Music conducting pedagogy and technology : a document analysis on best practices

This document analysis was designed to investigate pedagogical practices of music conducting teachers in conjunction with research of technologists on the use of various technologies as teaching tools. I sought to discern how conducting teachers and pedagogues are applying recent technological advancements into their teaching strategies. I also sought to understand what paths research is taking about the use of software, hardware, and computer systems applied to the teaching of music conducting technique. This dissertation was guided by four main research questions: (1) How has technology been used to aid in the teaching of conducting? (2) What is the role of technology in the context of conducting pedagogy? (3) Given that conducting is a performative act, how can it be developed through technological means? (4) What technological possibilities exist in the teaching of music conducting technique? Data were collected through music conducting syllabi, conducting textbooks, and research articles. Documents were selected through purposive sampling procedures. Analysis of documents through the constant comparative approach identified emerging themes and differences across the three types of documents. Based on a synthesis of information, I discussed implications for conducting pedagogy and made suggestions for conducting educators.Includes bibliographical references

MUED 345: Instrumental Music Methods

The course Instrumental Music Methods (MUED 345) is designed to provide a fundamental preparation for future music educators to teach instrumental music--both orchestral and band--to adolescents in schools. The description in the UNL Schedule of Classes describes this course as dealing with administrative approaches, rehearsal techniques, and modern comprehensive teaching styles for the secondary instrumental teacher. I chose this course for my peer-review because preparing future instrumental music teachers is one of my primary responsibilities as the instrumental music education specialist at UNL, and this course is the primary course to prepare students for this outcome. It is therefore vital that both the objectives of this course and the overall design of this course be thoroughly attended to. I had three main objectives for this course portfolio: (a) refine the course with significant attention to course objectives and the connection between objectives and course teaching/learning strategies or assignments, (b) documenting and analyzing student learning within this class, and (c) documenting the efficacy of my teaching and the impact of the course as a whole

Experience, technology and curriculum for today's online instrumental music educator

Using the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework as the lens to develop, view, and analyze technological assimilation in education, I examined the integration of technology related to experience, curriculum development, and the pedagogy of several music educators who teach online instrumental music lessons. The investigation centered on how the integration of technology can provide a promising and possible future for sustainable online instrumental instruction through curriculum design. The use of TPACK as a research framework helps analyze not only what equipment can do, but how technology can help teachers achieve the integration of technology, content, and pedagogy. By investigating technology use with curriculum design through the perspective of instrumental online educators, hopeful pedagogical patterns emerge. As a result of each instructor’s background, musical knowledge, and technological experience, I addressed the following research questions. 1. In what ways do instrumental educators prepare online curriculum differently than in-person curriculum? 2. How do online instrumental educators integrate technology with curriculum development and pedagogy? 3. To what degree does the experience as a student influence the pedagogy used as educators in their curriculum? These questions delve into how online educators develop their curriculum, approach lessons with new students, compare online to in-person lessons, and factor technology in their teaching. The findings illuminate the role of technology and the extent to which each instructor related to and embraced technology. Every instructor studied, regardless of age or experience, designed their curriculum around technology and utilized smartphone applications and education-based computer software (Figure 4). Based on the findings, technology was seen as useful in how educators design, present, and teach their curriculum. However, not every educator utilized technology to interweave new material into their pedagogy. This finding indicates how the fundamentals of music curriculum are not changing from generation to generation of educators. The findings presented here are viewpoints of how the broad spectrum of technology provides insight into teaching online instrumental music lessons. With educators utilizing blended teaching methodologies, developments, and general trends in technology, I anticipate that someday, there will be an educational community with a broader acceptance of technology's use in curriculum design

Women in the Integrated Circuit: A Study Examining the Intersection Between Technology, Subjectivity, and the Academy

The purpose of this study was to better understand the role of technology in the lives of women faculty in higher education. This qualitative case study was situated at the intersection of feminist critiques of technology and feminist endorsements of technology, with attention to the postmodern concepts of subjectivity and agency. The participants were five women with various attitudes toward technology. Multiple methods were used to understand how computer technology shapes the professional and personal experiences of five women. The study’s methods included interviews, observations, and tours of technological objects. The research questions were: 1) How do women faculty navigate and put to use different technology discourses? 2) How are their technology practices contextual and fluid? and 3) How does technology shape their subjectivity and produce agency? This sonata-form case study featured interplay among dominant and tonic themes that represented each participant’s typical (dominant) and unexpected (tonic) approach to technology. Data analysis was guided by theories that informed the study. Four key concepts were discussed: interruption, resistance, submission, and tension. These key concepts were used as the framework for analysis. Implications for administrators, information technology leaders, and faculty development staff are included along with suggestions for future research

A Multi-Case Study of Electronic Communication Policy in Rural East Texas School Districts

The purpose of this descriptive case study was to conduct a policy analysis regarding electronic communication between educators and students in three rural East Texas school districts. The policy analysis for each district began with the initial implementation of teacher communication via electronic sources provided by the districts. The focus of the study was limited specifically to the policy regulating nonschool related, electronic communication by educators with students. The challenge faced by school districts to embrace technology with one-to-one classrooms, virtual classrooms, constant connectivity, school texting applications, and open availability to teachers via email, complicates restrictions placed on non-school related communication. The need to protect educators and students with regard to such communication has caused school boards to review their current electronic communication policy thus narrowing the broad guidelines previously in place. The findings include educator perceptions and suggestions

The Effectiveness of K-12 Online Music Education During the COVID-19 Lockdown

Despite the successes of online education, students often learn and develop skills in classroom music ensembles that cannot be replicated in online learning. Virtual learning is a new tool for some educators and during the 2020-2022 COVID-19 Pandemic lockdown, many schools were not prepared for the sudden changes the lockdowns needed. Since the lockdown, there have been few studies which examine student music engagement in 100% virtual learning as compared to in-classroom instruction. This qualitative research study examines in what ways music students engage in 100% virtual learning compared to students in a traditional classroom in the areas of musical and academic achievement. This study also reviews what techniques have been used in virtual learning to teach and develop various skills in music education. The research results will show ways in which in-classroom instruction excels over virtual learning for overall student musical development This project is an examination of the relevant literature such as journal articles, books, theses, case studies and dissertations written within the last ten years. The implications of this project will encourage further research in the fields of music education, technology, and online curriculum development

Effectiveness of grouping middle school students based on learning modality preferences on vibrato acquisition

The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of grouping middle school students by learning modality preferences on vibrato acquisition. Traditional approaches to teaching vibrato synthesize reading and listening to elicit an appropriate tactile response, however, Ornstein (1995) identified this approach as a narrow scope suited to a "hypothetical average student" (p.105). Keefe (1985) proposed learning styles as a reliable lens for understanding the individuality of learning. Music education research has a pronounced lack of pedagogical studies addressing technical development particularly regarding stringed instruments. A majority of vibrato research in particular has been regulated to diagnostic studies of the behavior of its inherent acoustic properties. Of the several tutorial vibrato studies that exist, namely those by Gillespie (1997), and Shepherd (2004), few examined beyond two of the primary sensory (e.g., visual and auditory) learning modes identified by Swassing and Barbe (1979). This study challenged traditional approaches by accommodating individual sensory preferences as the most promising path to learning vibrato. Dominant learning preferences of 60 middle school orchestra students were identified using VARK (Fleming, 2001), an instrument whose name is derived from an acronym for Visual, Auditory, Read/Write, and Kinesthetic. Based on VARK (Fleming, 2001), results, four groups were created corresponding to three learning preferences and a control group. Pretest recordings were made to evaluate existent vibrato abilities and all subjects participated in six weeks of intervention vibrato lessons where teaching was deliberately matched to each group's learning preference. The control group was taught using a traditional class method book. Following the intervention period, posttest recordings were made as an exit assessment. All recordings were evaluated by a panel of qualified string educators using Gillespie's (1993) vibrato evaluation instrument and three data sets were constructed corresponding to means of the pretest, posttest, and a means of difference between the two. Analysis included measures of central tendency, Kruskal-Wallis H test and frequency distributions. Descriptive statistics were computed for grade, gender, and instrument to examine latent peripheral relationships and no significant differences were found between learning preference groups and the control group compelling the researcher to accept the null hypothesis