Date of Graduation

Spring 2009

Degree

Master of Arts in Teaching

Department

Reading, Foundations, and Technology

Committee Chair

Emmet Sawyer

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to describe the characteristics of students with high and low aural skills in a high school music program. A mixed design study was performed to screen, interview, and collect data on fourteen students with proficient aural skills, and fourteen students with low aural skills. The researcher used the data to answer several research questions about what traits students in each group had in common with each other, and how the traits differed when comparing the two groups. The most significant differences between the two groups were in the following areas: years of private instruction, being an instrumentalist or singer, parents' musicianship, socio-economic status, gender, and family status. Lesser, yet notable, differences occurred in the following areas: academic achievement, learning styles, age of beginning formal music training, whether or not the student was home-schooled, non-musical interests and hobbies, and self-reports of motivation to enjoy and perform music.

Keywords

music, aural skills, ear training, high school music program, aural perception, music theory, learning styles

Subject Categories

Music Education

Copyright

© Molly E. Healey

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