This study was designed to fill a need to explore the hypothesis that students who participate in middle school bands and or chorus have higher math cognitive functioning than their non-music peers. Using the Measure of Academic Progress (MAP), this study identified specific math domains that middle school music students showed higher functioning…

Elementary general music focuses on the comprehensive development of skills over a wide range of musical possibilities. Even as elementary general music expands to embrace a myriad of ways of making music that do not involve traditional Western staff notation, teaching students to read staff notation still seems to be common in elementary general…

This qualitative study explores the changing pedagogies of 11 urban ensemble music educators as they experienced virtual and hybrid learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. The following questions guided the study: (1) What challenges did ensemble music teachers face in meeting the current music education standards for students in urban districts…

High school music education is not mandated by the Standards of Quality, the Virginia state educational law, and courses offered on the high school level vary among Virginia school divisions. This explanatory mixed methods dissertation study provides an overview of history of development of high school music education in Virginia, reveals what…

This embedded experimental mixed-methods study examined the implementation and outcomes of World Music Drumming (WMD) curriculum on reading fluency in primary elementary children and teacher perceptions of its effectiveness in student-to-curriculum, student-to-student, and student-to-teacher interactions in a summer camp setting. WMD, with its…

Lowel Mason highlights the importance of integrating music learning into the curriculum alongside other fundamental skills such as reading, promoting his belief in the transformative power of music education and its impact on child development. Mason stated, "Children must be taught music as they are taught to read" (Pemberton, 1992).…

I have witnessed Indigenous students experience marginalization, being ignored, being labelled, and earning developmental designations, all as a way to continue systemically oppressing them. Indigenous students traditionally did not sit in rows, they did not compete for the highest mark, an A+ or a B. Indigenous education and learning is a…

In 1993, Congress passed the mandate "Goals 2000: Educate America Act," which established standards for K-12 education that outlined the core benchmarks of student achievement for individuals who have mastered the core curricula required to earn a high school diploma (Mark, 1995). Unfortunately, these curricular requirements did not…

This study was designed to explore differences between instrumental music teachers' self-perceived comfort and competence ratings, using a 7-point Likert scale, on 15 choral teaching skills presented through a researcher-developed survey. Participants, identified through the National Association for Music Education membership list, were contacted…

A comparative analysis was used to study the results from a descriptive survey of selected middle school students in Grades 6, 7, and 8. Student responses to the survey tool was used to compare multiple variables of music participation and duration of various musical activities, such as singing and performing on instruments, to the mathematics…

The purpose of this study was to investigate any relationship between observed and reported use of a cappella singing in the elementary general music classroom. A secondary purpose of this study was to examine teachers' practical perspectives influencing the use of a cappella singing in the elementary general music classroom. From a total of 50…

Comparative analysis examined responses on a descriptive questionnaire from 267 students in grades 6, 7, and 8. The study compared duration of and participation in music instruction, types of musical instruments learned, and experience in musical ensembles to scores from the state English language arts assessment. Analysis of results included…

The present study investigated the strengths and areas of improvement for elementary music teacher preparation from the perspective of multiple members of a single body of music teachers. Subjects for the study were elementary music teachers from an urban school district in the southern United States. All elementary music teachers in the school…