Motivation and leadership are two important factors influencing achievement in today's classrooms. Whereas some students are naturally self-motivated, other students struggle to find the basic motivation to reach their full potentials. Goal theory states that people naturally select goals based on mastery learning achievements or performance…

Development involves progressive changes in knowledge and abilities that occur across the life span. Current research on musical abilities suggests that the development of skills necessary for musicality begins in utero and continues through adulthood. Many of these skills, such as the ability to carry a tune, move in time to music, and respond…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the factors that influence adolescent males to enroll in school choir as an elective class and to assess their attitudes about singing in general, self-concept of their own voices, and perception of others' view of adolescent males' participation in choir. Data were obtained from 101 adolescent males…

The purpose of this study was to analyze SATB (soprano, alto, tenor, bass) vocal jazz octavos (N = 150) from three publishers in an effort to (a) identify the most prolific arrangers/composers, (b) cite improvisation opportunities, (c) document publisher improvisation markings, (d) indicate repeated titles, (e) identify most popular styles, and…

University students (N = 30) individually listened to the Billboard 100 top-ranked musical selection for their most and least liked musical genre. Two minutes of silence preceded each musical listening condition, and heart rate variability (HRV) was recorded throughout. All HRV measures decreased during music listening as compared with silence.…

The purpose of this intrinsic case study was to learn about the perceptions of singing and participation in choir of the author's eighth grade choir students. Specific areas of focus included insight on why the eighth grade boys sing and enjoy singing, perceptions of singing in a daily choir class, and perceptions of singing in an auditioned…

The effects of three practice schedules on beginning instrumental achievement were explored. A total of 19 seventh-grade clarinet and saxophone students completed one 18-minute practice session using either a blocked schedule causing a low level of cognitive (contextual) interference, a hybrid schedule causing a moderate level of interference, or…

Highlighting various seminal studies in music education provides grounding for the necessity of connecting children's school music experiences with their daily lived music experiences. Allowing children to make more seamless connections between these two contexts heightens the possibility of creating increasingly meaningful school music…

Research investigating music textbook series is limited and has primarily focused on series no longer in publication, on two grade levels, and/or on limited cultures. The purpose of this study is to examine what countries are and have been represented in current music textbook series. Additional questions in the study pertain to frequency and…

In 1997, the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act of 1990 was amended to require that assistive technology be considered when preparing an individual education program (IEP). This study explored involvement of Midwestern music educators in the IEP development process as well as their knowledge and attitudes regarding use of assistive…

Online graduate degree programs are a growing phenomenon as technology continues to develop and becomes more widely available and the needs of an increasingly educated society require better access to higher learning. In this study, the authors identified and studied the nine online (80% of the program or more) graduate music education programs…

This study investigated characteristics and experiences of teachers of adult music learners, instructional aspects they perceive to be unique to teaching adults, and their self-perceived needs in providing quality experiences for adult learners. A 25-item questionnaire investigating the topics of preparation, goals, methodology, materials,…

The current study sought to determine the relationship among music teachers' length of teaching experience, specialty (vocal or instrumental), and ratings of behaviors and teaching activities related to vocal health. Participants (N = 379) were experienced (n = 208) and preservice (n = 171) music teachers, further categorized by specialty, either…

This article discusses three characteristics that are often associated with successful music educators. The three characteristics discussed include nonverbal communication, teacher self-efficacy, and servant leadership. Although there is no magical combination of characteristics that will produce an effective music teacher, these three attributes…

Teaching music can be a stressful profession. How current and future teachers perceive stress, and the personal emotions that result from stressful situations, raises many questions. This study investigated differences in perception of levels of emotional stress between early and late program students in music teacher education using a concise…