In this study, we explored associations between perception of musical features (pitch, tonality, timing, timbre, and loudness), vocal abilities (singing accuracy, melodic achievement, and rhythmic performance), and cognitive levels (reading accuracy and comprehension, grammar, and math) among children ages 6 to 12. Musical perception abilities…

The purpose of this multiple-case study was to explore the experiences of two students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in a full-inclusion music education context and how those experiences aligned with stakeholder perspectives regarding the role of music education for this population. Three themes emerged from the data: The Not-So-Atypical…

Using the Theory of Social Representations as a theoretical and methodological framework, the purpose of this study was to describe children's representations of music, musical identities, and musical engagement across middle childhood. Participants were primary students aged 8 to 11 (N = 132) from four schools in a large city in the Southeastern…

Previous studies have demonstrated that active engagement in musical activities benefits auditory and cognitive processing. However, it is still unclear whether musical experience improves domain-general mechanisms reflected in superior functioning in language or the enhancement is selective and limited to musical abilities. In the present study,…

This study investigated correlates that might explain variance in beginning sight-singing achievement, including tonal discrimination, reading fluency, reading comprehension, and academic ability. Both curriculum-based and standardized tests were used, including the Intermediate Measures of Music Audiation, Otis-Lennon School Ability Test, and…

The purpose of this ethnographic study was to examine student outcomes of a curriculum designed to address the overlapping aims and practices of music education and multicultural education ideals in a fifth-grade music class. The following questions guided the research: What are the student outcomes as a result of a traditional music curriculum…

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of motivation on upper-grade elementary students' preferences for acoustic or tablet-based instruments. The effect of cultural familiarity on musical instrument preference was also investigated. Participants (N = 138) were classified by motivation levels (low, medium-low, medium-high, and high)…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between phonological awareness and music aptitude. I administered the Intermediate Measures of Music Audiation (IMMA) to second-grade students in a rural school in Pennsylvania (N = 17). Speech-language specialists administered a hearing screening and The Phonological Awareness Test 2…

The purpose of this study was to explore the effect of task demands on children's singing accuracy. A 2 × 4 factorial design was used to examine the performance of fourth-grade children (N = 120) in solo and doubled response conditions. Each child sang four task types: single pitch, interval, pattern, and the song "Jingle Bells." The…

Since the arrival of the first charter school in Minnesota in 1991, charter schools have become one of the largest movements in educational reform. In recent years, research has emerged that has compared the effectiveness of charter schools with their traditional school counterparts. The purpose of this study was to compare the extent of music…

The presence of popular music education in schools has expanded significantly in the past two decades within the United States in part due to the expansion of modern band programming. Initially developed and propagated by the non-profit organization Little Kids Rock (LKR), modern band is a term used to describe school-based ensembles that use…

This investigation replicates previous research into K-12 students' responses to mid-20th-century art music. The study extends that research to include undergraduates and graduates as well as an additional group of graduate students who had taken a 20th-century music class. Children's responses showed remarkable consistency and indicated that…

The purpose of this study was to identify the characteristics of common elementary music class activities that elicit situational interest, the short-term interest that emerges spontaneously in learners when faced with environmental factors in an educational experience. An instrumental case study approach was employed, with 24 fourth-grade…

The purposes of this study were to identify the body regions where young string players report experiencing musculoskeletal discomfort and explore factors that may impact their perceived discomfort. A purposive yet nonprobability sample of elementary (n = 101), middle school (n = 97), and high school (n = 159) students participated in the study by…

The primary purpose of this study was to describe the music experiences elementary school children in the United States receive in the academic classroom setting. The data were drawn from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study of the Kindergarten Class of 1998-1999 (ECLS-K), a nationally representative study that followed kindergarteners through…