience prior to the techniques class?
No significant difference was found between
specialists and non-specialists in teaching
effectiveness or content knowledge. This finding
suggests that students who have no previous
background as a performer on a woodwind or brass
instrument can become proficient teachers on those
instruments within the timeframe of the secondary
instrument course with skills and knowledge
comparable to specialists.
Research Question 2: Does private lesson
teaching experience influence PST teaching
effectiveness in secondary instrument courses?
The results show that PSTs with prior private lesson
teaching experience scored significantly higher on
the modeling parameter only. Perhaps private
lesson teaching experience provides PSTs with
more opportunity to model, making them more
effective in this area.
IMPLICATIONS
Findings showed no significant difference in the
teaching effectiveness or content knowledge of
specialists vs. non-specialists. Therefore, instructors
of secondary instrument courses should not assume
that specialists will be better teachers or have a
greater knowledge base than non-specialists.
Findings also imply that non-specialists should be
held to the same standard as specialists in regard to
teaching effectiveness and content knowledge.
Participants in this study were more effective giving
verbal instructions and modeling than giving verbal
feedback. This suggests that instructors of
instrumental techniques courses might consider
providing more opportunities for the development of
verbal feedback skills within the course. Or, it might
suggest that these skills should be focused upon
later in the curriculum in methods courses and field
experiences.
Results showed that PSTs who had private lesson
teaching experience were more effective modelers
than those who did not. Instructors of secondary
instrument courses should consider the private
lesson teaching experience of PSTs when designing
course experiences.
REFERENCES
Austin, J. R. (2006). The teaching of secondary
instruments: A survey of instrumental music
teacher educators. Journal of Music Teacher
Education, 16(1), 55-64.
Conway, C., Eros, J., Hourigan, R., & Stanley, A. M.
(2007). Perceptions of beginning teachers
regarding brass and woodwind instrument
techniques classes in preservice education.
Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music
Education, 173, 39-54.
Weaver, M.A. (2010). Orchestrating secondary
instrument playing and teaching proficiencies for
future music educators: Effective curriculum
configuration, delivery, and administration. In
M. Schmidt (ed.), Collaborative Action for Change:
Selected Proceedings from the 2007 Symposium
on Music Teacher Education (pp. 183-197).
Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.