Factors that should be considered when choosing a music camp for students to attend are discussed. Questions that potential music campers and their parents should ask are provided. (RM)

Music teachers must learn to read and analyze research studies and apply the research findings to their teaching. The author's experience in conducting workshops to help teachers analyze research reports shows that teachers are capable of making transfers and generalizing from research results to their own situation. (RM)

Music education needs a support structure that will help researchers to stay active and help music teachers apply the results of good research. The Special Research Interest Groups (SRIGs) of the Music Educators National Conference provide such a support structure. The different SRIGs are described. (RM)

Study showed that the student teaching experience doesn't affect the classroom management beliefs and skills of music education majors. These research results challenge conventional expectations regarding student teaching and can be viewed as supportive of teachers of methods' efforts to help future teachers acquire realistic beliefs and skills…

Anxiety assessment research based on the trait-state anxiety theory suggests that musicians should not reduce anxiety in performance. A reduction in anxiety levels, especially for musicians with extensive formal training, may actually diminish performance quality. Musicians with low task-mastery skills might consider taking more formal training.…

The purpose of music education is to promote the aesthetic response to music by developing perception of the various music elements, including melody. Discussed are what melodic perception is and how it develops, the nature of melody from the psychological point of view, and some experiments on melodic perception. (RM)

A vital aspect of music education often left unattended in preservice education is testing and evaluation. Discussed are ways to measure musical achievement and aptitude and factors to consider when selecting a test for student evaluation. Recommended achievement and aptitude tests are described. (RM)

Meaningful learning occurs through personal encounters with the music, rather than through verbal substitutes. Evidence, including research, that learning by doing is a valid and realistic premise for designing general music curriculas and lesson strategies is discussed. (RM)

Studies that have questioned how children best demonstrate their ability to discriminate pitch are discussed, and practical applications of the findings are examined. One specific performance-based response that is not necessarily a good indicator of ability to discriminate pitch is singing. (RM)

The vague and virtually meaningless term "tone deaf" should be avoided because it encourages students to be incorrectly labeled as hopeless. If a student is oblivious to blatantly faulty intonation, and if his or her playing fails to improve after diligent practicing, a teacher should consider the possibility of diplacusis. (RM)

Music directors assume that students know what advance preparations must be made for a trip and what items they may need. Many find out the hard way that this is not necessarily so. A checklist that directors can give to students to help them plan for a trip is presented. (RM)

An intermediate grade music teacher describes how a learning disabled child with problems ranging from fine motor coordination to right/left orientation difficulty turned out to be a fine clarinetist with a fantastic ability to memorize music. (RM)

How Philadelphia's Settlement Music School provides music education for the handicapped is described. The origins of the school, current educational practices, and future plans are discussed. One particular achievement of the school was the development of a guide that defines the physical requirements needed to play a particular musical…

Students referred to special education programs for reasons of mental retardation, physical impairment, or emotional maladjustment can learn to play musical instruments with sufficient facility to form musical ensembles that can significantly enhance personal satisfaction. The Great Expectations Bank from Great Falls, Montana, illustrates and…

How trainable mentally handicapped high school students very successfully adapted Charles Dickens's novel "Oliver Twist" into a musical play is described. The project, which involved the entire school as well as the community, shows that handicapped people are capable of artistic endeavors and growth when given the proper environment. (RM)