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PERSONAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE
SIXTH AND SEVENTH GRADE STUDENTS'
DETERMINATIONS OF WHETHER TO REMAIN IN CHOIR

presented by
Bridget Mary Sweet

has been accepted towards fulfillment
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2/05 pJCIRCIDabDuohdd-pj

PERSONAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE SIXTH AND
SEVENTH GRADE STUDENTS’ DETERMINATIONS OF WHETHER To REMAIN
IN CHOIR
By

Bridget Mary Sweet

A THESIS
Submitted to
Michigan State University

in partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the degree of

MASTER OF MUSIC EDUCATION

2003

Copyright by
BRIDGET MARY SWEET
2003

ABSTRACT
PERSONAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE SIXTH AND
SEVENTH GRADE STUDENTS’ DETERMINATIONS OF WHETHER To REMAIN
IN CHOIR
By

Bridget Mary Sweet

The purpose of this study was to determine the personal and environmental
factors that influence sixth and seventh grade students’ determinations of whether to
remain in choir. Data sources included survey responses from I ll current choir students
and 11 former choir students and interview responses from l5 randomly chosen students.

Results from “personal factor” questions indicated that enjoyment and perceived
skill in singing were influential factors on students’ decision to re-enroll in choir class.
Former choir students tended not to see music as a part of their futures, but current choir
students felt that they would be involved with music in the future.

Results from “environmental factor” questions indicated that family background
alone does not determine if a student will remain in choir. Friends and peers were
identified as a main factor in some students’ decisions of whether to remain in choir, and
the choir teacher was identified as a positive influential factor to students. Class
activities were a positive factor for current choir students, and a negative factor for
former choir students. Current choir students indicated that they wanted to sing in choir
more than participate in the other class options, and the desire to explore other options

was more compelling than choir for former choir students.

To my husband, Jason, whose unbelievable love and support carried me
throughout this project. No words are fitting enough for how wonderful you are.

To my mom, my hero, for everything you do and for the inspiration you are. To
my sister, Kate, who is always encouraging and supporting me — even with your sisterly
harassment. To my dad, who instilled in me the desire to earn a Master’s Degree when I
was in elementary school. And to all the music teachers and educators who have helped

inspire me to be the person I am today, I thank you.

May 2, 2003

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

A project of this magnitude is not completed alone. Without the help of many

individuals, this research project would not have been as successful or fulfilling.

First and foremost, I wish to thank Dr. Cindy Taggart for everything that she has
contributed to this project. Dr. Taggart, you were a powerful reason for my attending
Michigan State University, and through your support, suggestions, work ethic, and
fabulous personality, I have learned more than I ever bargained for. This thesis would
not have been as successful without your guidance. You are truly one of the greatest
people I have had the pleasure of working with, and I cannot thank you enough.

I am deeply grateful to the other members of my thesis committee, Dr. John
Kratus and Dr. Jonathon Reed. You both contributed invaluable insight over the course
of this research study in addition to your incredible encouragement and support. Even
upon its completion, you have shown much excitement and support for the project, and I
thank you.

I would like to acknowledge the seventh and eighth grade current and former
choir students at Beagle Middle School who participated in this research study. Without
you, this project would not have been possible. In addition, I am grateful to four co-
workers, Doreen Earle, Kathy Jennings, Laurel Miller, and Heather Spitzley, who
conducted the private interviews that enabled me to gather valuable information from
current and former choir students. Your willingness to help was very much appreciated.

During my time at Western Michigan University, Dr. David Smith shared a
sentence with my middle school choral methods class. “Act your way into a new way of

thinking.” This sentence was the most valuable piece of knowledge or information

gained during my four years at WMU. I offer a special thank you to Dr. Smith for
sharing this sentence with us; a sentence that has helped me countless times, especially
over the course of completing my Master’s Degree in Music Education.

Finally, I wish to acknowledge my family and friends, especially my husband,
Jason, who have been incredibly understanding and supportive, especially while I have
been so focused on this project. Your support and inquiries on my progress were very

much appreciated, as were all the hugs. How wonderful to be surrounded by such

wonderful people.

vi

TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF TABLES ..................................................................................... x
CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION .................................................................................... l

Adolescence .................................................................................. 2

Characteristics of Adolescence .................................................... 2

Role of Peers ........................................................................ 4

Role of Adults ....................................................................... 6

Needs of Adolescents ............................................................... 8

Motivation ................................................................................... 10

Extrinsic and Intrinsic Motivation .............................................. 12

Attribution Theory ................................................................ 14

Reinforcement Theory ............................................................ 16

Personal Investment Theory ..................................................... l6

Motivation for Adolescents to Participate in Choir .................................... 19

Purpose and Problems ..................................................................... 25
CHAPTER 2

REVIEW OF LITERATURE ..................................................................... 28

Personal and Environmental Factors .................................................... 28

Overview .................................................................................... 28

Attribution Theory ......................................................................... 29

Family ....................................................................................... 33

Multiple Factors Study .................................................................... 37

Scheduling ................................................................................... 41

Summary .................................................................................... 42
CHAPTER 3

METHODOLOGY ................................................................................. 44

Subjects ...................................................................................... 44

Beagle Middle School Choral Programs ................................................ 46

The Researcher’s Philosophy of Music Education .................................... 49

The City of Grand Ledge .................................................................. 51

Design and Procedures ..................................................................... 52

Criterion Measures ......................................................................... 55
CHAPTER 4

RESULTS AND INTERPRETATIONS ......................................................... 59

Survey Results of Former Choir Members ............................................. 59

Environmental Factors ............................................................ 59

Personal Factors ................................................................... 65

Survey Results of Current Choir Members ............................................. 74

Environmental Factors ............................................................ 74

vii

Personal Factors ................................................................... 83

Comparison of Survey Results of Former and Current Choir Students ............ 94
Environmental Factors ............................................................ 94
Question 15 ............................................................... 95
Question 22 ............................................................... 95
Personal Factors .................................................................. 96
Question One ............................................................. 96
Question Eight ............................................................ 96
Question 12 ............................................................... 97
Question 13 ............................................................... 97
Question 18 ............................................................... 98
Summary ........................................................................... 98
CHAPTER 5
STUDENT INTERVIEWS ..................................................................... 101
Former Choir Students ................................................................... 101
Current Choir Students .................................................................. 109
Comparison of Interview Results of Former and Current Choir Students... ......1 19
Reasons for Joining Choir ...................................................... 120
Least Enjoyed Aspects of Choir ............................................... 121
Music’s Role Within Students’ Development ............................... 122
Singing Enjoyment.................................... ........................... 123
Students’ Futures with Music .................................................. 123
Summary ................................................................................... 124
CHAPTER 6
COMPARISON OF STUDENT SURVEY RESULTS WITH STUDENT
INTERVIEW RESULTS ................................................................ 126
Family Involvement with Music ........................................................ 126
Family’s View of Participation in Choir ............................................... 128
Peers ........................................................................................ 129
Singing Enjoyment ........................................................................ 131
Perceived Singing Ability ................................................................ 132
The Teacher’s Role ....................................................................... 133
Class Activities ........................................................................... 134
Other Class Options ...................................................................... 136
Summary ................................................................................... 138
CHAPTER 7
SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE, AND
SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH ....................................... 139
Summary ................................................................................... 139
Conclusions ................................................................................ 140
Implications for Practice ................................................................. 146
Suggestions for Future Research ....................................................... 149

viii

REFERENCES ......

APPENDICES

Appendix A:
Appendix B:
Appendix C:
Appendix D:
Appendix E:
Appendix F:

.............................................................................. 152

Student Information and Participation Request Letter ............ 158
Parent Consent Form ................................................... 159
Current Choir Student Survey ......................................... 160
Current Choir Student Interview Questions ......................... 162
Former Choir Student Survey ......................................... 163
Former Choir Student Interview Questions ......................... 165

Table 1:

Table 2:

Table 3:
Table 4:

Table 5:

Table 6:

LIST OF TABLES

Means and Standard Deviations of Former Choir Students’ Responses
about Environmental Factors ......................................................... 60
Means and Standard Deviations of Former Choir Students’ Responses
about Personal Factors ................................................................. 66

Means of Current Choir Students’ Responses about Environmental Factors..75

Standard Deviations of Current Choir Students’ Responses about
Environmental Factors ................................................................. 75
Means of Current Choir Students’ Responses about Personal Factors ......... 84
Standard Deviations of Current Choir Students’ Responses about Personal

Factors ................................................................................... 85

‘0
D

 

CHAPTER ONE
Introduction

In middle school, students often begin making choices about which classes they
take. Music classes often play a role in this decision-making process. For example, sixth
grade students at Grand Ledge, Michigan, where I teach, are required to participate in one
year of a music class. Students have the option of taking either band or choir for the
duration of their sixth grade year. However, following sixth grade, students are given the
option of continuing with band or choir, switching from band to choir (or vice-versa
depending on the student’s abilities), or choosing the “skills” rotation classes instead of a
music class. The skills rotation classes are sampled for equal amounts of time over the
course of the school year and include art, technical education, life skills, foreign
language, computer skills, and physical education.

This study was designed to investigate factors that may have influenced students‘
decisions of whether to participate in choir during their seventh and eighth grade years.
Following the sixth grade school year, students usually either remain in choir or take the
“skills” classes. Why do some students choose to remain in choir and others choose to
leave? There have been other situations in which students continue with choir for another
year, in seventh grade, and then elect “skills” classes for eighth grade. Sometimes
students who did not take choir in sixth grade join choir in seventh or eighth grade. What
is it that causes these students to come and go from choir, and is there a way to meet the
needs of students so that more will stay within the program for their three years in middle

school?

he-F—r

Chapter one will discuss relevant research that pertains to three main themes:
adolescence, motivation, and motivation for adolescents to participate in choir. Within
the “adolescence” theme, subsections include adolescent characteristics, peer influence,
adult influence, needs of adolescents, and motivation. Within the “motivation” theme,
subsections include extrinsic and intrinsic motivation, attribution theory, reinforcement
theory, and personal investment theory. The final theme is “motivation for adolescents to
participate in choir” and does not contain subsections.

Adolescence

Characteristics of Adolescents

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The transition from childhood to adulthood is a long and difficult one for many
students. The adolescent is neither a child, nor an adult, and is caught in the middle of a
variety of expectations from peers, parents, and other adult figures (Blair, 1965). The
role of a child is structured and clear, because the child knows what he or she can and
cannot do (Blair, 1965). For example, children are expected to attend school and be
respectful and kind to others. Expectations within households exist for children, such as
completing their chores or helping with a younger brother or sister. The role of an adult
is also structured and clear. For example, adults are expected to be responsible for
themselves in addition to providing food and shelter for themselves and perhaps a family.
Adults are expected to vote in elections and work to be well-adjusted members of society.
However, because the role of the adolescent is not as clearly defined, he or she does not
quite know where he or she may stand (Blair, 1965; Jersild, 1968; Sprinthall, 1994;
Caissy, 1994). “One moment he is told by his parents that he is too young to take the

family car out of town. The next moment, he is scolded for not acting like a man and is

told that he is as big as his father” (Blair, 1965, p. 5). This conflict can cause adolescents
to feel sensitive and, at times, act in an unpredictable manner (Blair, 1965; Jersild, 1968;
Sprinthall, 1994; Caissy, 1994; Copley, 1993).

The beginning of adolescence is indicated by biological changes in boys and girls.
The rate of growth increases during a pre-adolescent growth spurt. During this period,
and shortly after, secondary sex characteristics begin to emerge. In girls there is the
rounding out of hips, breast development, appearance of pubic hair and menstruation. In
boys, there is appearance of pubic hair, facial hair, and change of voice (Blair, 1965;
BIOS, 1941; Jersild, 1968; Sprinthall, 1994; Caissy, 1994; Copley, 1993).

People often react to adolescents more on the basis of size than age. Physically
small adolescents may be viewed as immature, even if these students have high
intellectual abilities (Blair, 1965). On the other hand, adolescents who are physically
large for their age, even though they are emotionally and intellectually immature, are
expected to act grown up and to do more than they are capable of doing (Blair, 1965).

There is no precise span of years to define “adolescence” (Blair, 1965; Jersild,
I968; Sprinthall, 1994). According to Blair (1965), the end of adolescence is indicated by
social changes and criteria. Examples include when an adolescent leaves home, gets a
job, and is able to vote. These types of criteria are used to determine when the transition
from childhood to adulthood is accomplished.

One task that adolescents face while establishing their own identity and
transitioning into adulthood is to outgrow dependency from parents (Blair, 1965; Jersild,
1968). This transition has been referred to as “the emancipation from home” or “the

emancipation from parents” (Blair, 1965; Jersild, 1968, Sprinthall, 1994). During this

 

time, adolescents Steadily assume more and more responsibility for themselves. With
responsibility comes the necessity of making choices (Jersild, 1968). As adolescents
begin to make choices, they must also learn to take the consequences of the choices they
make (Jersild, 1968).

Anxiety or conflict between adolescents and their parents is common during this
transition. This tension can lead to adolescent rebellion against authority at home and at
school (Jersild, 1968). Many adolescents are more troubled during this time than they
were as younger children, and more than they will be as adults. Delinquency rates are
higher with adolescents as they search for their own identity, as well as discover their
sexuality and determine their place in society (Jersild, 1968).

With expectations of parents and teachers, constantly changing peer relationships,
as well as the self-inflicted pressure of worrying what everyone thinks, adolescents
sometimes act unpredictably. “Young adolescents can switch from sweet to sullen in
seconds. They can be friendly one day and distant the next. They can go from being
naive nerds to party animals in the same week. They seek attention for being weird or
unique, but then quickly conform to bathe in the security of peer approval. They wallow
in egocentric excess — only to snap suddenly out of it” (Gerber, 1994, p. 7).

Role of Peers

Jersild (1968) believes that adolescents operate as a loosely organized group but
that membership in the group carries with it a powerful force. Through this group,
adolescents influence one another, as well as put pressure on their parents. Teenagers
often rely on the peer group for acceptance and look to one another for standards on how

to think, act, talk, and dress (Blair, 1965:8105, 1941; Jersild, 1968; Reasoner, 199];

Copley, 1993; Caissy, 1994). Although the peer group is strong and demanding,
according to Blair (1965), these demands serve an important purpose. They help
adolescents find a role for themselves within the peer group, as well as teach social skills
necessary for adulthood.

As teenagers proceed through puberty, they encounter new emotions and feelings,
as well as changes in their physical appearance (Hoffer, 1989). The way adolescents feel
they are viewed has a strong impact on the way they view themselves (Blair, 1965). The

desire to be accepted by “the group” and reach “popularity” motivates adolescents to

 

imitate others who are apparently more successful (Blair, 1965; BIOS, 1941;.Iersild, 1968;
Reasoner, 1991; Caissy, 1994). Imitation can involve taking on the likes and dislikes of
others, as well as frequently changing behavior in order to gain approval from peers
(Blair, 1965; B105, 1941).

The most important peer relationships are those that exist between close friends
(Jersild, 1968). In adolescence, it is common to find friendships that consist of a follower
and a leader. However, friendships in which two people feel they are “equals” do exist.
It is within these friendships that there is trust, no need to pretend with one another, and
no need to worry about being betrayed (Jersild, 1968). Through a “real” friendship,
adolescents enjoy companionship but also are able to discover themselves (Jersild, 1968).
According to Jersild (1968), “real” friendships allow adolescents to deal with doubts,
resentments, and concerns of all kinds. Through these processes, a deeper understanding
of identity and self-worth is gained. Through a relationship with a trusted friend,
adolescents may discover feelings that they did not know they had and learn to express

themselves in new ways.

Role of Adults

Children raised with a strong foundation of parental love tend to transition into
adolescence more smoothly than children who have felt unloved or rejected by their
parents (Jersild, 1968). “The continued assurance of parents’ love is an invaluable asset
during adolescent years” (Jersild, 1968, p. 239). Adolescent who feel loved do not have
to constantly plan how to keep their parents’ love. Parents can also be trusted, even in

times of disagreement. When adolescents feel this security from parents, they have

_. 1'1-»

greater freedom to explore, to investigate, to be themselves (Jersild, 1968). With this

sense of freedom, adolescents also are able to make mistakes without feeling that all .

 

 

consequences are fatal. However, Jersild (1968) points out that parental love is not a
shield. This love can accomplish much but cannot protect against disappointments, errors -
of judgment, weaknesses, or guarantee good conditions at school, work, and other places.

Although many children are fortunate to grow within a loving household, there
are many children who feel unloved or have been rejected by their parents. The
adolescents who develop from these children must work to find affection from adult
figures outside of their homes (Jersild, 1968). Without encouragement or guidance, these
adolescents must depend on their own resources. “Evidence seems to show that many
adolescents who are having a hard time come from an unfavorable home background”
(Jersild, 1968, p. 241). Situations include broken homes, divorced families, or homes in
which one or both of the parents do not give affection. It is common to find that students
who are emotionally disturbed, delinquint, or failing at school are products of

unfavorable home backgrounds (Jersild, I968).

“Adult support and modeling are vital during the very early adolescent years
because this is the time when identity begins to take shape” (Gerber, 1994, p 7).
Teachers play an important role during adolescence (Scheidecker & Freeman, 1999;
Csikszentmihalyi & McCormack, 1986). It is impossible for a teacher’s personality to be
attractive to every student he or she encounters. However, a teacher’s personality can be
influential on the involvement of students in a class. According to Scheidecker and
Freeman (1999), “The teacher’s personality is the single most significant trait in
promoting educational success. The teacher is more important to the education of his or
her students than pedagogy, technology, curriculum, facilities, and textbooks” (p. 5). In
addition, a key factor in student achievement is each teacher’s own attitudes, motivation,
expectations, and viewpoint regarding his or her role in student motivation (Grossnickle
& Thiel, 1988; Csikszentmihalyi & McCormack, 1986). “Adolescents respond to
teachers who communicate a sense of excitement, a contagious intellectual thrill. When
excitement is present, learning becomes a pleasure instead of a chore” (Csikszentmihalyi
& McCormack, 1986).

In today’s society, 60 percent of students come from homes without adequate
support, encouragement, or role models. According to Csikszentmihalyi and
McCormack ( 1986), the few hours that' students spend with teachers each day are the
most important Opportunities for them to learn from adults in our culture. “Our culture
has essentially delegated the upbringing of its young to educational institutions”
(Csikszentmihalyi & McCormack, 1986). It is the care and support of teachers that can
make all the difference in the successes and accomplishments of students (Grossnickle &

Thiel, 1988).

Even though a teacher can have a profound positive affect on students, according
to 8103 (1941), if a teacher fails to make a positive contribution to a student’s emotional
needs, that teacher will be ineffective. The student “may also find the demands of a
particular subject or teacher directly opposed to his needs, in which case he will develop
a negative attitude which practically precludes learning” (B105, 1941, p. 497).

Needs of Adolescents

Everyone has different interests and needs. Needs are what begin, stimulate, or r

.‘A D

cause behavior and are internal in every person (Asmus, 1994). According to Blair

 

(1965), three human personality needs that are of great importance to an adolescent are i
the needs for status, independence, and achievement.

Blair (1965) states, “Status in the peer group is probably more important to many
adolescents than status in the eyes of their parents or teachers, yet recognition from both
of these sources is cherished by adolescents” (p. 8). Adolescents want to be important, to
have a place in a peer group, and to be looked upon as worthy individuals. There is a
common desire among adolescents to achieve “adult status" and leave “childhood”
behind (Blair, 1965).

The need for independence becomes increasingly significant in the life of an
adolescent. There is a desire to be less dependent on parental figures and to be more self-
sufficient; there is a desire to run his or her life (Blair, 1965). Young children do not
mind their parents visiting their school and checking their progress, but many adolescents
object to such practices “because it implies that they cannot handle their own affairs”

(Blair, 1965, p. 9).

Learning is most effectively accomplished when a student’s efforts are followed
by a sense of achievement (Blair, 1965). According to Blair (1965), the way to get
adolescent students to work hard and to enjoy what they are doing is to get them to notice
what good work they do. Every student does something worthy of praise or positive
notice. It is particularly important for slow learners or adolescents not interested in
school to have successful experiences and keep them progressing forward (Blair, 1965).

In addition to the great variety of needs, learning styles, and thinking abilities, the
interests of early adolescents change frequently (Blair, 1965; BIOS, 1941; Williamson,
1993; Gardner, 1994). With increasing age, adolescents are interested in fewer and fewer
things. According to Blair ( I965), adolescents may show “active resistance” to attempts
by the school or home to be involved in certain activities. This does not mean that
students’ interest in being involved in an activity diminishes. In fact, adolescents begin
to channel more energy into fewer activities. At an early age, students begin to subtly
“specialize” in activities such as athletics, literature, music, and hobbies that carry from
adolescence into adulthood (Blair, 1965).

Many of the basic elements of mental development are established at an early age.
However, intellectual growth does not stop at that point; the groundwork for mental
development is not close to completion until early adolescence (Blair, 1965).
Environmental factors, as well as differences in growth rate, cause a variety of ability
levels during adolescence. Unfortunately, adolescents begin to accept their perceived
ability as an unchanging trait that defines their place among their peers (Blair, 1965).
“Late bloomers” are unable to look into the future and see that their intellectual growth

will continue to increase, as long as they strive for improvement. “Intellectual

development does continue and relies heavily for its growth upon the interests and
attitudes of students — in short, upon their desire to learn” (Blair, 1965, p. 58).

It is common to see a decline in interest in school subject matter during
adolescence. “Whether this is an inevitable consequence of the narrowing and
specialization of interests is not known” (Blair, 1965, p. 71). More likely, this decline is
a result of effects from disappointments in academic work and the increase of social and
sex interests that are not included in school work (Blair, 1965). Even though this decline
in academics is common, it is by no means universal. Many adolescents who have been

successful at schoolwork continue to strive to achieve and View school as a positive

environment. These students look forward to new school experiences with “eager
anticipation” (Blair, 1965).
Motivation

According to Webster’s New World Dictionary (1983), the definition of
motivation is “to provide with, or affect as, a motive; incite” (p. 393). Motivation is the
driving force behind behavior. Motivated behaviors can be engaged in for their own sake
(Deci, Valler, Pelletier, & Ryan, 1991). According to Stipek (2002), a motivated person
is someone who exerts effort or persists through difficulty in order to complete a given
task. Maslow ( I970) believes that each person is an organized whole, and the entire
person is motivated, not just a part of him or her. For example, a person’s hand is not
motivated to play the piano. The entire individual wants to play the piano, not just a
specific body part.

All people are motivated, but the intensity and goals of motivation are different

for each person (Grossnickle, 1989; Raynor, 1983). Individual personality differences

10

need to be considered when understanding motivation. Different people act and react
differently in the same situation (Raynor, 1983). In addition, the same person may act or
react differently within different situations, again making motivation difficult to predict.
Several theories exist as to the prime reason for motivation. Examples given by Raynor
(1983) include working to reduce tension, for superiority, working towards an
understanding of the world, and gaining balance and consistency in one’s life. However,

there is no agreement on the prime reason for motivation (Raynor, I983).

Raynor (1983) has categorized motivation of working towards a career or goal i
into three stages: early-stage striving, middle-stage striving, and late-stage striving. r

 

Early-stage striving involves the attempt for immediate success to insure progress
towards a future goal. Through each success, a person will learn about him or herself and
gain abilities and skills for the future. In addition, he or she is able to see what abilities
and skills must be acquired in order to continue advancing towards a goal. Middle-stage
striving combines the three sources of motivation, which can be considered past, present,
and future. Within middle-stage striving, a person is concerned with achieving future
successes while evaluating the present situation as well as maintaining past
accomplishments. Late-stage striving involves evaluating and celebrating the success
that a person has achieved. However, this stage includes maintaining the abilities and
skills acquired from past successes, as well as remaining the same person they have

become through this advancement in order to stay successful.

11

Extrinsic and Intrinsic Motivation

Motivation can be broken down into two forms: extrinsic and intrinsic. Extrinsic
motivation, the first discussed here, does not originate from personal drive or interest to
achieve but because of a pending reward (Asmus, 1994; Csikszentmihalyi & Nakamura,
1989; Deci, Vallerand, Pelletier & Ryan, 1991; Eccles, 1983; Raynor, 1983; Stipek,
2002). In a choir class, extrinsic motivators may include candy, free time, singing a
special piece of music, a festival rating, or listening to music that a student brings in.

A teacher can influence extrinsic motivation by offering rewards or prizes as an

incentive to complete a task. Raynor (1983) believes that the timing of presenting l

 

extrinsic rewards is important and that extrinsic rewards should be reflective of the task at
hand. Teachers should not want students to work only when a reward or prize is offered.
However, external rewards undermine intrinsic interest in a task, and the larger the
reward, the more negative the impact on intrinsic interest (Stipek, 2002).

Opposite to extrinsic motivation is intrinsic motivation. This type of motivation
assumes that people are internally motivated to make personal decisions in order to
develop abilities that will produce accomplishments from which they can take pleasure
(Asmus, 1994; Csikszentmihalyi & Nakamura, 1989; Deci, Vallerand, Pelletier & Ryan.
1991; Eccles, 1983; Raynor, 1983; Stipek, 2002). For example, intrinsic motivation leads
to an increase in an individual’s competency to complete a task. “This new ability leads
to a desire to use that competence to feel good, which leads to further increases in that
skill” (Raynor, 1983, p. 19). Eventually, the desire to use these skills, which are
accompanied by feelings of success and pride, will lead to more development within that

task area (Raynor, 1983; Stipek, 2002).

12

11.

v1

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9‘.

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Intrinsic motivation varies between age groups and types of activities (Raynor,
1983). Students completing the same academic work within the same classroom will
each be motivated by different aspects of the lesson (Raynor, I983; Stipek, 2002). It is
common for students to develop a preference for certain work because of behaviors
exhibited by their parents or past teachers (Stipek, 2002). Students may prefer easier
work because they have been punished for failure in the past, even though failure is
natural at times and sometimes occurs when attempting a new or difficult task. In
contrast, over-intrusive parents tend to deny their children opportunities to develop self-
confidence in abilities necessary to complete tasks by completing the tasks for their
children. These students, with low self-confidence and little experience in completing
tasks, tend to be overly dependent on the teacher for help (Stipek, 2002).

A teacher has the ability to influence the intrinsic motivation of his or her students
by choosing materials and activities that will be of interest to them. Raynor (1983)
believes that it is a teacher’s responsibility to plan activities of high intrinsic value for
students and then use these activities as a way to introduce new concepts and activities.
In addition to classroom activities, a teacher’s enthusiasm for the subject area and for
student accomplishment can impact the motivation of students (Nicholls, 1983). “A
teacher’s enthusiasm is contagious” (Nicholls, 1983, p. 3). In praising a student and
focusing on the person rather than on what he or she is doing, a teacher can encourage the
development of self—confidence and, in turn, more intrinsic motivation within that
student.

The basic objectives of academic learning tend to be extrinsically based, because

learning is thought of as a means of achieving future occupational success (Covington,

1983). Music education, however, is believed to be intrinsically based because it of its
recreational, cultural, and self-expressive value (Covington, 1983; Raynor, 1983).
“Intrinsic motivation seems particularly potent in the field of music, because of both the
apparently inherent interest aroused by musical sound, and the fact that reproduction of a
musical manuscript involves the standard of playing notes correctly” (Raynor, 1983, p.
18). Dedication to developing music skills usually comes from an internal drive to
succeed at the task (Raynor, 1983).

Attribution Theory

Attribution theory helps to explain how people view the causes of their behaviors,
as well as the behaviors of others (Eccles, 1983; Schunk, 1991; Weiner, 1972 a). Ability,
effort, task difficulty, and luck are the four attributions associated with this theory and are
the perceived causes of whether outcomes are successful (Asmus, 1994; Eccles, 1983;
Legette, 1998; Schunk, 1991; Weiner, 1972a).

According to Schunk (1991), people use “cues” gained through previous
experiences to learn how the four attributions pertain to them. When defining their
“ability” attributions, people consider successes that were easily attained during the
course of learning. Cues that signal “effort” attributions include the levels of mental
effort or persistence exerted over long periods of time in order to determine the levels of
effort necessary to be successful at a task. “Task difficulty” cues involve considering the
task at hand and the social norms (if the entire class did poorly on the test, then the failure
would be attributed to the test being highly difficult). The fourth attribution, “luck,” is

random, with ability and effort having no influence on “luck.”

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The four attributions are either internal (originating from the student) or external
(originating away from the student) and either stable (the student does not see a change
occurring) or unstable (there are many changes with repeated attempts) (Asmus, 1994;
Legette, 1998). “Therefore, causal attributions of “ability” and “effort” are considered to
be intemal-stable and intemal—unstable, respectively, where as “task difficulty” is
considered external-stable and “luck” is extemal-unstable” (Legette, 1998).

The four attributions are important to motivation, because they influence beliefs,
emotions, and behaviors (Schunk, 1991). How a student perceives an attribution is
important to his or her future successes or failures (Legette, 1998; Weiner, 1972a).
“Causal attributions influence the likelihood of undertaking achievement activities, the
intensity of work at the activities, and the degree of persistence in the face of failure”
(Weiner, 1972, p. 213). For example, the amount of effort put into a task can be
modified, so failures attributed to a lack of effort cause students to become motivated to
work harder in order to be successful (Schunk, 1989). Perceiving an attribution as stable
or unstable affects a student’s level of expectancy for accomplishing the same or similar
tasks in the future. If success of a task is attributed to ability, it is most likely that the
student will expect to be successful at this task in the future. However, if the task is
attributed to ability, but has an unsuccessful outcome, then it is understandable that the
student will often expect to fail in future attempts of the task. If students attribute task

outcomes to effort, the results of future attempts will vary based on the amount of effort

put forth.

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Reinforcement Theory

Reinforcement theory is related to “extrinsic motivation,” because students
exhibit a particular behavior that has been reinforced (rewarded) in the past (Stipek,
2002). This theory focuses on the belief that students who are rewarded for working hard
on school tasks and persist through difficulties will continue to work hard and persist in
the future (Stipek, 2002). The theory of reinforcement is referred to as “mechanistic” by
Stipek (2002), because it is not based on belief systems, feelings, desires, or anything that
cannot be observed. Motivation is not a personal quality within this theory. Instead,
motivation is the awareness of whether certain behaviors will be rewarded or punished.
“For reinforcement theorists, motivation is not in the person at all — it is in the
environment” (Stipek, 2002, p. 13).

This theory has ramifications for motivation in school as students enter
adolescence. At this time, grades lose their effectiveness as reinforcers. Peer approval
becomes more important to adolescents, and their desires for adult approval decrease.
During these school years, the personal value of grades drop, and it is common for some
peer groups to encourage or reward poor grades among their “members” (Stipek, 2002).
Unless peer acceptance is somehow related to maintaining a high grade point average,
grades may not hold any value for these students. For some students, high grades may be
embarrassing and may be viewed as a punishment rather than a reward (Stipek, 2002).
Personal Investment Theory

Maehr (1983) believes that motivation is comprised of three types of behavior: the
choices a person makes, the persistence demonstrated, and the level of activity shown

towards achieving a goal (Maehr, 1983). Another aspect of his personal investment

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theory is that all people are motivated, but not in the same way. What causes a person to
direct his or her energy towards one task and not another? People invest their personal
resources differently (Maehr, 1983). Therefore, it is inaccurate to label a student as
unmotivated; it is more appropriate to say that he or she is motivated in one way and not
another. Maehr (1983) states that past choices, interests, and involvement in activities are
based on people’s belief systems and thought processes. People invest their energy in
situations on the basis of what they believe and how they view themselves.

Maehr (1983) developed a “motivational cycle” that includes the general
characteristics of his theory. According to Maehr (1983), the most critical feature of the
motivational cycle is “personal investment.” Three main components of personal
investment are action possibilities, performance goals, and sense of self. Action
possibilities are alternative ways to behave and respond to a given situation. A person
will not attempt what they do not feel is within their ability level. Involvement in a
situation depends on a person’s knowledge of the situation and how they see that
situation within their concept of “self.” For example, if a student is approached to learn
to play an instrument, he or she may not consider this opportunity unless someone
eXpands his or her range of action possibilities (Maehr, 1983). He or she will need to
hear examples of the instrument, see who plays that instrument, and develop a better
understanding of how playing the instrument will be valuable to them. For many ‘
students, it takes more than a simple suggestion to learn an instrument for them to agree
to learn.

Performance goals refer to what peOple expect to gain from an activity or

experience. The value of the activity is weighed, and definitions for “success” and

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“failure” are established (Maehr, 1983). Two of Maehr’s (1983) performance goals are
intrinsic (“task” and “ego”) and two are extrinsic (“social solidarity” and “extrinsic
rewards”). “Task” involves understanding something or experiencing an adventure or
novelty. The goal for “ego” involves doing better than others, or winning. Within
“social solidarity,” people strive to please others and make others happy. “Extrinsic
rewards” involve earning a prize or making money as the main goal.

Sense of self, the third component of personal investment, has four parts: sense of
competence, reference groups, sense of autonomy/responsibility, and sense of mission.
Maehr (1983) describes sense of competence as “I succeed in whatever I do” or “I
succeed in anything I want to do” (p. 9). The second component, reference groups,
involves role models. A person’s behavior can be influenced by characteristics and
values of individuals who they believe to be important in his or her life. A teacher who
has been a positive role model for a student may influence the student to behave in a
certain way. The teacher’s behavior is used as a reference point for that student. Self-
motivation is the focus of the third component, sense of autonomy/responsibility. “I
don’t need anyone to motivate me; I motivate myself” (p. 9). The last component, sense
of mission, involves successful completion of a task as the primary goal. “I aim my
activities toward a future goal” (p. 9).

With the components of personal investment working together, students are
confronted with situations at home or in school to which they must respond. According
to Maehr (1983), students will respond to either “ego goal” situations or “task goal”

situations. Students encounter both of these situations on a daily basis. Within the

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context of a music classroom, these situations could greatly influence a student’s
involvement in musical activities.

An ego goal situation is one in which comparisons of students’ performances are
made, and competition between students is encouraged (Maehr, 1983). In an ego goal
classroom, the student with a low sense of competence will have no motivation to
continue with the task at hand. He or she will feel negative about his or her abilities.
This approach promotes a fear of failure and reduces hopes of success, causing students
to avoid similar situations in the future. Only confident students will confront a
challenge by choice in an ego goal situation (Maehr, 1983).

A task goal situation is very different from an ego goal situation. Within a task
goal situation, emphasis is placed on the process of performing the task for intrinsic
value. Stress is placed on the progress students make towards a goal, not on who has
done the best job. This approach focuses on the strengths of each student, while reducing
feelings of failure (Maehr, 1983). Students are much more willing to face a challenge
and explore new possibilities within such a learning environment.

In conclusion, Maehr (1983) feels that his personal investment theory and
clarification of learning situations offers insight into ways of stimulating productive work
from individuals. His theory has also been presented to motivate people, especially
teachers, to consider and approach old problems in new and productive ways.

Motivation for Adolescents to Participate in Choir

Building a strong sense of self-esteem is one of the best things an adolescent can

do to prepare for life (Reasoner, 1991). “Self-esteem” refers to how a person evaluates

him or herself and how they maintain who they are. “It includes attitudes of approval or

19

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disapproval and the degree to which one feels worthy, capable, significant, and effective”
(Reasoner, 1991, p. 3). The way students feel about themselves determines the core of
their personality.

With self-esteem comes an understanding and confidence in one’s potential to
succeed. Students with positive feelings about themselves are better able to determine
personal goals, strengths, and weaknesses. In addition, students with positive self-esteem
are more open to new challenges and are more equipped to cope with disappointments
they may encounter (Reasoner, 1991).

Students who lack self-esteem commonly feel threatened by new challenges or
see little success in their futures (Reasoner, 1991). In describing students with low self-
esteem, Reasoner (1991) believes that individuals will try to avoid challenges, avoid
situations by skipping class, will depend on others to do assignments for them, or give
only minimal effort when they do complete their own work (Reasoner, 1991; Stipek,
2002). Adolescents who lack self-esteem tend to be concerned with preserving a sense of
self-respect or failing gracefully instead of putting forth more effort to succeed.

Reasoner’s (1991) definition of self-esteem described how a person evaluated and
maintained his or her sense of self. As discussed, students with a strong sense of self-
esteem were more willing to take risks and try new challenges, and those with low self-
esteem tended to avoid such new experiences. Whereas Reasoner (1991) felt that ‘
students’ self-esteem level dictated students’ behavior and amount of risk taking, Maehr
(1983) believed that motivation was held accountable for student choices and behavior.
Maehr’s (1983) “personal investment theory” explained motivation as a combination of

three types of behavior, which included choices made, persistence demonstrated, and

20

level of activity shown towards a goal. Maehr (1983) felt that, because students could be
motivated in some ways more than others, students were therefore, capable and
responsible for their own actions and exposure to new experiences. However, within
Maehr’s personal investment theory, motivation is partly drawn from choices that
students make. According to Reasoner, if students have low self-esteem, they will not be
as willing to take risks, which will in turn affect the choices students make, which will
then impact motivation. Therefore, self-esteem appears to be a vital factor in the level of
student achievement.

The way students View themselves influences which activities they will be
involved with. Adolescents will choose activities relevant to their self-development, and
each activity will be important in increasing their positive self-esteem (Raynor, 1983).
This act of assigning a “value” to activities will influence students’ intentions and
decisions about course enrollment in school (Stipek, 2002). According to Eccles (1983),
several factors play a role in determining the “value” of tasks. These factors can
influence the choice of activity, the intensity of effort given, and the performance level of
students. Such factors include: causal attribution patterns for success and failure,
attitudes of parents and teachers, adolescents’ perceptions of their own needs, values and
role identity, and adolescents’ perception of the characteristics of various activities
(Eccles. 1983, p. 32).

During this awkward time of development, at-risk students become more apparent
in the school population. At-risk students are those in danger or either dropping out of
school or proceeding forward without gaining the knowledge and skills necessary to

become a productive member of society (Shuler, 1991). There are many causes of failure

21

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among at-risk students, but two main reasons stand out: the inability to learn and the lack
of desire to learn (Shuler, 1991). In the adolescent years, many teens feel out of place or
even lost. Many teenagers attempt to fill this void with alcohol or drugs (Shuler, 1991).
Music educators and music therapists agree that, in many cases, music can be valuable
when working with at-risk students (Duerksen & Darrow, 1991; Shuler, 1991). “Music
education is, by its nature, well suited to meeting the special needs of at-risk students”
(Shuler, 1991, p. 22). A music class, such as choir, offers these students a new way to
look at learning, while at the same time reinforcing skills they need in all areas (Shuler,
1991). According to Gardner (1994), “the involvement in the arts provides its own motor
and motive for continued involvement, as each step of progress opens new possibilities
and poses new challenges” (p. 258). Choir will not appeal to all at-risk students, but the
special nature of the class can be especially effective in addressing the needs of these
students. A choir class can be organized so that students will perceive it, and the whole
school, as offering something attractive, safe and secure, rewarding and nurturing
(Duerksen & Darrow, 1991).

Choral singing experiences provide opportunities for an adolescent, “at-risk” or
not, to explore his or her identity and determine individual strengths and limitations.
“Knowledge of self gained through musical experiences may lead to an enhanced self-
concept and sense of worth” (Hylton, 1981, p. 299). Music allows for opportunities to
achieve in a non-competitive atmosphere. Feelings of pride and achievement are often
thought to be outcomes of music classes and performance activities. The self-esteem that
is a result of musical accomplishments may contribute greatly to an individual’s sense of

well-being, which will result in feelings of accomplishment, success, and pride (Hylton,

22

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1981). “Sensitivity to one’s own style and its relation to the styles of others may not yet
have developed; but awareness of oneself as a young artist, as a hero in touch with great
ideas, as an individual with rare gifts should emerge toward the end of adolescence”
(Gardner, 1994, p. 261).

Meaning is defined as “a psychological construct with cognitive and affective
aspects, manifested overtly through behavior, reflecting an individual’s evaluation and
valuing of an experience” (Hylton, 1981, p. 288). If something is not meaningful, people
will put little effort towards it and not develop concerns, interests, or attitudes about it.
Whatever the “thing” is, whether it be a class, a goal, or a rule, without being meaningful
it is also not likely to become a part of a system of beliefs, values, goals, or ambitions
(Wight, 1971). If students do not find meaning in music, particularly singing, often
students will choose not to participate in the choral experience. Even if they do choose
choir, it will be difficult for them to achieve their best in a choir class. “If a student does
not want to learn about music, he or she won’t” (Asmus, 1994, p. 5). However, students
who find meaning in music and strive to develop their abilities can be highly successful
in choir and enjoy the choral experience.

In middle school, adolescents are given more opportunities to make their own
Choices. “In early adolescence, youngsters begin to move away from the almost
complete reliance on their own concrete experiences and toward the ability to consider
alternatives” (Williamson, 1993, p. 2). Students begin planning their own class
Schedules, and an important decision is the choosing of elective classes, including music

Classes. Social and emotional changes are important factors in students’ development

23

and decision-making, as students become concerned about connections with peer groups
as they look for more freedom from parents (Williamson, 1993).

Gender may play a role in a student’s choosing to participate in choir. In
America, there has been a shift from male to female involvement with public singing
from colonial times to the present (Gates, 1989). In early Boston, males held leadership
roles in music and music literacy, and women were urged to sing and participate. In
today’s society, women are much more involved with public singing and music, and
males, both adolescent and adult, are involved on a much smaller scale. “This apparent
inversion of the sexes’ commitment to public singing was gradual enough over 265 years
to escape correction by many generations of music educators. Changes this gradual are
not explained easily” (Gates, 1989, p. 41).

Instrumental and vocal music participation in American secondary schools show
clear gender—related differences. Although the sexes are equally divided in instrumental
music involvement, the female percentage of the secondary school population involved in

choral music is larger than the male percentage by greater than a 5:2 margin (Gates,

1989, p. 37).

Gates (1989) strongly believes that the present situation will not remain the same
forever. Just as the number of men involved in music and singing declined over time, he
feels that the same will happen with the number of women involved in music and singing.
“We will not only need to take immediate and massive steps to slow the movement of

American males away from public singing, but we will also need to increase our attention
t0 recruiting and retaining female singers as well” (p. 43). Reasoner’s (1991) discussion

0f self-esteem offers insight into Gates’ (1989) concerns about retaining singers.

24

According to Reasoner (1991), students with self-esteem are more willing to try new
tasks or challenges, which may include becoming involved with music and singing. With
confidence, students are able to make choices, such as the decision to sing, without fear
of failure or rejection. This, in turn, connects Gates (1989) to Maehr’s (1983) personal
investment theory. Confident students will begin to make investments in themselves and
experiences new opportunities. If singing is encouraged within these students’
environment, they may be more likely to try singing for a new experience or challenge.
Purpose and Problems
Many factors may influence students in their decision of whether to continue with
choir. Relationships with parents and family members, as discussed by Blair (1965),
B105 (1941), and Jersild (1968), impact students’ decisions as they begin to transition into
adulthood. Peer influence is another possible factor affecting students’ decisions about
choir. Teenagers often rely on the peer group for acceptance and look to one another for
standards on how to think, act, talk, and dress (Blair, 1965; B105, 1941, Jersild, 1968;
Reasoner, 1991; Caissy, 1994; Sprinthall, 1994). Teacher influences, according to
SCheidecker and Freeman (1999), Grossnickle and Thiel (1988), and Blos (1941), can be
Positive or negative when students are choosing new classes. Also within the school
Structure, students begin to “specialize” their interests as they grow older (Blair, 1965).
Students may choose to continue with choir or they may choose to pursue other options.
Additional factors that may influence students include student personality, motivation,
elements of attribution theory, elements of personal investment theory, self-esteem,

gender, and other class options.

25

At the middle school in Grand Ledge, music classes play an important role when
creating a student’s schedule. Music classes determine how the rest of the classes in the
school schedule can be arranged. All sixth grade students are required to take band or
choir, so students must spend one year in a music classroom. After sixth grade, students
may elect to stay in choir or band or choose a third option. All students who do not
participate in band or choir in seventh and eighth grade are assigned to a “skills class”
rotation, in which they sample art, technical education, life skills, foreign language,
computer skills, and physical education. Students who remain in music, specifically
choir, will study more advanced music than they did in sixth grade choir, will be eligible
to participate in festivals, and will develop a better understanding of the world of music.

The majority of students who express an interest in choir in the sixth grade, elect
to take the class again as seventh and eighth grade students. However, sometimes
students who seemed to enjoy choir elect the skills rotation for the following year. There
are occasions when a sixth grade choir student will elect the skills rotation for seventh
grade and then join choir again in eighth grade. Other times, students only take choir for
their eighth grade year, having taken band in sixth grade. Why does a student choose
choir after their school music requirement is completed in sixth grade?

The purpose of this research is to improve participation levels in choir by
gathering information about what motivates students to participate in choir. Problems of
the Smd)’ ar e: (a) to determine what personal and environmental factors influence a sixth
grade choir student’s decision of whether to enroll in choir for his or her seventh grade
SchOOl year, (b) to determine what personal and environmental factors influence a sixth

grade Choir student’s decision to not enroll in choir for his or her seventh grade school

26

year, (c) to determine what personal or environmental factors influence a seventh grade
choir student’s decision to enroll in choir for his or her eighth grade school year, ((1) to

determine what personal or environmental factors influence a seventh grade choir

student’s decision not to enroll in choir for his or her eighth grade school year, and (e) to

determine what personal or environmental factors influence a non-choir student’s

decision to enroll in choir class for either his or her seventh or eighth grade school year.

27

CHAPTER TWO
Review of Literature
Personal and Environmental Factors

The review of literature will examine studies of personal and environmental
factors that pertain to this research study on why students choose to take or not take choir
in the seventh and eighth grades. The personal factors discussed tend to be “internal
factors,” such as likes and dislikes or personal experiences and beliefs. These internal
factors may influence a person’s feelings and thoughts about music and his or her
involvement in related activities. Self-conscience feelings, perceptions of ability, and
effort are additional examples of personal factors that may influence decisions to be
involved in music.

Environmental factors are aspects within home and school environments that may
influence students’ decisions of whether to participate in music, specifically, choir.
Home environments in which people are raised and live can influence their feelings and
thoughts about music. Family pressure can be a powerful influence. Within school
environmental factors, such as friends, peer pressure, and even encounters with teachers,
can be influential, especially in terms of choosing classes and participating in various
activities.

Overview

The questions for this study were influenced directly by other research studies that -
have been published in research journals and doctoral dissertations. These studies were
Useful because of their subject matter or the age of the research participants. For

e . .
Xample, the research pr0jects chosen focused on factors that Influenced students from

28

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middle to late elementary age through late middle school or early high school. However,
there have been no research studies conducted on middle school students and decisions to
participate in choir.

Because there were no studies that specifically focused on personal and/or
environmental factors that affected participation in choir, studies focusing on influential
factors. such as attribution theory, family influence, home musical environment, and
studies conducted with middle school age music students were instead reviewed. These
studies will be presented in this literature review. Because these studies did not all
necessarily fit into one or the other categories (“personal” or “environmental”), this
chapter will place these research studies into three categories for discussion: attribution
theory, family, and multiple factors.

The final section of chapter two is a section about “scheduling.” Because of the
lack of research studies’on middle school students and scheduling choir, this section is a
non—research-based discussion that briefly presents how scheduling can affect a choir
Class. Because schools schedules can help or hinder the success of an elective class, this
section involves factors that could be influential to a students’ participation in a music
class, specifically choir.

Attribution Theory

There are a number of reasons why students may choose to take or not to take a
music class. Student beliefs about the risks of success or failure may be powerful enough
t0 influence a student’s decision about electing choir. In a 1985 study, Asmus applied the
princiPles of Attribution Theory to examine the views of sixth grade students about why

Students succeed or fail in music.

29

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Subjects for this study were 118 sixth grade general music students from three
elementary schools. The three schools were chosen to represent many of the socio-
economic levels of the school district. “One school was a parochial school in a middle
class neighborhood, another a public elementary school located in the inner portion of the
same city, and the third was a suburban public elementary school in an affluent
neighborhood in the greater metropolitan are of the city” (Asmus, 1985, p. 4).

All information was gathered from students during their music classes. Forms
created for data gathering included lined areas in which students could give five
responses to each of the following: “Identify five reasons you believe why some students

do well in music” and “Identify five reasons you believe why some students do not do

 

well in music” (Asmus, 1985, p. 5). Each answer given was analyzed and assigned to
one of the four attribution categories (ability, task difficulty, effort, and luck).

The majority of sixth grade students chose ability and effort as the major causes
for success and failure in music. However, a significant difference was found between
the three schools. In the parochial school, ability was believed to be the primary cause of
success or failure, while the inner city students identified effort as the cause. The
SUburban students identified ability and effort equally as major causes of success and
failure in music (Asmus, 1985). Asmus (1985) points out that the large number of
Students attributing effort as the cause of success or failure in music should be
encouraging to music educators. Students believe that if they apply themselves, they can
be successful.

Attribution Theory “assumes that what a student believes to be the underlying

c . . .
ause of success or failure at a task wrll determrne how the student approaches that task

30

 

in the future” (Asmus, 1985, p. 1). Asmus’s (1985) research suggests that if students
who attribute success or failure in music to effort feel that they are willing to put forth the
effort required to participate successfully in choir, then they are likely to enroll in such a
class. If these students do not feel that they have the desire to participate in such
activities and therefore will not put forth the effort needed to succeed, then they will tend
to choose a class other than choir.

Legette (1998) conducted a similar study to determine-the causes to which
elementary and secondary public school students most attribute success or failure in
music. The subjects were 1,114 elementary, middle, and high school students enrolled in
music classes in two neighboring cities and county public school systems in north
Georgia (Legette, 1998, p. 105). The sample consisted of 595 girls and 519 boys. Of the
subjects in the city schools, 50 percent were black and 43 percent were white; in the
county schools, 4% were black and 95% were white (Legette, 1998).

The subjects were administered Asmus’s Music Attribution Orientation Scale
during their weekly music lessons. The MAOS has 35 items divided into five subscales:
effort, background, classroom environment, musical ability, and affect (Legette, 1998;
Asmus, 1986c). Students were asked to indicate how important to their musical success
they thought each item was, on a scale of one to five (five being “extremely important”
and one being “not important at all”), for each of these subscales. Examples of these
items include: effort, background, class environment, and musical ability. The researcher
the" C(”mated answers by gender and to determine how causal attributions differed

between students attending city schools and county schools.

31

Of the four attributions discussed (ability, effort, task difficulty, and luck),
Legette (1998) discovered that students identified ability and effort as more important
causal attributions for success or failure in music than task difficulty and/or luck. Results
also showed that “females perceive ability and effort as being more important than did
males” (Legett, 1998, p.109). The school system attended (city versus county) had a
significant influence on how students responded on effort, class environment, and
musical ability (Legette, 1998). Students in the city tended to place more importance on

ability and effort, whereas students in the county schools believed class environment was

 

more important. The two school systems involved in the study were different in ethnic [

makeup, which may have contributed to these results (Legette, 1998).

Ability and effort were the leading attributions among all the schools studied, but
the each school studied identified ability and effort differently. In the parochial school,
ability was believed to be the primary cause for succeSs and failure, while the inner city
students identified effort as the cause. The suburban students identified ability and effort
equally as major causes of success and failure in music (Asmus, 1985). The results of
Le gette (1998) were different from previous research by Asmus, in that they indicated

that younger students use more “ability” attributions and that both “ability” and “effort”

attributions tend to increase together as students progress through school.

“Ability” is two-sided; if students who are successful attribute their successes to

ability, it is likely that they will expect the same results in the future. However, if
Stu dents fail and perceive ability as the cause of their failure, they may continually expect

tO fail in the future. When students feel successful in choir class because of their singing

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abilities, they are likely to re-enroll in the class. Students who feel they lack singing
ability, and therefore have little success in choir class, will avoid taking choir if they can
Effort is often perceived by students to be a changeable attribution. Therefore,
students who attribute their success to effort, or lack of, might believe that additional
attempts at a task will result in a completely different outcome (Legette, 1998).
Family
The family environment can play a role in a student’s decision to choose a music
class, whether it be choral or instrumental. Davidson and Borthwick (2002) conducted a
case study of the Brown family, a white middle-class English family whose members all
play musical instruments. This study developed out of the belief that, “Parenting style is
not only key in terms of availability of parental support, but also a key determining factor
in the child’s overall motivation level to learn an instrument” (Davidson & Borthwick,
2002, p. 123). In addition to parents, siblings also have a profound effect on many

aspects of each family member’s behavior and general development (Davidson &

Borthwick, 2002).
The Brown family consists of four members: Helen, the mother who is a

professional violinist; John, the father, who is a pianist as well as a part-time music
teacher and music administrator; James, the older son, who has been learning the violin
from his mother; and Daniel, the younger son, who has also been studying violin with his
mother. The Brown family was selected to represent the kind of household that gives

Priority to music performance as a part of the daily routine (Davidson & Borthwick,

2002).

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During this longitudinal case study, Davidson and Borthwick (2002) each were
integrated into Brown family activities for eighteen months; data was also collected
through interviews with family members at two-month intervals. When the study began,
James was thought of as the musical prodigy of the family, and Helen, his mother, was
devoted to James’s musical development. Daniel was not as proficient on the violin as
James, and the family’s general feeling about Daniel’s music was, “Yes, he really does
try, poor thing, he really does. But I rather think he hasn’t quite got it like James has, you

know” (Davidson and Borthwick, 2002, p. 128).

As time passed and attention towards James’s violin playing grew, Daniel began
to pull away from the violin altogether. It became increasingly obvious over time that
Daniel felt forced to find a “niche” within the family, since there was little chance of him
becoming a musical equal with James (Davidson and Borthwick, 2002). Daniel began to

involve himselfwith art and was quoted as saying, “You see I’ve decided that my thing is
going to be art, you know painting, and they’ll all say Daniel’s our artist in the family.
It ’ 5 really good” (Davidson and Borthwick, 2002, p. 128).

With Daniel focusing on art, he was not required to practice the violin, although
he was occasionally encouraged. James, however, was forced to stay with a strict
practice schedule each day. James began to develop resentment towards his brother and
parents, because he was being “made” to play, and there was no enforcement of Daniel’s
practicing. As a result of this, James began to encourage his brother to practice, adopting
the role of a surrogate parent (Davidson and Borthwick, 2002). During the second half of
the Study, James moved from elementary school to secondary school, where he became

so busy that he had half the time to practice the violin as he did before. With less family

34

focus on James at this time, Daniel suddenly became very interested in his violin again.
Because he began practicing intently, Daniel began to improve musically and develop
self-confidence that he never had before. The entire family reacted positively to Daniel’s
“new” talent and ability, which led him to receive much attention that was previously
given to James. This resulted in an improved relationship between James and Daniel, and
they began to help each other with their music, versus pitying and resenting one another

(Davidson and Borthwick, 2002). _

There are many ways that a family dynamic can influence a student to take or not

 

take a music class, specifically choir. As with the Brown family, are some students N

pushed away from music because of family rivalry? Do students turn to music because

no one else in their family has explored this realm, as Daniel did with art? Do students

simply become too busy to continue on with music, or are they pushed too much,

resulting in a negative attitude towards music?

Singing experiences in the home have an effect on attitude towards music.
S tudents, particularly girls and young children, who show a positive attitude towards
singing tend to come from homes in which singing is encouraged and family members

participate in singing with the students (Kirkpatrick, 1962).

Kirkpatrick (1962) conducted a study based on the premise that a relationship
ex i sted between singing ability and home musical environment. It was generally
recognized that children do not enter kindergarten with little or no exposure to music.

Whether accidental or planned, kindergartners have had considerable exposure to music

in some form (Kirkpatrick, 1962).

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The subjects of Kirkpatrick’s (1962) study were 1 16 individual children from a
small, urban community of South Pasadena, California. The subjects consisted of 51
boys and 65 girls. Parents of the subjects had a variety of occupations, incomes, and
home types.
Kirkpatrick (1962) developed three categories in which he placed his subjects
based on their singing ability. “Singers” were defined as people with extensive, flexible,
and accurate vocal ranges. “Singers” had the ability to hold tonality, even with the

occasional inaccuracy of pitch. “Partial singers” were people with a vocal range similar

 

to “singers,” but not as developed. Voices of “partial singers” were flexible but
inaccurate. Initial phrases may have been sung in tune, but tonality was lost as the
“partial singer” continued (Kirkpatrick, 1962). The last category was defined as “non-
singers” and included those who were described as having a limited tonal range as well as
“pitch inflections that frequently follow a melody in miniature” (Kirkpatrick, 1962, p.
l 1 7).

To gather data, Kirkpatrick (1962) sent surveys to all of the children’s families,
and interviews were requested from certain families. Interviews were thirty minutes long
and involved tape recording the child singing a song in their home. The homes were
grouped into three categories based on musical environment: excellent to good, good to
fair, and poor. No two homes that Kirkpatrick (1962) visited were exactly alike.

Homes that were “excellent to good” musical environments produced the largest
Percentage of singers and the least percentage of non-singers. Homes of “poor” musical
environments produced no singers and the largest percentage of non—singers. Homes in

the Second group, “good to fair,” produced singers of all varieties. Kirkpatrick (1962)

36

felt that these were the “average homes,” musically speaking. Kirkpatrick (1962)
concluded that it was not by chance that children who could sing had access to the
activity, and those who could not often were without. In addition, children from
“excellent to good” musical environments typically felt more confident in their musical
and/ or singing abilities. Children from homes with “poor” musical environments, those
who did not have much experience with musical activities at home, tended to be more
withdrawn when participating in music.

Children who are confident in their singing abilities will develop into adolescents
who are confident singers. According to Reasoner (1991), students with high self-esteem
and confidence in one’s potential to succeed are more open to new challenges and are
more equipped to cope with disappointments they may encounter. Such students may be
more apt to join a choir class when given the opportunity in secondary school. Children
not comfortable with singing will remain as such and develop into adolescents who are
self-conscience of their singing abilities. Reasoner (1991) believed that students who
lack self-esteem or confidence commonly feel threatened by new challenges or see little
success in their futures. These students will shy away from joining a choir class,
especially when they are given other scheduling options. Therefore, exposure to music
and singing within the home environment during childhood can greatly influence
participation in a choir class later in life.

Multiple Factors Study

In 1993, Mizener developed a study to examine the attitudes of elementary music

students toward singing and choir participation in relation to grade level, gender,

classroom singing activities, previous and current out-of-school singing experiences, and

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degree of singing skill, both self-perceived and assessed. She designed a questionnaire
of 44 items to allow the response modes of the subjects to vary. These items were
divided into five categories: (a) singing interest, (b) choir participation, (c) classroom
singing activities, ((1) out-of—school singing experiences, and (e) self-perception of
singing skill.

“Singing interest” was designed to obtain students’ responses regarding attitude
towards singing in general, attitude towards singing under certain conditions, and how f.
certain circumstances might influence attitude towards singing. The “choir participation”

portion of the questionnaire determined levels of interest and membership in choir, as l

 

well as conditions or situations that influence participation in a choir. The “classroom
singing activities” section was developed to determine relationships between singing
attitude and selected common classroom music activities. These activities included items
such as singing from series books, singing with various forms of accompaniment, singing
with movement activities, and detailed teacher instruction about songs. Items in the “out-
of-school singing experiences” section gathered information about the students’
perceptions of the extent of family involvement in music and the amount of parent
participation in the students’ musical activities. The “self—perception of singing skill”
area provided information on the student’s perception of his or her own singing skills,
Which was used to determine possible relationships between perception of singing skill
and attitude toward singing (Mizener, 1993).

Subjects in this study included 542 third through sixth grade students from seven
large urban school districts. After information from the questionnaires was gathered, 23

percent of the subjects (123 subjects) were selected for a tape-recorded evaluation of

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singing skill. Each subject sang two familiar songs, one of which was “Jingle Bells” and
the other was his or her choice from a short list of songs. A seven-point scale of tonal
singing accuracy was used to rate the performances of all of the subjects. Rhythmic
accuracy was only indicated by “yes” or “no” on the rating sheet. Data was analyzed to
determine relationships between grade level and gender, singing interest, choir
participation, interest in classroom singing activities, out-of- school singing experiences,
self-perception of singing skill, and assessed singing skill.

Mizener (1993) found a strong relationship between wanting to sing in a choir and
liking to sing, but less than half (45%) of those who liked to sing wanted to sing in a
choir. There was a decline in attitude toward music and singing with increasing grade
level. However, regardless of grade level, gender, or attitude toward singing and choir
participation, most students indicated that the attitudes or wishes of family or friends and
peers did not directlyinfluence their decisions about choir participation (Mizener, 1993).

With regard to gender, girls responded more positively than boys, especially to
items about singing with the radio or with friends. Girls responded more positively to
choir participation items and indicated a greater overall interest in participating in
classroom activities. The percentage of girls giving positive responses about out-of-
school singing experiences was almost always greater than the percentage of boys
answering positively, and girls generally indicated that they sang well more often than
boys. However, most students thought singing was an activity equally suited for boys
and girls. When reviewing questionnaire answers regarding attitude, an assumption was

made that students who like to sing and who wanted to be in choir would give more

39

positive responses to all questionnaire items than those who did not like to sing or did not
want to be in choir (Mizener, 1993).

Mizener’s (1993) most surprising results were that no significant relationships
were found between self-perception of singing skill and assessed singing skill or between
liking to sing or wanting to sing in choir and assessed singing skill. Students who
thought they were good singers did not demonstrate significantly better singing skills
than did the students who did not think they sang well. Furthermore, students with higher
singing skills ratings were no more likely to want to sing in choir than those with lower
singing skills ratings. In Mizener’s (1993) study, attitudes toward singing in choir were
not related to singing skill or to self-perception of singing skill. When these results are
compared with attribution theory (which “assumes that what a student believes to be the
underlying cause of success or failure at a task will determine how the student approaches
that task in the future” [Asmus, 1985, p. 1]), Mizener’s (1993) students do not consider
“ability” as one of the factors required for success or as a cause for failure in music.

Mizener (1993) concluded that “increasing the interest of young students in choir
may best come from sources within the school since, in general, the opinions of family,
friends, and peers did not exert much influence on the subjects’ desire to be in choir” (p.
242). Also, participation in certain musical activities and experiences at school and at
home tend to be associated with positive attitudes toward singing and toward choir
Participation. Mizener (1993) believes that it is the responsibility of music educators to
develop a music program that will appeal to students that will “enrich the quality of their

musical experiences in public school and in their adult lives” (p. 244).

40

 

Scheduling

Schedules within schools, alone, can affect students’ participation in music
classes. Schools have undergone radical changes in scheduling over recent years,
implementing schedules such as a “4x4” block, a straight block, and a modified block
(Van Zandt, 2001). Many schools have abandoned the traditional seven or eight period
day, which has affected music and art programs within the schools. Within block
schedules, students typically have four ninety-minute classes per day, and with increased
pressure on school districts to emphasize “the basics,” there are few opportunities for
experiences in elective classes (Van Zandt, 2001). In many situations, students are
forced to make a choice between music and other courses, or even between music and
extracurricular activities (Clayton, 2000). According to Clayton (2000), “Because of
education reform efforts over the past several years, music programs in many school
districts across our nation have seen dramatic reductions in student participation. In some
cases music has even been eliminated as a curriculum offering.”

There was no research literature found that discussed school scheduling and its
effect on music classes. However, an article by Larson (1992) discussed one school in-
Great Falls, Montana that not only recognized the importance of encore subjects, such as
music and the arts, but has also strengthened these subjects through the school schedule.
The middle level school in Great Falls consists of a seven period day. Health/physical
education and music are offered all year to all sixth grade students every other day. All
sixth grade students not in instrumental music are enrolled in general music, which
includes experience with handbells. Rotation includes 12 weeks each of art, creative

writing, and study skills. Health/physical education and study hall alternate every other

41

 

day all year for instrumental students in seventh and eighth grades. Instrumental students
receive band or orchestra every day all year. Rotation includes 12 weeks each of art,
shop, and home economics for every student. All students in grades seven or eight who
are not enrolled in instrumental music take health/physical education alternately with
general music. These students receive instruction in electronic keyboards and guitar
during their general music classes. Again, rotation includes 12 weeks each of art, shop,
and home economics (Larson, 1992). h
The school schedule in Great Falls greatly promotes music within grades sixth,

seventh, and eighth. Students at the school may develop a sense of competency in music i

 

(as well as self—esteem) because everyone is learning together and constantly. However,
there was no mention of vocal music within the program at GreatFalls.
Summary

This review of literature has considered factors that may be influential in sixth
and seventh grade students’ determinations of whether to remain in choir. The “personal
factors” section explained how Asmus (1985) and Legette (1998) used Attribution
Theory to determine that students identified “ability” and “effort” as primary factors for
success or failure in music. This may affect decisions to enroll in middle school choir,
because if students believe that “ability” will determine their success or failure in music,
and these students do not feel that they have enough musical ability to be successful, it
could be assumed these students will not enroll in choir class. If students View “effort” as
the primary cause for success or failure in music, students may or may not enroll in choir

based on how much effort they are willing to put forth to be successful in choir.

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Within the “environmental factors” section, Davidson and Borthwick (2002)
studied “family influence” and how it may be influential, especially with regards to
music. Kirkpatrick’s (1962) study examined the factor of “home musical environment”
and the possible effects it may have on children’s singing abilities. Mizener’s (1993)
research study was the most complex of the five studies reviewed, because it considered
both personal and environmental factors that may have been influential in sixth and
seventh grade students’ determinations of whether to take choir. Among the results
presented by Mizener (1993), two were especially emphasized. The first was that most
students indicated that the attitudes and wishes of friends and family did not directly
influence decisions of whether to take choir. The second main result was the most
surprising of this study, in that there were no significant relationships found between self-
perception of singing skill and assessed singing skill or between liking to sing or wanting
to sing in choir and assessed singing skill. “Effort” is often perceived by students as
“changeable;” therefore, students might believe that additional attempts at the same task
will produce new outcomes (Legette, 1998).

These research studies offer much insight into attribution theory, family
influences, home musical environments, and the influences of family members and
friends on students, as well as information on singing and perceived singing skill.
However, the question that remains is how will my students respond to questions about
these factors within their own lives? It is important for me to learn how my students are
similar or different from these existing studies’ subjects so that I may continue to grow as

a teacher and meet more of my students’ musical needs within my choir classes.

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CHAPTER THREE
Methodology

Results from this research may provide a better understanding of middle school
students and the reasons why they choose to remain in choir or seek other class options.
It is my hope that, with this information, I will be able to increase the quality of my
instruction and retain more students in my choral program.

Subjects

I first received permission and approval to conduct the study from the Michigan
State University Committee on Research Involving Human Subjects (UCRIHS).
Permission and approval was also obtained from the Grand Ledge Public School District,
where this research was conducted. A letter and participation form (see Appendix A and
Appendix B) were sent to all current seventh and eighth grade choir students’ (N = 148)
parents or guardians and a group of former seventh and eighth grade choir students’ (N =
30) parents or guardians asking for permission for their children to participate in the '
study. Only a portion of current choir students (N = 1 1 l) and former choir students (N =
11) completed the appropriate permission forms required to participate in the survey.

Every attempt was made to retrieve completed permission forms from current and
former choir students, whether or not they agreed to participate in the study. Each
student who completed the permission form (including parent signature) and returned the
form the following day was given a lolli-pop of his or her choice. Students were given
the permission forms at the beginning of the week, and all students who returned the
forms, whether agreeing to participate in the study or not, by Friday of that week had

their name placed in a drawing. A separate drawing was held for each seventh grade

44

class, the eighth grade class, and all former choir students. Three prizes were awarded
with each drawing, which were gift certificates to local restaurants and video rental
stores. Following the week of the drawing, students continued to be reminded to turn in
their completed permission form; however data was gathered through surveys and
interviews that week.

The current choir students that participated as subjects for this study consisted of
75 seventh grade students and 36 eighth grade students. Each current choir student
subject group contained both boys and girls. The seventh grade choir consisted of 30
boys and 45 girls and the eighth grade choir consisted of 13 boys and 23 girls. The
subjects who were no longer enrolled in choir included two former sixth grade choir
students who were now in seventh grade and nine former choir seventh grade students
who were now in eighth grade. The seventh grade former choir students consisted of two
boys, and the eighth grade former choir students consisted of one girl and eight boys.
Therefore, a total of one girl and ten boys comprised the former choir student subject
group. Because only one female former choir student took part in this study and because
only two seventh grade former choir students participated, the results from former
students were not broken down by gender or grade level. These two seventh grade
students may not have been an accurate representation of all seventh grade former choir
students, and the single girl may not have been an accurate representation of all female
former choir students. The former choir students participated in choir class for only one
year, in either sixth or seventh grade.

It is unknown as to why so few former choir students agreed to participate in this

research study, let alone return their permission form. It could have been possible that

45

 

these students were afraid to participate, because they did not want to offend anyone with

their reasons for not continuing with choir. Also, it is probable that students who no

longer participated in choir and did not see the researcher on a daily basis were not as

invested in this project or as willing to help as those who continued to sing in choir.
Beagle Middle School Choral Program

Because this partially is a qualitative study, an understanding of context is
essential. The results of this study are not able to be generalized but may be transferable
to other situations that are similar. Following is a description of my choral program, my
teaching philosophy, and of the Grand Ledge schools so that readers may determine the
extent to which transfer is appropriate.

Each choir class at Beagle Middle School in Grand Ledge’s choral program meets
for approximately 48 minutes every day for the entire school year. When students are
placed in a choir class, they remain there for the entire year unless they are removed per
parent request.

All sixth grade students at Beagle Middle School are required to take band or
choir. Those who choose choir will be placed in one of two sixth grade choir classes.
These choirs learn a variety of choral music and perform on the Fall, Christmas, Winter
Festival, and Spring concerts. Music history, theory, listening, and appreciation, as well
as vocal pedagogy and music reading skills are taught.

When students enter the seventh and eighth grade, they may remain in band or
choir, or choose the “skills rotation” of classes. These “skills” classes include computer
science, art, technical science, life skills, foreign language, and physical education. It is

possible to switch from band to choir and choir to band; however, switching is up to the

46

discretion of the choir or band director. It is more difficult for students to switch from
choir to band than from band to choir, but it is possible. Usually, private lessons are
required in addition to the band class so that students are able to catch up. If students are
allowed to switch from band to choir, the transition is usually a smooth one. There are
two seventh grade choirs and one eighth grade choir. The seventh grade choirs are
typically two-part or SA choirs, and the eighth grade choir is typically SAB. The seventh
and eighth grade choirs perform on the Fall, Christmas, Winter Festival, and‘Spring

. concerts, as well as participate in the MSVMA District Choral Festival. Music history,
theory, listening, and appreciation, as well as vocal pedagogy and music reading skills,
are taught within each class. Optional activities for seventh and eighth grade choral
students may include State Honors Choir, Solo and Ensemble Festival, and/ or the
Choralier Men or Choralier Ladies ensembles.

The Choralier ensembles are auditioned choirs that meet after school. The
Choralier Men meet on Wednesdays from 2:30 pm. to 3:30 pm. and the Choralier
Ladies meet Fridays from 2:30 pm. to 3:30 pm. These two ensembles tentatively
perform on all scheduled concerts and at Solo and Ensemble Festival.

At the beginning of each choral rehearsal, no matter which choir, there is always a
period of stretching. Once or twice a week, stretching is done with music, and dance
steps are incorporated. These “jazzercise” activities enable the instructor to observe
student coordination, ability to follow a steady beat, ability to follow directions and
watch the teacher, and improvement with simple dance steps. It also enables the director
to have students listen to a piece of music; some the students know and others are pieces

that are new to them.

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Warm—up exercises, which follow stretching, begin with breathing exercises to
strengthen abdominal muscles and increase the amount of time a student is able to sing
phrases or hold notes. Breathing exercises are followed by vocal warm-ups, including
tongue twisters, sirens, and vowel developing warm-ups. Often, warm-ups will focus on
an aspect of song being worked on that day.

Sight-reading, using a moveable-do solfege system, is incorporated into daily
rehearsals two to three times a week for seventh and eighth grade choirs. Sixth grade
choirs learn to sight-read rhythms and melodies at the beginning of the year and work on
this once or twice a week during class. Currently, the Choralier ensembles do not
practice sight—reading within their rehearsals, but students are learning this system within
their normal choir class. The amount and difficulty of sight-reading increases over the
course of the school year, peaking at the end of March (when seventh and eighth grade
choirs participate in District Choral Festival). Following Spring Break, sight-reading is
incorporated into weekly rehearsals again and continues to the end of the school year.

Repertoire for all choral groups is chosen for it’s educational value. Foreign
language pieces are frequently taught, including languages such as Latin, German, or
Spanish. The choral music director selects pieces that would be considered “quality
choral literature,” and many of the pieces used can be found on lists published by the
Michigan School Vocal Music Association (MSVMA). Students are exposed to a variety
of genres of music over the course of the school year, such as folk songs, classical pieces,
art songs, and pieces of many cultures. Three to four pieces are selected for each choir’s

performances, with one piece being “lighter,” such as a spiritual or a sea chanty. Pieces

48

considered “oldies” or “Disney tunes” are rarely included in the choirs’ repertoire, and if
so, are usually performed only on the Spring concert.

Concert attire is similar for girls and boys. All students are required to wear black
dress pants, or ladies may wear a long black skirt, with black socks or stockings and
black shoes. A white shirt, tucked in, is required on the top half of the body. Boys in the
sixth grade are required to wear a neck-tie, any color, and boys in the seventh and eighth
grade choirs are required to wear a black bow-tie, issued by the choir director. The
concert attire is required for all concerts and festivals, except for the Spring concert.
Because this is the final concert of the year, each choir student tie-dyes a t-shirt in any
way they like. The tie-dying is completed during a choir class in early May, and students
wear these shirts with clean, unripped jeans for the final concert.

The Researcher’s Philosophy of Music Education

Since I was a small child, I knew that I would be a teacher. I became involved
with music through elementary school and began piano lessons at my own request
following the third grade. I participated in choir in middle school as well as in high
school. As a sophomore, l auditioned and was accepted into “Sweet Sixteen,” a select
ladies ensemble that met every Friday for one hour after school. As a sophomore, I
auditioned for the top select group in the school, “Madrigals,” and was accepted into that
group for my junior and senior years. I participated in three musicals in high school,
acquiring a lead in the last two. Also in high school, I participated in MSVMA Solo and
Ensemble Festival as a soloist and was a member of the 1994 High School State Honors
Choir. It was not until late into my junior year of high school that I began to consider

becoming a music teacher. The option of teaching music had not occurred to me until my

49

high school choral director suggested it. Suddenly, a life-long hobby appeared to be
fitting as a career. After four years at Western Michigan University, including my
student teaching at Sturgis Middle and High Schools, I began working at Northwest
Junior High and WK. Kellogg Junior High in Battle Creek, Michigan. The following
year, I was hired by the Grand Ledge Public Schools to teach choir at Beagle Middle
School and work with my former high school choir director. The 2002-2003 school year
marks my fifth year as a music educator.

As a music educator, I believe that it is my responsibility to constantly work for
music literacy and mastery of basic music concepts in my students. I also feel that I must
continually strive for musicality and interpretation in performing, because “making
music” is not just following notes on a page. Offering students the opportunity to read
and understand music allows them to not only see what is occurring in the written music,
but givesothem a key to exploring their own thoughts, feelings, and interpretations.
Understanding how one thinks and feels is a difficult task. Music opens the door to
exploring one’s heart, mind, and soul. Music touches the spirit in ways that nothing else
can. It provides for categorization, organization, and arrangement of aesthetic
experiences so that they can be replicated, interpreted, evaluated, and placed in the
perspective and context of life.

The arts are basic to every child’s education. We cannot View the arts as only a
leisure time activity or as being important only to the talented students. If the purpose of
education focuses only on the salable skills necessary to meet the needs of material life,
students are not being educated for the whole of life. In a meaningful education, music

can focus students on the development of human potential, creativity, individualism, and

50

intrinsic worth, and emphasizes both verbal and non-verbal means of communication.
Through music education, we will be developing a society sensitive to the ways of the
human mind and heart.

As a result, I firmly believe that I am educating students, not only in music, but in
learning more about themselves. With music, students are asked to interpret what words
meant to the composer and what the words mean to them. Through class activities and
listening logs, students are asked to think abstractly, to be able to support their opinions,
and interpret thoughts and feelings of their own as well as those of others. My favorite
classroom poster says, “Make an effort, not an excuse” and I like to think of that as the
slogan for my classroom. I try to live by example and teach my students through my
actions as well as my words.

The City of Grand Ledge

Grand Ledge is a city of 8,000 people, and its public school district comprises an
area of 125 square miles. The current population of the total school district is 28,123.
The Grand Ledge Public School district consists of six elementary schools, two middle
schools, and one high school.

According to a profile from the year 2000, the demographics of Grand Ledge by
race/ethnicity are as follows: White 97.7%, Black or African American 0.9%, American
Indian and Alaska Native 0.7%, Asian 0.8%, Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander
0.1%, Other 1.4%.

According to the US. Bureau of Census, in 2000, the average household income
in Grand Ledge was $47,043. The largest category, statistically, was the $50,000 -

$74,999 range, which encompassed 24.2% of the Grand Ledge households. Over half of

51

the households (53.8%) fell within the range of $25,000 - $74,999. The median
household income was $47,043, with mean earnings at $53,789.
Design and Procedures

All current choir students (N = 111) completed a survey designed by the
researcher to determine the personal and environmental factors that influenced their
decision to take choir in the seventh or eighth grade (seeAppendix C for “current choir
student survey”). The survey was anonymous. In addition, seven current choir students
were randomly chosen and interviewed by an adult other than the researcher for more
informationas to why they chose to continue in choir (see Appendix D for “current choir
student interview questions”). To learn why they chose to not continue with choir,
former choir students (N = 11) completed a survey designed by the researcher (see
Appendix E for “former choir student survey”). The survey for former choir students
was slightly different from the survey given to current choir students: Eight of the former
choir students were interviewed by an adult other than the researcher for more
information as to why they chose not to continue in choir (see Appendix F for “former
choir student interview questions”).

All subjects from the seventh grade completed their survey at the same time,
seated at tables and spaced apart from one another. The eighth grade subjects completed
their survey in the same manner as the seventh grade students, but during a different class
period. The typical subject took between five to ten minutes to complete the survey.
Subjects were asked to not discuss or share their responses with other subjects until all
surveys were completed and collected. All interviews were audio taped for reference and

transcribed for analysis. Four staff members other than the researcher conducted

52

interviews and, although they were recorded on an audiotape for transcription, the only .

personal information students revealed was their current grade level and gender. A

disclaimer written by the researcher was read to each student before the interview began:

I am interested in why students choose to take or not take choir after the sixth
grade. Please be 100% honest with your answers and tell me whatever comes to
mind, with as much detail as possible. You can take as much of this class as you
like. I do not want you to give your name, only your grade and gender. You and
I will be the only people who will know what is said here, and you will not offend
me with anything that you say. Anything said here will not affect your grade or
performance in my class or in any other class. If you are unclear about any of the
questions, please ask. Do you have any questions before ,we begin?

The same four staff members who conducted the interviews of current choir

students also conducted the interviews of former choir students. These interviews were

recorded on an audiotape for transcription, and the only personal information students

revealed was their current grade level and gender. A disclaimer, slightly different from

the one read to current choir students, was read to each student before the interview

began:

I am interested in why students choose to take or not take choir after the sixth
grade. Please be 100% honest with your answers and tell me whatever comes to
mind, with as much detail as possible. You can take as much of this class as you
like. I do not want you to give your name, only your grade and gender. You and
I will be the only people who will know what is said here, and you will not offend

me with anything that you say. Anything said here will not affect your grade in

53

any class nor will it affect your grade should you decide to take choir next year.

If you are unclear about any of the questions, please ask. Do you have any

questions before we begin?

Surveys and interviews were completed during choir class time for current choir
students and during arranged times for former choir students. Information gathered in the
interviews remained confidential. All data was kept in a secure area, only accessible to
the researcher. The surveys and interviews were completed at the start of the school year
because students were responding to questions about why they did or did not join choir at
the end of the last school year. If surveys and interviews had been conducted later in the
school year, the fear was that aspects of the current school year might have affected
. student responses to questions.

The first day of the 2002-2003 school year was Tuesday, August 20, 2002.
Permission slips were read, explained, and handed out to current and former choir
students on Tuesday, September 3, 2002. Students who returned their completed
permission slip on Wednesday, September 4, 2002, whether having agreed to participate
in the study or not, received a lolli-pop. Students who returned their completed
permission slip by Friday, September 6, 2002, whether having agreed to participate in the
study or not, were placed in a drawing for gift certificates. Former and current choir
students completed surveys the following week on Wednesday, September 11, 2002.
School staff members other than the researcher conducted interviews on Thursday,

September 12, 2002.

54

I,

S!

Criterion Measures

The surveys and interviews for current and former choir students contained
questions relating to environmental and personal factors that influenced their decisions
about whether to take choir. Survey and interview questions were similar for both
current and former choir students, with the main difference being the tense of the
questions. Current choir students’ survey questions tended to be in the present, whereas
former choir students’ survey questions tended to be in the past tense. Interview
questions for current and former choir students were written in the present tense and
asked about past experiences.

On the surveys, students were asked to read statements and then choose a given
number that best corresponded with how they felt about each statement. The number
choices were as follows: 1 = Strongly Agree, 2 = Agree, 3 = Neither Agree nor Disagree,
4 = Disagree, 5 = Strongly Disagree. Current choir students read and responded to 28
statements while former choir students read and responded to 27 statements.

The environmental factor questions for current and former choir students’ surveys
are numbers four, five, six, nine, ten, 15, 17, 20, 21, 22, and 23 and the environmental
factor interview questions are numbers one, two, six, seven, 15, 16, 18. Environmental
survey questions two, four, 17, and 22 focus on a student’s participation in choir with
regards to the influence of peers. Mizener (1993) concluded that “increasing the interest
of young students in choir may best come from sources within the school, since, in
general, the opinions of family, friends, and peers did not exert much influence on the
subjects’ desire to be in choir (p. 242). Questions four, 17, and 22 were created by the

researcher to see if middle school students in the featured Grand Ledge school would

55

respond similarly when asked about the influence of family and peers on their
involvement with choir.

Davidson and Borthwick (2002) served as a resource in creating survey questions
five, six, nine, ten, 15, 17, 20, 21, 23, and interview questions 15 andl6, all of which
relate to parental and family influence on involvement with music. Questions 20 and 21,
“Friends or family say unkind things about girls who join choir” and “friends or family
say unkind things about boys who join choir,” focus on Davidson and Borthwick’s
discussion of the impact that a family’s attitude can have on people involved in music.
Question 23 asked students to respond to, “I have brothers and/or sisters who sing in a
choir.” These three questions were designed to gain insight into whether opinions of
family members (or friends) are influential in decisions to take choir by current or former
choir students. Questions five, six, nine, ten, and 15 are based upon Kirkpatrick’s (1962)
research study on home musical environments. As reported by Kirkpatrick (1962), the
home musical environment may have influence on a student’s interest and ability in
music, in a positive or negative way.

The personal questions for current and former choir students’ surveys are
numbers one, two, three, seven, eight, 11, 12, 13, l4, l6, l8, 19, 24, 25, 26, 27, and 28
and the personal questions for students’ interviews are three, four, five, eight, nine, ten,

1 1, 12, 13, l4, l7. Attribution theory, as studied by Asmus (1985), describes what
students believe to be the cause of success or failure in music. It was reported in
Asmus’s (1985) results that perceived “ability” was an important factor in determining
Whether students continue to pursue music. Survey questions number one and 16

investigate how the student perceives his or her skill level in music. Choral singing

56

experiences provide ways to explore one’s identity and determine individual strengths
and limitations (Hylton, 1981). In addition to being based in Asmus’s (1985) research,
questions one and 16, which explore self-perception of skill, also relate to Raynor’s
(1983) discussion that the way students view themselves influences which activities they
will be involved with.

Questions seven and eight, “I joined choir because I could not take band” and “I
joined choir because I did not want the “skills” classes” are reflections of Blair (1965),
B105 (1941), and Williamson (1993). These researchers believed that in addition to the
great variety of needs, learning styles, and thinking abilities, the interests of early
adolescents change frequently. Middle school students are given opportunities to make
their own choices, especially when deciding which classes to take. As adolescents
develop, they gain a desire to experience new things, which may influence decisions to
join a choir class.

Dweck (1985) names motivation as the driving force that moves students to
participate in music learning activities and to gain knowledge or skills that are the focus
of these activities. Question 12, “I enjoy learning how to read music” and question 13, “I
like it when the teacher explains to us all about the notes of the songs we sing” reflect this
research.

Questions 11, 14, 24 and interview question 14, provide information about the
extent to which the teacher plays a role in students’ motivation to enroll in choir. These
three questions were written as a result of the works by Scheidecker and Freeman (1999)
and Grossnickle and Thiel (1988). Scheidecker and Freeman (1999) have stated, “The

teacher’s personality is the single most significant trait in promoting educational success.

57

The teacher is more important to the education of his or her students than pedagogy,
technology, curriculum, facilities, and textbooks” (p. 5). Grossnickle and Thiel (1988)
also believe it is the care and support of teachers that can make all the difference in the
successes and accomplishments of students.

Research conducted by Mizener (1993) is related to questions about
environmental factors as well as personal factors that influence a student’s decision to
continue with choir class. Mizener’s (1993) discussion of self-perception of singing skill
and singing interest support questions two, three, 16, and 19. Questions 12, 13, 18, and
25 pertain to Mizener’s (1993) discussion of classroom singing activities, which was
developed to determine relationships between singing attitude and selected classroom
music activities. Another question, number 17, was influenced by Mizener’s discussion
of the effects of peer and family pressure on participating in music.

Questions that pertained to gender and participation in choir were questions 20,
21, 26, 27, and 28. Questions 20 and 21 were environmental factor questions, and
questions 26, 27, and 28 were personal factor questions. The gender of a student may
play a part in a student’s involvement with choir (Gates, 1989). Questions 20, 21, 26, 27,
and 28 were created by the researcher, but are supported by research completed by Gates
(1989) and Mizener (1993). The study by Gates (1989) focuses completely on the issue
of gender and music from colonial times to the present day. Part of Mizener’s (1993)
study involved researching relationships between boys and girls and singing and was

influential when creating these five questions.

58

CHAPTER FOUR
Results and Interpretations

The discussion of survey results will begin with surveys completed by seventh
and eighth grade former choir students. Because only one girl from this group and only
two seventh grade students participated in completing the surveys, results will be
discussed as a whole rather than according to gender or grade level. Questions involving
“environmental” factors will be presented before questions involving “personal” factors.
Mean results were rounded to the nearest tenth. The standard deviation was calculated
from responses to each survey question to facilitate interpretation of the means.

On the surveys, students were asked to read statements and then choose a given
number that best corresponded with how they felt about each statement. Former choir
students read and responded to 27 statements. The number choices were as follows: 1 =
Strongly Agree, 2 = Agree, 3 = Neither Agree nor Disagree, 4 = Disagree, 5 = Strongly
Disagree.

Survey Results of Former Choir Members
Environmental Factors

The results of questions involving “environmental factors” for former choir
students as well as the standard deviation for each question are shown in Table One.

The first question involving environmental factors was question four, “I did not
join choir because my friends were not joining.” The mean for question four was 3.0,
“neither agree nor disagree.” However, the standard deviation for question four was 1.5,
which is large and indicates that the students actually had opinions on the topic. Half of

the students surveyed agreed with question four and half disagreed. As discussed by

S9

Table One

Means and Standard Deviations of Former Choir Students’ Responses about

Environmental Factors

 

Former Chorr Students

Environmental Factors
Question Mean 389d?”
. Devratton

4 e. 3.7 I 1.5

5 3.3 1.1

6 4.0 1.6

9 2.9 1.5

10 3.3 ' ' 1.2

15 3.6 1.4

17 4.7 0.5

20 4.4 0.8

21 4.5 0.8

22 2.7 0.8

23 3.2 1.5

 

 

 

60

Blair (1965), B103 (1941), Jersild (1968), and Reasoner (1991), teenagers often rely on
the peer group for acceptance and look to one another for standards on how to think, act,
talk, and dress. According to the results for question four, some former students may
have decided not to participate in choir because of their peers, whereas peers had little
influence on the participation of others. This may have depended on his or her
personality, as well as differences in peer groups.

Question five, “My parents/ family wanted me to take choir,” focuses on the
influence parents have on their child’s participation in choir class. The mean of 3.3 may
be interpreted that parents did not have an opinion on whether their child took choir. The
standard deviation for question five was slightly larger than expected at 1.1, which
indicates that many of the students chose “agree” for question five, and many chose
“disagree.” There does not seem to be opposition to students choosing a choir class, and
some of the former choir students were not encouraged to join choir. However, the
standard deviation for question five suggests that some students were encouraged by
family members to take choir, but this encouragement was not enough for them to join.
Others may have discouraged them to take choir, which may have contributed to their
quitting.

For more information about parental influence, former choir students were asked
question six, “Some adults in my family sing in a choir.” Answers given for question six
were numerically high, which indicate that few adults within these families sing in a
choir. The mean for former choir students was 4.0, which means “disagree.” These
results, which indicate little choral participation among adult family members, could be

an important reason why students are not interested in being in a choir class. The

61

standard deviation for question six was 1.6, which indicates that a few of the former choir
students surveyed did have adult family members involved in a choir, but most did not.
As discussed by Davidson and Borthwick (2002), the family environment can play a role
in a student’s decision to choose a music class. If parental figures are not singing in
choirs, then their children may be less likely to sing in choirs themselves. However,
according to these results, it cannot be assumed that families with adults who sing in a
choir will produce children who will also sing, as some students discontinued choir, even
though their parents sing.

Question 23, “I have brothers and/or sisters who sing in a choir,” expands
question six to include sibling influence on students’ participation in choir. The mean
was 3.2 (between “neither agree nor disagree” and “disagree”), and the standard deviation
was 1.5. Results from question 23 could indicate that about half of the students’ siblings
sang in a choir and half of the students’ siblings did not sing in a choir. Therefore, the
former choir students’ participation in choir cannot be predicted by the participation of
siblings in choir.

Even though [most parents and many siblings of the former choir students were
not involved in choirs, question nine, “Someone in my family sang to me when 1 was
younger,” indicates that some, but not all former choir students did have some exposure
to music as a young child. The overall mean for this question was 2.9, which is between
“agree” and “neither agree nor disagree.” Although this mean was closer to “3” (“neither
agree nor disagree”), it was slightly on the positive end of the scale, and may indicate that
former choir students were sung to as children. This assumption that some students were

sung to as children, was supported by the standard deviation of 1.5 for question nine.

62

However, from these results it may be assumed that if a person is sung to as a child, it
does not mean that they will continue with singing when they are older.

The mean results for question ten, “My family sings a lot at my house,” must be
interpreted differently from other questions. Because of the way question ten was
worded, higher means indicate worse musical home environments and lower numbers
indicate more desirable musical conditions. The overall mean for question ten was 3.3,
which is between 3 (“neither agree nor disagree”) and 4 (“disagree”). It could be
assumed by these results that singing does exist in some homes of these former choir
students but is certainly not a prominent activity within many of the households. The
standard deviation for question ten was 1.2, which means that there was considerable
variance in the answers. Research conducted by Kirkpatrick (1962) stated that singing
experiences in the home have an effect on attitude towards music. It could be assumed
from information gathered that the lack of singing in the former choir students’ homes
may have affected their future decisions of whether to take a choir class. Also, the
singing that did occur within some of the former choir students’ homes was not
influential enough for them to continue with choir in the seventh and eighth grades.

Question 15 was designed to gain more insight into the impact of home musical
environments on decisions to join choir. “When I am at home, someone in my family
likes to listen to me sing songs” produced an overall mean of 3.6, between 3 (“neither
agree nor disagree”) and 4 (“disagree”). The standard deviation for question 15 was 1.4,
which indicated that some former choir students chose “agree,” but more answered

“disagree.” Perhaps these results indicate that someone at home does not necessarily

63

enjoy listening to many of these students singing songs. or perhaps these students do not
often sing at home for someone.

“People teased me for being in choir” was question 17. This question examines
how people reacted to the former choir students’ participation in choir. Because of the
way question 17 was worded, higher means indicated little amounts of teasing for being
in choir and lower numbers indicated high amounts of teasing for being in choir. The
overall mean for question 17 was 4.7, which is between “disagree” and “highly disagree.”
The standard deviation was low, which indicates little variance in the answers. These
results indicated the students did not feel they were teased for singing in choir. Since
being teased was not likely the cause for students to discontinue with choir, other factors
must have influenced the students with their decision.

Friends are an important influence on adolescents. Questions 20, 21, and 22 were
designed to better understand the influence of friends on decisions of whether to take
choir. Question 20 was “Friends or family say unkind things about girls who join choir.”
The overall mean was 4.4, which was between “disagree” and “strongly disagree,” and
the standard deviation was small. These results indicate that former choir students did
not feel friends or family have said unkind things to them about girls who join choir.
Therefore, negative comments about girls in choir mostly likely did not influence these
students to not choose choir again.

Question 21, “Friends or family say unkind things about boys who join choir,”
resulted in similar mean results to question 20. The overall mean was 4.5, between

“disagree” and “strongly disagree,” and again the standard deviation was small. The

results were within “disagree” categories indicated that former choir students did not feel

friends or family have said unkind things about boys who join choir. Therefore, negative
comments about boys in choir mostly likely did not influence these students to not choose
choir again.

One of the final “environmental factors” questions was represented by question
22. “My friends approved of my singing in choir” produced numerically low results.
The overall mean for former choir students was 2.7, which was between 2, “agree,” and
3, “neither agree nor disagree,” and the standard deviation was small (.08). This
suggested that former choir students felt some approval from friends for their being in
choir and were subjected to little or no negativity for their participation in the class.
According to the mean numbers for question 22, peer disapproval did not appear to be
influential, or influential enough, to stop taking choir. In fact, a few of these students
may have been encouraged by their friends.
Personal Factors

The survey completed by students was designed to connect with personal and
environmental factors that could be influential when deciding whether to choose choir in
the seventh and eighth grade. The responses from former choir students and the
questions involving “personal” factors will now be presented. The results of questions
involving “personal factors” and the standard deviation for each question for former choir
studentsare shown in Table Two.

“I don’t want to be in choir because I don’t like to sing” was question one. The
mean for former choir students was 3.0, “neither agree nor disagree.” The standard
deviation for question one was 1.5, which indicates that some former choir students

selected “agree” and other selected “disagree” on the survey. Therefore, a number of

65

Table Two

Means and Standard Deviations of Former Choir Students’ Responses about Personal

 

Factors
Former Chorr Students
Personal Factors
Question Combined 8'39“?”
. ., Deviation
1 3.0 1s
2 3.4 1.3
3 2.1 1.4
7 4.7 0.6
"[6 1.7 0.7
11.... 4.6 0.94
12 " 3.1 1.3“
13 3.1 0.9
“‘14 - 2.2 0.8 "
16 2.9 1.5 w
18 2.9 ‘ 4- 1.4
19 4.0 0.8
2.24 1.8_ 0.6 .
25 1.7 0.5!]
' .26 ‘ , 3.9 ‘. . 1.0 “
27 4.2 0.9

 

 

 

66

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1101
no:

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1117‘

former choir students did enjoy singing, but not enough to remain in choir class.
However, it is possible that a dislike for singing may have contributed to some students
not continuing with choir. It also is possible that the former choir students were
interested in focusing their energies into projects or activities other than choir, and that is
why they did not re-enroll. With increasing age, adolescents are interested in fewer and
fewer things. According to Blair (1965), adolescents may show “active resistance” to
attempts by the school or home to be involved in certain activities. This does not mean
that students’ interest in being involved in an activity diminishes. In fact, adolescents
begin to channel more energy into fewer activities. At an early age, students begin to
subtly “specialize” in activities such as athletics, literature, music, and hobbies that carry
from adolescence into adulthood (Blair, 1965).

According to Mizener (1993), there is a strong relationship between wanting to
sing in a choir and liking to sing, but less than half (45%) of those who liked to sing
wanted to sing in a choir. Question two, “I like to sing, but not in a choir” was modeled
after Mizener (1993). The mean for question two was 3.4, between 3 (“neither agree nor
disagree”) and 4 (“disagree”). The standard deviation for question two was 1.3. The
results gathered from question two are not surprising when considering results from
question one. It appears that some former choir students like to sing and others do not.
Therefore, singing context did not make a difference to the former choir students. Some
do not seem interested in singing, regardless of the context.

Question three asked, “When I hear songs on the radio, I enjoy singing along.”
The results from question three are much different than those gathered from questions

one and two. The overall mean of 2.1 was between 2 (“agree”) and 3 (“neither agree nor

67

disagree”), although it was closer to “agree.” However, the standard deviation for
question three was 1.4. According to these results, many of the former choir students
appeared to enjoy singing with the radio, even though some students indicated they did
not enjoy singing with the radio. Traditional choral programs, including those in Grand
Ledge, do not typically teach singing styles or types of music that are heard on radio
stations frequented by these students. It may have been that the repertoire and/or the
focus of these choral programs was-influencing students to not take choir. If choral
programs were constructed differently, and included more popular music, perhaps these
students would consider re-enrollin g in the class. It also should be mentioned that choirs
in choral programs are performance oriented with performance goals. Someone who
sings with the radio is not concerned with performance goals. To obtain a quality choral
sound, “polishing” must occur within choir rehearsals; there is no worry about a polished
sound when singing with the radio.

Question seven was “I did not join choir because I wanted to take band.” The
overall mean of 4.7 was between 4 (“disagree”) and 5 (“strongly disagree”) with a small
standard deviation. All results for this question were numerically high, suggesting that
students did not quit choir so that they could take band. Therefore, the option of a band
class did not seem to be influential in students’ decision not to participate in choir.

Scheduling decisions and options for other classes may influence whether .
students choose choir. Question eight was “I did not join choir because I wanted the
“skills” classes.” The responses to question eight were different from those in question
seven. The overall mean for the former choir students was 1.7, which is between 1

(“strongly agree”) and 2 (“agree”), again with a relatively small standard deviation. It

68

could be concluded that most former choir students did not re-enroll in choir because they
wanted to try other classes. According to Blair (1965), B105 (1941), and Williamson
(1993), the interests of early adolescents change frequently. If the former choir students
were interested in exploring new classes, they were able to do so by choosing the “skills”
class rotation instead of choir.

Question 11 was based one Scheidecker and Freeman’s (1999) discussion about
how teachers play an important role during adolescence and can influence students’
motivation to enroll in specific courses and their scheduling decisions. Scheidecker and
Freeman (1999) also stated that it is impossible for a teacher’s personality to be attractive
to every student he or she encounters. However, a teacher’s personality can be influential
on the involvement of students in a class. Question 11 was, “I don’t want to be in choir
because I don’t like the choir teacher.” The overall mean for question 11 was 4.5, which
is between 4 (“disagree”) and 5 (“strongly disagree”), with a standard deviation of .9.
According to these results, it seems that the former choir students did not stop taking
choir because of the teacher they would have had to work with. Therefore, it may be
assumed that the teacher was not the reason that students did not continue with choir.

Question 14, “The choir teacher made me feel like I was an important part of the
choir,” resulted in an overall mean of 2.2, between 2 (“agree”) and 3 (“neither agree nor
disagree”) with a standard deviation of .8. Because these results were centered near
“agree” (2), they may be interpreted to mean that many former choir students agreed that
the choir teacher made them feel that they were an important part of the choir. Therefore,

it could be concluded that the teacher was not a negative factor in the decision to not

69

continue with choir, and was, perhaps, one of the positive aspects of the students’ one
year in choir.

Classroom activities can be influential in the level of enjoyment a student has
within a particular class. “I enjoyed learning how to read music” was question 12 on the
former choir students’ surveys. The overall mean was 3.1, just above “neither agree nor
disagree” and the standard deviation for question 12 was 1.3. From this result, it could be
assumed that some former choir students did not enjoy learning how to read music but
almost an equal amount felt positively about it. It is difficult to tell if this activity in class
was a factor that changed students’ minds about enrolling in choir. However, if some
students did have more negative feelings towards learning to read music, this somewhat ‘
negative feeling may have contributed to their not returning to choir.

Question 13 continued the inquiry about classroom activities and produced mean
results almost identical to those from question 12. Question 13 was “I liked it when the
teacher explained to us all about the notes of the songs we sang.” The overall mean was
3.1, near “neither agree nor disagree;” however there was a bit less variance in the
answers (the standard deviation was .9). As discussed in question 12, the mean indicated
that some students enjoyed learning how to read music, and therefore, class activities
involving music theory may not have been influential in the decision of whether to take
choir. However, there may have been slightly more negative feelings towards choir class
activities involving music theory. As with question 12, it could be assumed that for some
students, activities involving music theory may have contributed to their not returning to

choir.

70

Question 24, “I liked the things that we did in choir class (sing, dance, stretch,
create, discuss, listen, etc.)” produced different results than the other questions about
classroom activities. The overall mean for question 24 was 1.8, which was between 1
(“strongly agree”) and 2 (“agree”), with little variance (the standard deviation was .6). It
may be concluded that the former choir students enjoyed most activities involved with
choir class. When comparing the results from questions 12 and 13, which focused on
music theory and reading, to results from question 24, which focuses on very “hands-on”
activities, it seems that the type of activity is important to students’ enjoyment of choir.

Self-perception of skill can influence what types of activities a student becomes
involved with. Question 16, “I am a good singer,” asked the former choir students to
consider their own singing abilities. All answers to this question were widely distributed
with an overall mean of 2.9, which was near 3 (“neither agree nor disagree”). The mean
results of question 16 indicated that, overall, former choir students were ambivalent about
their singing abilities. However, the standard deviation for question 16 was 1.5, which
suggests that some former choir students did not feel they were good singers, but there
were others who did feel they were good singers. It is possible that some students
discontinued choir because of perceived concerns about being poor singers; others were
confident of their skill in singing. Mizener’s (1993) research concluded that no
significant relationships were found between self-perception of singing skill and assessed
singing skill or between liking to sing or wanting to sing in choir and assessed singing
skill. Students who thought they were good singers did not demonstrate significantly
better singing skills than did the students who did not think they sang well. Furthermore,

students with higher singing skills ratings were no more likely to want to sing in choir

71

than those with lower singing skills ratings. Therefore, according to Mizener’s (1993)
results, these former choir students did not base their decision about joining choir on self-
perception of singing ability.

Activities outside of class time, such as concerts and festivals, are important
aspects of choir. Question 18 was “I enjoyed singing in the concerts and at choral
festival.” The mean results were lower for question 18 than results for other questions
involving classroom activities. For question 18, the overall mean was 2.9, which was
close to 3 (“neither agree nor disagree”). The mean results of question 18 indicated that
former choir students were ambivalent about singing in concerts and festivals. However,
the standard deviation of 1.4 indicates that some of the students did enjoy concerts and
performing at choral festival, whereas others did not. Therefore, some students may have
discontinued with choir class to avoid singing in concerts and festivals. Others, who did
enjoy singing in performances, apparently did not enjoy the experiences enough to
remain in choir class.

When progressing through adolescence, students begin to develop physically into
an adult. In girls, there is the rounding out of hips, breast development, appearance of
pubic hair and menstruation. In boys, there is appearance of pubic hair, facial hair, and
change of voice (Blair, 1965; BIOS, 1941; Jersild, 1968). Question 19, “My voice change
(girls AND boys) made me not want to sing anymore,” focused on the voice change,
which is one aspect of this physical maturation and development. The answers for
question 19 were numerically high, indicating that students did not agree with the
question. The overall mean was 4, which is “disagree,” and the standard deviation was

.8. It may be concluded by these results that the former choir students did not stop taking

choir because of their voice changes. This result is especially significant, because there
was only one girl in the group of 11 former choir students, and boys experience voice
change in a much more dramatic way than girls.

Questions 25, 26, and 27 asked students to give perceptions of whether they felt
singing was appropriate for both sexes, male and female, or one over the other. Question
25 was “I think that singing is just as much for girls as for boys.” The overall mean was
1.7, between 1 (“strongly agree”) and 2 (“agree”), with a standard deviation of .5.
According to these results, the students felt that singing was just as much for girls as for
boys, and they should not have felt out of place in choir because of gender.

“1 think that singing is mostly for boys” was question 26. The overall mean was
3.9, which is between 3 (“neither agree nor disagree”) and 4 (“disagree”), with a standard
deviation of 1.0. Because the results for question 26 were centered on “disagree,” it
could be interpreted that most former choir students disagreed that singing was mostly for
boys. Therefore, it may be assumed that the male and female students formerly in choir
did not discontinue with choir because of their gender.

Question 27 was a continuation of question 26, with similar results. This question
asked, “I think that singing is mostly for girls.” The overall mean was 4.2, between 4
(“disagree”) and 5 (“strongly disagree”), with a standard deviation of .7. The results
centered on “disagree,” even more so than the results from question 26, suggesting that
the former choir students disagreed that singing was mostly for girls. Because of the
results of questions 26 and 27, it may be assumed that the male and female students

formerly in choir did not discontinue with choir because of their gender.

73

Survey Results of Current Choir Members

Current seventh and eighth grade choir students completed a survey similar to the
one completed by former choir students, but it was worded slightly differently. The
results to the survey are presented by grade and by gender within the seventh and eighth
grades. The discussion of results for current choir students will begin with questions
involving “environmental” factors, followed by questions involving “personal” factors.
The standard deviation was calculated from responses to each survey question.

On the surveys, students were asked to read statements and then choose a given
number that best corresponded with how they felt about each statement. Current choir
students read and responded to 28 statements. The number choices were as follows: 1 =
Strongly Agree, 2 2 Agree, 3 = Neither Agree nor Disagree, 4 = Disagree, 5 = Strongly
Disagree.

Environmental Factors

The results of questions involving “environmental factors” for current choir
students are shown in Table Three and the standard deviations for all responses to
questions involving “personal factors” for current choir students are shown in. Table Four.

The first question involving environmental influential factors was question four,
“I joined choir because my friends were joining.” The results gathered from this question
were similar between the seventh and eighth grade students. The overall mean for
seventh grade current choir students was 3.4, with a boys’ mean of 3.3 and a girls’ mean
of 3.5. The eighth grade overall mean was 3.7, with a boys’ mean of 3.4 and a girls’
mean of 3.8. All mean responses for question four were between 3 (“neither agree nor

disagree”) and 4 (“disagree”). Because responses to this question were closer to the

74

Table Three

Means of Current Choir Students 'Responses about Environmental Factors

 

Current Choir Students
Environmental Factors

7th Grade Mean 8th Grade Mean Composite Mean
Question Boys Girls Combined Boys Girls Combined Boys Girls Combined

4 , ’ A 3.3 3.5 . _ ..3.4 3.4 3.8 .3.7 3.3 3.6 . 3.5
5 3.5 2.8 3.1 3.5 3.0 . 3.2 3.5 2.9 3.1

”6 _ 4.0 3.6 ._ 3.8, 4.4 4.0 ,. 4.1” , 4.1 3.7 3.9 fl
9 2.5 2.2 2.3 2.0 2.4 . 2.3 2.3 2.3 2.3

.10 3.7 2,6 3.0 3.2 2.8 , . 3.0 3.5 2.7, , 3.0 _.
. 15 3.2 2.5 2.8 2.7 2.5 2.6 3.0 ”2.5 _ 2.7
”17 p 4.2 4.5 4.4 3.5 4.5 4.1 p _ 4.0 4.5 _ 4.8
20 4.6 4.7 . 4.7 4.7, 4.9 4.8 4.6 4.8 4.7
21 7 4.6 4.6 4.6 . . 4.5 4.7 ' , 14.6 . 4.6 4.6 _, 4.6
22 7 2.7 1.6 2.0 2.0 1.3 1.6 2.51 1.5 .. 1.9g
23 3.3 2.8 3.0 3.3 2.8 3.0 3.3 2.8 3.0

 

 

 

Table Four:

Standard Deviations of Current Choir Students ’ Responses about Environmental Factors

 

Current Choir Students
Environmental Factors

7th Grade Std. Dev. 8th Grade Std. Dev. Composite Std. Dev.

Question Boys Girls Combined Boys Girls Combined Boys Girls Combined
f 4 1.3 1.3 1.3 91.8 1.0 1.1 , 1.3 1.2 .. 1.3
5 1.1 1.4 1.3. 0.8 1.3 1.1 1.0 1.3 1.3
..6 . 1.0 1.4 1.3 1.2 1.1 ., 1.2 , 1.0.1.3 1.2
9 1.4 1.3 1.3 1.2 1.4 1.3 1.3 1.3 M 13“
10 1.3, 1.3 1.3. 1.8 1.3 ‘1 , 1.5 . 1.4f '1.3.g_.1.4_n
f 15 1.2 1.4 1.4 1.1 1.2 1.2 ‘ 1.2 1.3 1.3
.17 _ 1.1 0.9 1.0 , 1.4, 0.7  1.1, - _1.2 0.8 , 1.0
20 f 0.6 0.7 0.6 _ 0.8 0.3 - 0.5“ 0.6 0.6 . 0.6
.. -21-, _ 0.5.- 0,9 . . 9.8 0.8 - 0.5 w, . 06.. ..0.6 .08 0.7
.5 22 1.1 0.9 1.2 , 1.0 0.6 0.8 1.1 0.8 1.1
23' y 1.6 1.8 1.7 1.7 . 1.6 1.7 1.6 1.7 1.7

 

 

 

75

neutral 3 (“neither agree nor disagree”), it could be concluded that students did not
choose choir only because their friends were joining. The standard deviations calculated
for question four were similar among all groups of students, with the overall standard
deviation for current choir students being 1.3. This suggests that some of the current
choir students did consider their friends were joining as a factor when joining choir, but
that many others did not. These results are somewhat different than those of Mizener
(1993), who found that “opinions of family, fiiends, and peers did not exert much
influence on the subjects’ desire to be in choir (p. 242).”

Question five, “My parents/ family wanted me to take choir,” focuses on parental
interest and influence on their child’s participation in choir class. The overall mean for
seventh grade current choir students was 3.1. The boys’ mean of 3.5 is higher than the
girls’ at 2.8. The seventh grade overall mean and the boys’ mean was between 3
(“neither agree nor disagree”) and 4 (“disagree”), where the girls’ mean was between 2
(“agree”) and 3 (“neither agree nor disagree”). All means for eighth grade students were
between 3 and 4. Such figures suggested that parents of seventh grade students tended to
encourage girls more than boys to join choir. Because all of the eighth grade students’
numbers were between 3 and 4, it was difficult to tell if students were encouraged by
their family to join choir. However, the standard deviation of 1.1 for eighth grade
students (and 1.3 for seventh grade students) suggested that family members did
encourage or discourage a number of these current choir students to continue with choir.
These results are disturbing, especially when considering Davidson & Borthwick’s
(2002) research that states, “Parenting style is not only key in terms of availability of

parental support, but also a key determining factor in the child’s overall motivation level

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to learn an instrument” (p. 123). If the trend continues that many parents do not
encourage their children to participate in choir, it is possible that these students will stop
taking choir because of the lack of reassurance they are receiving. Students whose
parents encouraged them to continue with choir and singing, will be more likely re-enroll
in choir class.

Question six continued the discussion of family environment and the influence of
music in the home on a student’s decision to join choir. “Some adults in my family sing
in a choir” was question six. The seventh grade overall mean was 3.8 and the girls’ mean
was 3.6. These ratings were between 3 (“neither agree nor disagree”) and 4 (“disagree”).
The seventh grade boys’ mean was a 4.0, which is “disagree.” The eighth grade students
answered question six similarly to the seventh grade boys. The overall mean for the
eighth grade was 4.1, with a boys’ mean of 4.4 and a girls’ mean at a 4.0. These figures,
with the exception of the eighth grade girls, fell between 4 (“disagree”) and 5 (“strongly
disagree”). Even with an overall mean of 3.9 for all current choir students, these results
indicate that a few current choir students have adults in their families who sing in a choir.
The standard deviations calculated for question six are between 1.0 and 1.3, with the
overall standard deviation for current choir students 1.2. These numbers suggest that,
even though mean results indicate little adult participation in choir, there are a few
parents of students who do sing in a choir. When few adult family members singing in
choirs, there must be positive factors outside of the influence of family to cause these
students to choose choir class. It could be possible that the few adult family members
who do participate in choir may be influential factors on students’ decisions to continue

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Question 23, “I have brothers and/or sisters who sing in a choir,” asked about
siblings. All results tabulated for question twenty-three were similar fi'om seventh to
eighth grade. The overall seventh grade and overall eighth grade means were 3.0,
“neither agree nor disagree.” The boys’ in seventh and in eighth grade each both
produced a mean of 3.3, which was between 3 (“neither agree nor disagree”) and 4
(“disagree”). The seventh grade girls and the eighth grade girls each had a mean of 2.8,
between 2 (“agree”) and 3 (“neither agree nor disagree”). The overall mean for all
current choir students for question twenty-three was 3.0. However, the standard
deviations figured for all responses to question 23 were very high and ranged from 1.6 to
1.8. The standard deviation for all current choir students combined was 1.7. These
results indicate, that about half of current choir students have brothers and/or sisters who
sing in a choir and half of the current choir students’ siblings do not sing in a choir. Also,
it was possible that students did not know if their siblings participate in a choir. It could
be concluded from responses to question 23 that siblings’ participation in choir cannot
predict choir students’ own participation in choir.

“Someone in my family sang to me when I was younger” was question nine. In
question six, students reported that they came from families with parents not involved in
a choir. Even without “choir member parents,” in question nine, students claimed that
they were sung to when they were younger. The overall mean for all current choir
students was 2.3 for question nine. This mean was between 2 (“agree”) and 3 (“neither
agree nor disagree”). The overall seventh grade mean was the same as the overall eighth
grade mean at 2.3. The seventh grade boys’ mean was 2.5 and the girls’ mean was

slightly lower at 2.2. The eighth grade boys’ mean was 2 (“agree”) and the girls’ mean

78

was higher at 2.4. Standard deviations for question nine ranged from 1.2 to 1.4.
Therefore, a student’s parents not belonging to a choir does not mean that they do not
sing to their children. These results indicate that some current choir students were sung
to as children, but some were not. Based on Kirkpatrick’s (1962) views that singing
experiences in the home have an effect on attitude towards music, family members’
singing to a child can influence that child’s future decisions to be involved in a music
class. Students, particularly girls and young children, who show a positive attitude
towards singing tend to come fiom homes in which singing is encouraged and farme
members participate in singing with the students (Kirkpatrick, 1962). Therefore, students
who were not sung to, as children, must have been influenced by other factors in their
decision to remain in choir class.

Question ten asked about the presence of music in a student’s home life. Because
of the way question ten was worded, higher means indicate worse musical home
environments and lower numbers indicate more desirable musical conditions. “My
family sings a lot at my house” produced an overall seventh grade mean of 3.0 (neither
agree nor disagree). The seventh grade boys’ mean was higher than the overall mean at a
3.7, and the girls’ mean was lower than the overall mean, at 2.6. The eighth grade
students produced an overall mean that was the same as the seventh grade choir
members. However, the eighth grade boys’ mean was 3.2 and the eighth grade girls’ was
2.8. For all current choir students, the overall mean for question ten was 3.0, “neither
agree nor disagree.” The standard deviation for all current choir students combined was
1.4. There was a large range, from 1.3 to 1.8, of standard deviations for question ten for

the various groups of current choir students. These figures indicated that some students

79

were raised in homes where singing was a common occurrence, and other students were
raised in homes where singing never occurred. It could be assumed that current choir
students raised in homes where singing was an activity were more likely to participate in
choir. However, because the standard deviation indicates that some current choir
students did not come from homes in which singing occurred, there must be other factors
that influenced these students to take choir.

Question 15 was “When I am at home, someone in my family likes to listen to me
sing songs.” The overall seventh grade mean was 2.8, with a boys’ mean of 3.2 and a
girls’ mean of 2.5. The overall mean for the eighth grade current choir students was 2.6,
which is between the boys’ mean of 2.7 and a girls’ mean of 2.5. The results for question
15 were between 2 (“agree”) and 3 (“neither agree nor disagree”) or 3 and 4 (“disagree”).
The standard deviation for question 15 was 1.3 for all current choir students combined.
In question ten, singing was not as a common family activity in all current choir students’
homes. However, the results for question fifteen indicated that some students’ family
members did enjoy listening to the students sing and others did not. It is possible that if
family members encourage students to sing to them, the students will be more likely to
feel positive about their singing and want to continue with singing.

Question seventeen examines how people react to students in choir. “People tease
me for being in choir.” The seventh grade overall mean of 4.4, the boys’ mean of 4.2 and
the girls’ mean of 4.5 are all between 4 (“disagree”) and 5 (“ strongly disagree”). These
numbers indicate that seventh grade students do not feel that they are teased for being in
choir. The eighth grade students’ overall mean was 4.1, which was slightly lower than

the seventh grade mean. Girls in the eighth grade averaged a mean of 4.5 and the same

80

as the mean for the seventh grade girls. These high numbers indicate that girls in the
seventh and eighth grade did not feel that they were pressured or teased by others for
being in choir. The eighth grade boys’ mean was 3.5. This mean was the lowest of all
the figures, falling between “neither agree nor disagree” and “disagree.” When looking
at the seventh grade boys’ mean of 4.2 and the eighth grade boys’ mean of 3.5, the
conclusion could be reached that between seventh and eighth grade, boys feel more
pressure or teasing from people about singing in choir. 4.3 was the mean of all current
choir students combined. No mean results reached “agree” or “strongly agree” numbers,
(1 or 2) which indicates that few students are teased outright by others; however, the
teasing of boys did seem to increase with age. The standard deviations for question 17
were above 1.0 for all the figures calculated for boys, and below 1.0 for all the figures
calculated for girls. These figures indicate that the girls did not feel teased for being in
choir, but some of the boys certainly did. If students were experiencing an increase in
pressure or teasing by others for being in choir, these students must have had to overcome
this pressure to re-enroll in choir class, and may be less likely to enroll as they grow
older.

Answers to questions 20, 21, and 22 relate to the influence of friends on choir
students’ decisions to remain in choir. Question 20 was “Friends or family say unkind
things about girls who join choir.” The means for question 20 were numerically high,
and the higher the mean, the more positively choir students were responding to the
question. The overall mean for question 20 for the seventh grade was 4.7, with a boys’
mean of 4.6 and a girls’ mean of 4.7. The eighth grade overall mean was 4.8, with a

boys’ mean of 4.7 and a girls’ mean of 4.9. All of these ratings are between 4

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(“disagree”) and 5 (“strongly disagree”). Because the mean numbers are high, it is
probably that friends or family are not saying unkind things to current choir students
about girls who join choir. This low amount of negative feedback may lead to an
increase in choir participation among female students.

Questions 21 on the survey asde “Friends or farme say unkind things about boys
who join choir.” All of the means figured for the seventh grade choir were the same, a
4.6. This number is between 4 (“disagree”) and 5 (“strongly disagree”). The overall
eighth grade mean was 4.6, with the boys’ mean of 4.5 and the girls’ of 4.7. These three
numbers also were between 4 and 5. The same conclusions may be drawn fi'om results of
question twenty-one as they were for question twenty. It can be assumed that friends or
family are not saying unkind things to current choir students about boys who join choir.
As with the female students, this low amount of negative feedback may lead to an
increase in choir participation among boys.

Question 22 was the third question focused on the influence of friends on choir
students’ decisions to remain in choir. “My friends approve of my singing in choir”
resulted in an overall seventh grade mean of 2.0, which was “agree.” However, there was
a difference between the seventh grade boys’ and girls’ means. The boys’ mean was 2.7,
between 2 (“agree”) and 3 (“neither agree nor disagree”). The girls’ mean was 1.6,
between 1 (“strongly agree”) and 2 (“agree”). The overall eighth grade mean for
question twenty-two was 1.6, with a boys’ mean of 2 (“agree”) and a girls’ mean of 1.3
(between “strongly agree” and “agree”). According to these numbers, particularly the
seventh girls and even, to a lesser extent, the eighth grade girls felt more approval from

friends about singing in choir than did the boys. The means of the seventh and eighth

82

grade boys are not in any of the “disagree” categories, but they are different from the
girls’ means. Therefore, it could be assumed that the girls are feeling support from their
peer group. Because the results for question 22 were positive for the boys, it means that
most feel no pressure from friends to stop singing. Peer acceptance and support can be
influential. It is possible that some of these boys, at some point, will choose something
other than choir to receive more support from peers. The standard deviation for question
22 was 1.1. This number suggests that some of the students did not feel support from
friends for being in choir but that the majority of current choir students did feel support.
Personal Factors

Questions presented to students on the survey were designed to connect with
personal and environmental factors that could be influential when deciding whether to
choose choir in the seventh and eighth grade. The responses from current choir students
to the questions involving “personal” factors are shown in Table Five and the standard
deviations for all responses to questions involving “personal factors” for current choir
students are shown in Table Six.

Question number one was, “I want to be in choir because I love to sing.” The
mean of all seventh grade current choir students was 1.9, which was between “strongly
agree” (I) and “agree” (2). The seventh grade girls’ responses to question one resulted in
a mean of 1.5, which was similar to the overall mean. The seventh grade boys’ mean of
2.4 fell between “agree” (2) and “neither agree nor disagree” (3). The eighth grade
students’ overall mean of 1.3 (between “strongly agree” [1] and “agree” [2]) was very
close to the eighth grade boys’ mean of 1.4 and was similar to the girls’ mean of 1.3.

When the seventh and eighth grade results were considered together, the mean for the

83

Table Five

Means of Current Choir Students’ Responses about Personal Factors

 

 

Current Chorr Students
Personal Factors
7th Grade Mean 8th Grade Mean Composite Mean
Question Boys Girls CombinedBoys Girls Combined Boys Girls Combined
1 , 2.41.5 ,- 1.9 . 1.4 1.3 1.3, , 2.11.4 * 1.7 .
.2 . .‘ 2.1 1.5 _' 1.8 1.5 1-3- . 1.4‘ ,_ 1.9 1.4 1.7
7 3 ' f 1.91.3 1.6 1.5 1.1 f _ 1.1 H 1.812 1.4
_ 7 . 4.1 4.1 4.1 4.7 4.2 4.4 4.3 4.1 4.2
8 a3 3.4 3.4 3.6 4.0 ‘ 3.9 3.4 3.6 . 3.6
11 , 1.4 1.0 1.2 1.2 1.0 1.1 1.3 1.0 1.1
g 12 ‘ 2.6 2.1 4 2.3, .1-8 ’, 2.2 2.1 , 2.4 2.1,- ,_ 2.2”
_ 13 2.6 2.4 2.5 1.7 2.2 2.0 2.3 2.3 2.3
14 1.9, 1.4 1.6 _ 1.3 1.4 1.4 (1.7 1.4 1.5 I‘
16 2.4 2.0 2.2 1.8 2.4 2.2 2.2 2.1 2.2
'18,, 2.8 1.6 _ 7, 1.9 1.4. 1.3 '_ "1.3 2.0 1.5 1.7
‘19 3.9 4.3 4.1 3.5 4.4 _ 4.1 3.8 4.3 4.1
.24 1.9 1.5 i 1.7 "1.6 1.7 ‘ 1.7 w 1.8 .1.6 1.7
[25 1.8 1.2 1.4 1.2 1.1 . 1.1 1.6 1.2 1.3
26 ' 4.1.7, 1.8 1.5‘ 1.3 1.5 1.4 1.6 1.4 1.5 g
27 . 4.2 4.6 4.4 4.6 4.7 4.7 4.3 4.6 4.5
' 28 4.0 4.4 4.2 4.5 4.7 4.6 4.2 4.5 4.3

 

84

 

Table Six

Standard Deviations of Current Choir Students’ Responses about Personal Factors

 

Current Choir Students
Personal Factors

7th Grade Std. Dev. 81h Grade Std. Dev. Composite Std. Dev.
Question Boys Girls Combined Boys Girls Combined Boys Girls Combined

,, 1 ,1.0 0.7 0.9 H _0.7 0.4, 0.5 1.0 ”0.6-.-- 0.9,,
. 2 1.0 0.7 0.9 0.7 0.6 0.6 0.9 0.7 0.8
'3 1.2 0.5 * 0.9, 0.8 0.3 ,, 0.6 _ 1.1 0.4 0.8-..-
7 1.1 1.4 1.3 0.6 1.2 1.1 1.0 1.3 1.2

8 1.6 1.5 ‘ 1.5 1.4, 1.4 1.4 , 1.5 ‘ 1.5 1.5,.
11 0.5 0.2 0.4 0.4 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.2 0.4 .
12 1.1 0.9 _ 1.0 0.6 1.1 0.9 , 1.0 0.9 1.0

13 1.1 1.1 1.1 0.7 1.0 0.9 1.1 1.1 1.1
14 0.9 0.7 , 0.8 0.5 0.6 0.6 0.9 , 0.7 0.7
16 1.1 1.1 1.1 0.8 1.2 1.1 1.0 1.2 1.1

-18. ' 1.2 0.8 1.0 0.7 0.6 0.6 1.1 0.7 - 0.9
19 ‘_ 1.2 0.9 1.0 1.1 0.9 1.0 _ 1.2 0.9 1.0
.24 1.1 0.8 0.9 0.7 1.0, 0.8 1.0 0.8 0.9
'25 0.8 0.4 0.7 0.4 0.3, “0.4 . 0.8 0.4 ..0-§_._
26 1.1 0.6 ' , 0.9’ 0.6 0.9 0.8 ‘ 1.0; 0.7 ' 0.9
27 0.8 0.7 . 0.8 . 0.8 0.5 0.6 .. 0.8“ 97.. _ 0.7,
28 1.1 1.0 1.0 0.8 0.5 0.6' 1.0 0.9 0.9

 

 

 

85

two groups was 1.7 (between “strongly agree” [1] and “agree” [2]). These results
indicate that the majority of students in choir enjoy singing, which may be a large factor
in their electing to participate. The eighth grade boys’ mean was much higher than that
of the seventh grade boys. Perhaps this difference in boys’ means is influenced by
adolescent physical development. It is most common for boys’ voices to change during
their time in middle school. The voice change can be very challenging for young singers,
especially boys in the seventh grade, as this change is much more common among
seventh grade students than eighth grade students. Boys who are physically maturing and
moving through the voice change are apt to feel more comfortable with their singing
voices and, therefore, enjoy singing more. The eighth grade boys who completed this
survey may have been more physically advanced than the seventh grade subjects and are
able to enjoy more confidence in their singing.

Results for question two, “I like to sing with others in a choir” were similar to
those for question one. The overall mean for seventh grade current choir students was
1.8, between “strongly agree” (1) and “agree” (2), with a boys’ mean of 2.1 and a girls’
mean of 1.5. The eighth grade students’ overall mean of 1.4 was directly between the
boys’ mean of 1.5 and the girls’ at 1.3. When combined, the seventh and eighth grade
overall mean was 1.7, which was the same as for question one. As with question one, the
results for question two indicate that the majority of students in choir enjoy singing, and
singing with others in class appears to be enjoyable to the students surveyed.

Question three was “When I hear songs on the radio, I enjoy singing along.”
Results for seventh grade students for question three all fell between 1 (“strongly agree”)

and 2 (“agree”) with a boys’ mean of 1.9, a girls’ at 1.3. The overall mean was 1.6.

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Similar to the seventh grade results, the eighth grade students’ results fell between ratings
1 and 2 (“strongly agree” and “agree”). The overall mean for eighth grade was 1.1, with
a boys’ mean of 1.5 and a girls’ mean of 1.1. When figured together, the mean for all
current choir students for question three was 1.4. The overall standard deviation for
question three was .8. The results of question three further support the results of question
one and two, that the students who join choir enjoy singing and do so in a variety of
atmospheres and situations.

Question seven was the next question pertaining to personal factors that
influenced students and their decisions about choir. The question was “I joined choir
because I could not take band.” This question resulted in a 4.1 mean for the seventh
grade overall rating with the same figure for both boys and girls. This rating of 4.1 was
between “disagree” (4) and “strongly disagree” (5). The eighth—grade results were
slightly higher than the seventh grade results. The overall mean for question seven for
eighth grade students was 4.4. Eighth grade boys’ answers resulted in a mean of 4.7,
with the girls lower at 4.2. The overall standard deviation for question seven was 1.2.
Because of the way question seven was worded, higher means indicate that students did
not choose choir because they could not take band. Therefore, the current choir students
did not take choir because they could not take band.

Question eight is similar to question seven, in that it examines whether scheduling
decisions influence students’ choosing choir. Question eight was “I joined choir because
I did not want the “skills” classes.” Most students surveyed gave similar answers to this
question, with the seventh grade boys’ mean at 3.3, the girls’ mean at 3.4, and an overall

seventh grade mean of 3.4. These three ratings fell between 3 (“neither agree nor

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disagree”) and 4 (“disagree”). The eighth grade students’ mean was 3.9, with the boys’
mean being 3.6. Both of these ratings fell in the same category as the seventh grade
students, between 3 and 4. However, the eighth grade girls’ mean for question eight was
a 4.0, which is “disagree.” The overall seventh and eighth grade mean of 3.6 (between
“neither agree nor disagree” and “disagree”) for the question shows that most students
did not choose choir simply to avoid “skills” classes. Standard deviations for question
eight were between 1.4 and 1.6 for groups surveyed. These numbers suggested that part
of the reason a few current choir students chose choir was to not take the “skills” classes.
The standard deviation also reveals that of the students did not take choir to avoid “skills”
classes, so other factors must have influenced their decisions.

Question eleven, “1 like the choir teacher,” produced similar results from all
students surveyed. The seventh grade overall mean was a 1.2. The boys’ mean was 1.4
and the girls’ was 1.0. The eighth grade overall mean was 1.1, with the boys’ mean at 1.2
and the girls’ mean at 1.0. All students’ results fell between “strongly agree” (1) and
“agree” (2), with all girls choosing a 1.0, “strongly agree” rating. The overall mean for
the seventh and eighth grade students for question eleven was 1.1. These results indicate
that the students like their choir teacher, which is a factor that most likely influences them
to choose choir class.

“I enjoy learning how to read music” was question twelve on the student surveys.
The seventh grade students’ overall mean was 2.3, with the boys’ mean of 2.6 and a girls’
mean of 2.1. These three ratings were between 2 and 3, which were “agree” and “neither
agree nor disagree.” The overall mean rating for question twelve by the eighth grade

students was 2.1, with the girls’ mean at 2.2. These two eighth grade ratings are in line

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with the seventh grade students’ results; however the mean for question twelve by eighth
grade boys’ was 1.8. This result of 1.8 falls between “strongly agree” (1) and “agree” (2)
and is the most positive mean. The seventh grade boys’ mean was 2.6, which was the
highest and least positive of all the mean results for question twelve. The standard
deviation for question twelve was 1.0. Most students in choir enjoy learning how to read
music and the enjoyment is slightly greater in the eighth grade, especially for boys. The
overall mean for current choir students was 2.2 for question twelve. Therefore learning
to read music may be a positive influential factor in students’ decisions to remain in
choir.

In question thirteen, students are asked about their enjoyment of music theory. “I
like it when the teacher explains to us all about the notes of the songs we sing.” The
results for question thirteen are different from seventh grade to eighth grade. The overall
mean for seventh grade students was 2.5, which was right between the boys’ mean of 2.6
and the girls’ mean of 2.4. These numbers were still between 2 (“agree”) and 3 (“neither
agree nor disagree”). Students interpreted and responded to this question in a less
positive way than they did for question twelve. The eighth grade students’ overall mean
was 2.0, which is “agree.” The boys’ mean of 1.7 was even lower than their mean in
question twelve, and the girls remained the same at 2.2. The overall mean for all current
choir students for question thirteen was 2.3. The standard deviation was 1.1 for all
current choir students. Because of these answers it seems that some students do enjoy
having music theory explained to them, with eighth graders enjoying it a bit more than
seventh graders. Therefore, it is possible that the more theoretical components of choir

are positive influences on the decision of whether to take choir, especially with boys.

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Question twenty-four, “It is important for people in choir to like the choir
teacher,” was designed to help understand the influence a teacher can have on students
choosing a class. Seventh grade mean results all remained between “strongly agree” (1)
and “agree” (2). The seventh grade overall mean was 1.7, with a boys’ mean of 1.9 and a
girls’ mean of 1.5. Eighth grade students’ results were similar to those of the seventh
grade students, with an overall mean of 1.7, a boys’ mean of 1.6, and a girls’ mean of 1.7.
The overall mean was 1.7 for question twenty-four and the standard deviation was .9. It
can be concluded from these results that seventh and eighth grade choir students feel that
it is important that the students in choir like the choir teacher.

Question fourteen, “The choir teacher makes me feel like I am an important part
of the choir” produced an overall mean of 1.6 for seventh grade students. The seventh
grade boys’ mean at 1.9, was higher than the girls’ at 1.4. However, all three figures
were between 1 (“strongly agree”) and 2 (“agree”). The eighth grade figures were also
between 1 and 2, with an overall mean of 1.4, a boys’ mean of 1.3, and a girls’ mean of
1.4. The overall mean for question fourteen was 1.5 and the standard deviation was .7.
According to this, the choir teacher made students feel important and part of a group. If
students feel as though they are needed and special in a choir class, they may be
influenced by these feelings when it is time to choose the choir class again.

Question sixteen was “I am a good singer.” Self-perception of a skill can
influence a student’s decision to join in an activity, such as choir. Students in the seventh
grade responded positively to question sixteen, with an overall mean of 2.2. The mean
factored for seventh grade boys was 2.4, which is between 2 (“agree”) and 3 (“neither

agree nor disagree”). Seventh grade girls averaged 2.0. Eighth grade boys were more

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confident in their singing skills, with a mean of 1.8 (between “strongly agree” and
“agree”), while eighth grade girls (at 2.4) were not as positive as the seventh grade girls.
However, the eighth grade overall mean was 2.2, which was the same as the seventh
grader overall mean. The results of question sixteen indicate that students currently in
choir, as a whole, believe they are good singers. The standard deviation for all current
choir students was 1.1, which suggests that students are somewhat divided on their
opinion of their singing abilities. However, the few students who did not feel they were
good singers did not discontinue choir because of their perceived lack of ability. Most of
the students felt positively about their voices, and, as a result of the confidence in their
singing abilities, have been more apt to continue with choir.

Question 18 was “I enjoy singing in the concerts and at chor-al festival.” The
seventh grade girls and boys responded somewhat differently to this question. The girls
averaged a mean of 1.6, located between 1 (“strongly agree”) and 2 (“agree”). The boys’
mean of 2.3, which was between “agree” and “neither agree nor disagree,” was somewhat
numerically higher than that of the girls and less positive. Together, the seventh grade
girls and boys mean was 1.9. The eighth grade students’ results were more alike than
those of the seventh grade students. With the boys’ mean of 1.4 and the girls’ mean of
1.3, the overall mean for the eighth grade was 1.3. These results of the overall student
mean of 1.7 indicated that most students enjoyed singing in concerts and at festival, even
the seventh grade boys. Perhaps the seventh grade boys’ mean was higher because they
were experiencing their voice change and did not necessarily want to perform or compete

with this occurring. The standard deviation for question 18 was .9. Therefore, it appears

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that the opportunity to sing in concerts and at festival may have been a positive
influential factor in current choir students’ decisions to re-enroll in choir.

Question 19, “My voice change (girls AND boys) made me consider not singing
anymore” may be important to consider when working with singing middle school
students, especially boys. The seventh grade responses to this question resulted in means
that were very close to 4 (“disagree”). The boys’ mean was 3.9, the girls’ mean was 4.3;
together they averaged 4.1. The eighth grade students’ overall mean of 4.1 was the same
as the seventh graders, with the girls’ mean at 4.4 and the boys’ mean at 3.5. The overall
mean for all current choir students was 4.1, which was between “disagree” (4) and
“strongly disagree” (5). Because of the wording of this question, the higher the mean
number, the more positive the answer. The overall standard deviation for question 19
was 1.0. However, the girls’ standard deviation results were consistently .9, while the
boys’ results were between 1.1 and 1.2. These results indicated that a few boys did
consider discontinuing with choir because of voice changes. It was understandable that
the boys’ responses would be a bit more negative, because the voice change for boy
singers can be a challenging process. None of the students’ mean results fell into the
“agree” categories, which indicated a voice change probably has little affect on whether
most students choose to take choir class.

Students were asked to respond to “I like the things that we do in choir class
(sing, dance, stretch, create, discuss, listen, etc.)” in question 25. The results for this
question were very positive from all groups of students. The seventh grade overall mean
was 1.4, with a boys’ mean of 1.8 and a girls’ mean of 1.2. The eighth grade overall

mean was 1.1, with a boys’ mean of 1.2 and a girls’ mean of 1.1. The standard deviation

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for question 25 was .6. With the exception of the seventh grade boys, whose mean was
closer to 2 (“agree”), most students responded with a very positive rating. The seventh
grade girls and eighth grade boys and girls gave positive answers that were close to 1
(“strongly agree”). The overall mean for all current seventh and eighth grade students is
1.3. These results clearly show that current choir students enjoy the things they do in
choir class. What was being taught and how it was being taught may be influencing
students to remain in choir class.

Questions 26, 27, and 28 asked students to give their perceptions of whether they
felt singing was appropriate for both sexes, male and female, or one over the other.
Question twenty-six was “I think that singing is just as much for girls as for boys.”
Lower numbered responses indicated that students felt that singing was for everyone.
The seventh grade overall mean was 1.5, directly between “strongly agree” (1) and
“agree” (2). The boys’ mean of 1.7 and the girls’ mean of 1.3 also fell between the 1 and
2 ratings. The eighth grade overall mean was 1.4, with a boys’ mean of 1.3 and a girls’
mean of 1.5. When combined, all seventh and eighth grade responses to 26 resulted in a
mean of 1.5. The standard deviation for question 26 was .9. Because the students
believed that singing was just as much for girls as for boys, students in the choral
program should not have felt that they did not belong based on their gender.

Question 27, “I think that singing is mostly for boys” resulted in numerically high
answers. The means all were between 4 (“disagree”) and 5 (“strongly disagree”); the
higher the number, the more open-minded the student. The seventh grade overall mean
was 4.4, which is right between the boys’ mean of 4.2 and the girls’ mean of 4.6. The

eighth grade overall mean of 4.7 was the same as the girl’s mean of 4.7, and close to that

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of the boys’ at 4.6. All current choir students averaged a mean of 4.5 for question
twenty-seven. The range of standard deviation responses for question 27 was .5 to .8.
Therefore, the students disagree that singing was mostly for boys.

Question 28, “I think that singing is mostly for girls” must be interpreted in the
same manner as question 27, as it was fundamentally the same question. Results for
question 28 were similar to those for question 27, but are slightly lower. The seventh
grade overall mean was again between the boys’ mean of 4.0 (exactly “disagree”) and the
girls’ mean of 4.4 (between “disagree” and “strongly disagree”). The eighth grade
overall mean of 4.6 was between the girls’ mean of 4.7 and the boys’ mean of 4.5. When
all current choir students were combined, a mean of 4.3 was reached for question 28.
The overall standard deviation for question 28 was .9. Therefore, students disagree that
singing was mostly for girls.

Comparison of Survey Results of Former and Current Choir Students

The questions on surveys for current and former choir students were similarly
worded. Many of these yielded the same results from both the current and the former
choir students. Seven of the questions, however, resulted in very different overall means
from former and current choir students.

Environmental Factors

Former and current choir students gave similar answers to some questions asked
on the surveys. “Environmental factor” questions that resulted in similar answers were
mostly questions about family members and friends. Questions 15 and 22 resulted in

different responses from former and choir students.

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Question 15

Question 15 was identical on both surveys, whether for current or former choir
students. The question was, “When I am at home, someone in my family likes to listen to
me sing songs.” The overall mean for former choir students was 3.6, which is between
“neither agree nor disagree” and “disagree.” The overall mean for current choir students
is 2.7, which is between “agree” and “neither agree nor disagree.” These results would
suggest that students who remained in choir had family members who enjoyed listening
and encouraged them to sing. The encouragement may have contributed to their
remaining in choir. It is unclear from the former choir students’ responses whether
someone at home does not like to listen to them sing, or if they simply are not singing at
home.

Question 22

Question 22 was almost identically worded on the surveys for both sets of
students. However, the former choir students’ survey forms question 22 in past tense:
“My friends approved of my singing in choir.” The current choir students’ survey forms
question 22 in present tense: “My friends approve of my singing in choir.” The overall
mean for former choir students was 2.7, which is between “agree” and “neither agree nor
disagree.” The overall mean for current choir students was 1.9, which is between
“strongly agree” and “agree.” Most students felt or did feel some sort of approval from
friends when they participated in choir, or as they are participating. However, these
results suggest that the current choir students feel more support from friends about their

participating in choir, than former choir students felt from theirs when they did belong.

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Feelings of support may be influential enough for students to continue or re-consider
participation in choir class.
Personal Factors

“Personal factor” questions that resulted in similar answers included questions
about class choices, singing perception, voice changes, and class activities. Questions
one, eight, 12, 13, and 18 resulted in different responses from former and choir students.

Question One

Question one was worded differently for former and current choir students, but
both pertain to students’ enjoyment of singing. The former choir students were asked, “I
don’t want to be in choir because I don’t like to sing.” Student responses resulted in an
overall mean of 3.0, “neither agree nor disagree.” The current choir students were asked,
“I want to be in choir because I love to sing.” Student responses to this question resulted
in an overall mean of 1.7, which is between “strongly agree” and “agree.” It could be
determined from these results that current students returned to choir in largely because
they love to sing. A person may think that if the current students loved to sing, then
perhaps former students did not like it. These results do not indicate that the former choir
students disliked singing; some enjoyed singing. However, the extent to which the
former students enjoyed it was less. Therefore, it could be assumed that singing
enjoyment was not necessarily the single reason for former choir students to discontinue
with choir class, but it may have contributed to their failure to re-enroll.

Question Eight

Question eight asked current and former choir students about their decisions of

whether to re-enroll in choir class in connection with the “skills” classes. Current choir

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students were asked to respond to, “I joined choir because I did not want the “skills”
classes.” The majority of students who responded to this question indicated that they did
not join choir to avoid the “skills” classes, although a few students did choose choir for
this reason. Former choir students were asked to respond to, “I did not join choir because
I wanted the “skills” classes.” The responses given indicated that the former choir
students did not take choir because they wanted the “skills” classes.

Question 12

As with question 22, question 12 asked former and current choir students the
same question, but one asked in past tense and one in present tense, respectively. “I
enjoyed learning how to read music” was question 12. The former choir students’ overall
mean was 3.1, between “neither agree nor disagree” and “disagree.” The current choir
students’ overall mean was 2.2, which was between “agree” and “neither agree nor
disagree.” These results indicated that the former choir students did not enjoy learning to
read music as much as the current choir students. In fact, the former students may have
disliked enough that it became a negative influential factor when deciding whether to
remain in choir. Because the current choir students’ responses to question 12 were
positive, it could be assumed that the current students did enjoy this learning activity.

Question 13

In question thirteen, students were asked about their enjoyment of music theory.
The same question was posed to former and current choir students, with the exception of
being worded in past or present tense, “I liked it when the teacher explained to us all
about the notes of the songs we sang.” Former choir students’ overall mean was 3.1

(between “neither agree nor disagree” and “disagree”) and the current choir students’

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overall mean was 2.3 (between “agree” and “neither agree nor disagree”). As discussed
with question 12, these results suggest that current choir students enjoyed learning about
music theory than did former choir students. Again, it is a possibility that this type of
class work negatively influenced former choir students; however, it did not appear to be
the primary factor in the decision to not continue with choir. Current choir students
indicated that they did enjoy learning music theory within class, so it is possible that this
class work is part of the reason students returned to choir.

Question 18

Activities outside of class time, such as concerts and festivals, are important
aspects of choir. Question 18 asked former and current choir students (adjusting the past
and present tenses), “I enjoyed singing in the concerts and at choral festival.” The overall
mean for former choir students was 2.9, which was between “agree” and “neither agree
nor disagree.” The overall mean for current choir students was 1.7, which was between
“strongly agree” and “agree.” Most current choir students enjoyed the concerts and/or
choral festival and these events may have been influential in students’ decisions to return
to choir. However, the former choir students’ mean was higher than that of the current
students which suggested that former choir students did not enjoy these events as much as
current students. Because the former students’ mean was quite close to “3” (“neither
agree nor disagree”), required participation in concerts and/or festival may have
influenced some of the students to not continue with choir.

Summary
Overall, former and current choir students responded to many survey questions in

similar ways. Generally, these students were raised in homes with parents and siblings

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who did not sing in choirs, but music was not unheard of at home. Almost all of the
students surveyed, whether former or current, preferred choir over band class, and the
former students agreed that they did not discontinue with choir to take band. Current
choir students agreed that they did not choose choir to avoid the “skills” classes, and
many former choir students agreed that wanted to participate in the “skills” classes
instead of choir.

The majority of students surveyed agreed that they were not teased because of [
their involvement with choir, and former students did not discontinue with choir because

of being teased. In addition, overall, students felt that singing was an appropriate activity

 

for boys and for girls. Responses indicated that the choir teacher was a positive aspect of
choir, for both former and current choir students, and that she was not a reason for former
students’ discontinuing with the class. Students, overall, felt that the choir teacher made
them feel like an important part of the class.

Current choir students indicated that they generally enjoyed learning to read
music and learning music theory. Although these activities were not favorites of the
former choir students, some students did enjoy the learning in choir. However, both
current and former choir students agreed that they most enjoyed activities that involved
movement, class participation, and other group activities. The majority of current choir
students indicated that singing was a favorite activity, whether in class or with the radio.
Former choir students did not necessarily enjoy singing in general, but did say that
singing with the radio was an aspect of singing that they enjoyed.

Current choir students enjoy singing, performing in concerts, and learning about

aspects of music. It could be concluded that these students feel that choir is fun and

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educational and is something they enjoy focusing their energy on. The former choir
students tended to not enjoy singing and were less sure of their singing ability. In
addition they tended to be bored by activities of choir class. It could be concluded that
the former choir students would rather focus their energy and attention on projects of
interest to them, which would not be a music class.

In surveys, there were differences between current and former choir students.
Former students enjoyed singing in choir less and felt less confident of their singing

abilities than current choir students. Also, many former choir students joined choir

 

initially to avoid enrolling in band, whereas, current choir students seemed to have

 

TL‘ “1!.“

initially joined choir because they wanted to enroll in choir rather than in band. There
also appears to be disparity between the former and current choir students regarding
activities in choir. Former choir students were more negative about sight-reading, music

theory, concerts, and festivals than were current choir students.

‘\1\

CHAPTER FIVE
Student Interviews
Former Choir Students

The discussion of student interviews will begin with interviews of seventh and
eighth grade former choir students. Eight students (seven boys and one girl) were
interviewed privately for detailed information on why they chose not to remain in choir in
the seventh and/or eighth grade. The researcher transcribed each taped interview and
identified each student’s responses as “environmental” or “personal” factors that may
have influenced his or her decision of whether to remain in choir.

After the disclaimer was read, students were asked to identify their current grade
level and their gender. To learn where the student had attended sixth grade, question one
asked, “What was the name of your sixth grade school?” Seven of the former choir
students interviewed attended Beagle Middle School in the sixth grade and one eighth
grade boy attended North Elementary School for sixth grade. Question two was, “Were
you in choir in sixth grade?” and was designed for the researcher to understand the
student’s recent background with choir. If the student was in band in sixth grade, he or
she may have approached the questions differently than a student who had been in choir
since the sixth grade. The same seven former choir students who had attended Beagle
Middle School in the sixth grade were all in choir that year. The one student who did not
attend Beagle Middle School in the sixth grade was in band during his sixth grade year at
North Elementary School.

Question three asked, “If yes, what do you remember about choir when you were

in the sixth grade?” All former choir students who participated in choir in sixth grade

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are

discussed various class and concert activities in their responses to question three. One
seventh grade boy said, “I remember every Wednesday we would do 8 Listening Log and
we’d sing all the time.” Another student, an eighth grade boy, commented that, “We had
to sing songs. We had a lot of concerts,” and a seventh grade boy simply stated, “Singing
a lot.” The eighth grade girl interviewed remembered, “We always did warm-ups. And
we had to do lots of concerts.” One seventh grade boy’s response to question three
seemed to be justifying why he did not take choir after the sixth grade. His answer was,
“It was fun and I like to sing, but I wanted to try a skills class.” The former choir students
remembered a number of class activities when answering question three, and the majority
of answers involved “singing.”

Question four, “Do you remember why you chose choir in the sixth grade?”
resulted in six out of the eight former choir students interviewed saying they chose choir
to avoid band, which was their only other Option. One seventh grade boy said, “Because
I didn’t really want to play, like, the instruments in band. I didn’t think it was really fun,
so I wanted to sing.” An eighth grade student'knew exactly why he chose choir over
band, “Because they wouldn’t let me play the drums in band.” One student, a seventh
grade boy, said that he chose choir because, “I heard it was easier and a lot more fun.”
Family influence also surfaced. One student stated, “Because I thought it’d be better than
band and my brother was in choir in sixth grade.”

The one student who did not attend sixth grade and Beagle Middle School, and
who also chose band over choir in the sixth grade was the only student asked question

five. “If you did not take choir in the sixth grade, why not?” This eighth grader’s

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response was, “Because, really, I didn’t feel like it and I just wanted to play an instrument
at the time.”

All eight of the former choir students interviewed answered “Beagle Middle
School” to question six, which was, “What was the name of your seventh grade school?”
However, the results for question seven, “Were you in choir in seventh grade?” were
exactly the opposite from question two. Seven of the students interviewed (the seven

who were in choir at Beagle Middle School in the sixth grade) responded “no” when

 

asked about choir in seventh grade. The one student who was in band, at North

Elementary School in the sixth grade, responded “yes” to question seven. Therefore,

question eight, “If yes, why did you choose to take choir in the seventh grade?” was only
addressed to that one eighth grade boy. His response was:

Because I had no other options. In seventh grade when me and my mom moved

from Arizona back here, she said that I took it at that school so I can play in band

anywhere. Came here and started the first week in band and then the band teacher
was like, “You can’t play any instruments here. Like, you are three years behind
in music, so we need to get you switched.” I said, “Okay.” All the skills classes
were all filled up and all that was left was choir.”

Question nine addressed the seven students who did not take choir in the seventh
grade. “If you did not take choir in seventh grade, why not?” The students’ responses to
question nine could be divided into two groups. The first group wanted to try classes
other than choir. The eighth grade girl interviewed stated that, “I wanted to try new

classes.” A seventh grade boy commented, “I wanted to try different things and see what

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the other classes were like.” An eighth grade boy answered similarly, “I was more
interested in the encore classes.”

The other group of students who answered question nine did not choose choir
because they do not like to sing. When asked why he didn’t take choir in seventh grade,
an eighth grade boy simply said, “I don’t like singing.” Another eighth grade boy said,
“Because I wasn’t very good at singing and I didn’t like it very much.”

Question ten was, “What do you remember about your choir experience in the
seventh grade?” which was only addressed to the eighth grade boy who was in choir in
seventh grade. His response was vague and identified “having fun” as his answer.

Question 11 was addressed only to the eighth grade former choir students, “If you
are currently an eighth grader, why did you choose to not take choir in the eighth grade?”
The responses to question 1 l and reasons for not taking choir in the eighth grade relate to
three main themes: personal, peers, and class exploration. The first, personal reasons. is
expressed in the following eighth grade boy response, “Because I don’t like to sing.” The
second idea, peers, is clear in another eighth grade boy’s response, “Because I wanted to
be with all my friends.” The third, class exploration, was the most common response
discussed by former choir eighth grade students as to why they did not choose choir in
the eighth grade. One eighth grade boy stated, “For the same reason in seventh. I just
wanted to try new classes and stuff.” Another boy said, “Because I was more interested
in the encore classes.” The eighth grade girl interviewed said, “I liked the other classes.”

In question 12, students were asked, “What did you like best about choir?” Many
class activities were named in the responses to question 12, and although there were no

main themes identified by all students’ answers, “singing” was often mentioned. One

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eighth grade boy responded, “We sang fun songs. “Back to the Sixties.” That was pretty
fun to sing that.” A seventh grade boy also named singing as what he liked best,
“Probably singing. I liked the Moses songs.” Another student, an eighth grade boy, said
that his favorite part of choir was, “The part where we got to dance.” A seventh grade
former choir students said, “That we got to do a lot of singing and we didn’t have to be as
quiet in that class as every other class.” One of the seventh grade boys commented,
“Singing and doing games. Well, we used to play bingo...choir bingo, where you had to
do all, name all the letters.” And yet, another eighth grade boy said that his favorite part
of choir was, “That we got candy.” Only one student, an eighth grade boy mentioned his
peers in his answer to question 12. He said, “I just had fun and some of my friends were
in it.”

In question 13, former choir students were asked “What do you like least about
choir?” Although two students answered, “Nothing” to question 13, the majority of
former choir students identified class activities for their responses. Two eighth grade
boys said, “That we had to sing” and “The concerts” for what they enjoyed least about
choir. Another student, a seventh grade boy, said that he disliked “Listening Logs,”
which are completed once a week in choir class. A second seventh grade boy
commented, “Probably, like, writing. Like doing notes, like writing notes. It was not
really that fun.” A third seventh grade boy did not seem very interested in anything
happening in choir class, “Just not really doing anything. Just doing, like, the same old
stuff like, every single day so it got kind of boring. Like, keep practicing singing after a

while got kind of boring.” Therefore, it could be assumed that the activities within choir

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lit

class and associated with the class (such as evening concerts) were influential factors that
may have led these particular students to not re-enrolling in choir.

Question 14 of the interview inquired about the influence of the choir teacher on
the decision to not continue with choir. “You knew that Mrs. Sweet would be your choir
teacher. Has she been a part of your decision to not join choir and if so, how or why?”
All eight former choir students interviewed responded “N o” to question 14. These
students did not feel that the teacher was part of their decision to not join choir. One
seventh grade boy said, “No, she’s not part of it. She’s actually a pretty good teacher.”
An eighth grade boy answered, “She was part of it to join choir because she seemed
nice.” This student was then asked, “Was she a part of it to not join choir?” to which he
responded, “No. I just didn’t want to sing anymore.”

For question 15, students were asked, “How has music been a part of your life as
you have grown up?” Three of the students interviewed did not feel that music has been
a part of their life, outside of school music programs. One of these eighth graders said,
“It hasn’t really. Just in sixth grade, I was in choir. Then I wasn’t really interested.”
However, not all of the former choir students interviewed shared these sentiments. One
seventh grade boy responded, “I’ve just grown up by it and it’s run in my family, just my
cousin’s tradition and stuff. So, we listen to it all the time. I got attached to it since I was
little.” Another student, an eighth grade boy, answered question 15 confidently, “My
grandma can sing really good. My mom can sing really really good. My dad can sing
and I just inherited it all!”

“What do your friends or family say about you being in choir?” was question 16.

Responses to question 16 were, overall, positive for students’ involvement in choir.

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Some of the students said that family or friends did not comment on their being in choir.
One eighth grade boy commented, “They liked me being in choir. I really didn’t hear
anything.” Another student said, “Um. . .they didn’t.” A seventh grade boy disclosed his
opinion of his singing abilities within his answer to question 16, “They just thought it was
a good idea, because they thought I had a good singing voice, but I don’t.” Although one
eighth grade boy received positive response from friends and family for his being in
choir, he apparently did not continue with choir in eighth grade because his friends did
notconfinue:

They like it and l was like, yeah, it’s fun. And that was my mom. She was, like,

. “Are you planning on staying in it?” I was like, “Yeah, depending on who’s all in
it next year.” Because I want to be with my friends.
Another seventh grade boy revealed his family’s preference for choir over band in his
comments, “They said. . .hope you’re having fun and they liked me better in choir than
band.”

Question 17 asked former choir students, “Tell me about why you do or do not
like to sing.” Four of the eight former choir students interviewed were negative about
their singing abilities in their answers to question 17. One eighth grade boy said, “I like
to sing, but I don’t think I have a very good voice.” A different eighth grade boy
commented, “Because I’m not good at it and I kind of get embarrassed when people hear
me sing.” A third eighth grade boy, responded while laughing, “Because I’m not good at
it!” The eighth grade girl interviewed said, “I don’t really think I’m that good of a
singer.” Another eighth grade boy interpreted question 17 as asking him about singing in

a choir class:

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Really, the songs. I couldn’t like...when I first started out, I was an alto, or
whatever. I couldn’t really sing high, so I just kind of lip-synched it all. Then I
got moved to baritone. And then, from there on I was having fun. But other than
that, I didn’t like singing the songs we were singing. They were, like, too slow.
Stuff like that. I’m into hip-hop and R&B now. They were just like, an issue.
It could be assumed that this eighth grade boy’s voice changed when he was in seventh
grade choir. Repertoire given to this all-boy’s class was typically two-part music,
whether SA or TB voicing. The unchanged voices or those beginning to change were
assigned to the alto (bottom) line of the music and the boys with voices more changed
were assigned to follow the soprano (tOp) line of music, down the octave. Gentlemen
were voice tested after each concert, and apparently, this boy’s voice changed between
voice testings. One of the seventh grade former choir students indicated that he enjoys
singing, even though he is not in choir, “I like to sing because you can just open up and
sing really anything you want.”

The final question interviewers asked was question 18, “Tell me how you see
singing or music as a part of your life in the future.” Most of the students interviewed
said that they did not see music as a part of their lives in the future, “I don’t. . .think I’ll
ever sing again.” One seventh grade boy said:

It’s not gonna really be a part of my life in the future. I’m just gonna, like, not

take band or choir because...like...it’s not really fun. I wanted, like...it’s an easy

grade and all that. I’d just like to take other classes.
Although these students are not currently in choir, two of them can see music as a part of

their future. One seventh grade boy said, “I could see myself and music being a DJ.”

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An eighth grade boy explained, “Well, it’s good to know all the stuff she taught me so,
like, I can sing it. At special events, like my sister’s wedding and my wedding. At stuff
like that.”

Current Choir Students

This portion of the discussion of student interviews includes interviews of seventh
and eighth grade current choir students. Seven students (three boys and four girls) were
interviewed privately for detailed information on why they chose to remain in choir in the
seventh and/or eighth grade.

Questions five and nine asked the current choir students about why they did not
take choir in the sixth or seventh grades; however all current choir students were in choir
for grades six and seven. Therefore, these questions will not be addressed within this
discussion.

Also, a problem arose in the interview with regards to asking question 11. The
staff members who conducted the interviews mistakenly asked the current eight grade
choir students questions that were written for former eighth grade choir students. Even
though most of the questions for current and former choir students were similar, question
11 for current choir students, “If you are currently an eighth grader, why did you choose
to take choir in the eighth grade?” was not on the question list for former choir students.
Because of this mistake, no current eighth grade choir students were asked question 1 l,
which was intended specifically for them on the current choir student interview question
sheet. Therefore, there are no results for question 1 1.

At the beginning of each interview, the disclaimer was read and students were

asked to identify their current grade level and their gender. To learn where the student

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had attended sixth grade, question one asked, “What was the name of your sixth grade
school?” All current choir students interviewed attended Beagle Middle School in the
sixth grade. Question two was, “Were you in choir in sixth grade?” and was designed for
the researcher to understand the student’s recent background with choir. If the student
was in band in sixth grade, he or she may have approached the questions differently than
a student who had been in choir since the sixth grade. All current choir students
interviewed were in choir at Beagle Middle School in the sixth grade.

Question three was, “If yes, what do you remember about choir when you were in
the sixth grade?” The current choir students’ responses to this question belonged to three
themes: experiences, learning, and peers. The experiences that students discussed
included performing on concerts and singing songs, especially Christmas songs. One
seventh grade girl remembered, “The concerts. And the songs that we learned. Especially
the Christmas songs. I really liked those.” Another seventh grade boy commented on his
sixth grade choir experience:

It was fun. I remember I like to sing the songs that we did at the. . .I liked the

concerts and stuff. How she did it. They, like, the songs, they were just, like

more energetic and stuff and they started out fun.
An eighth grade boy, in his third year of middle school choir, commented on personal
experiences and learning that occurred, in addition to class experiences while in sixth
grade choir:

Um...sixth grade, I remember that my voice started changing a little bit and that I

was on the alto side the whole year. And that choir concerts were really, really

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"RE-Ff

fun and that it was a really good choir. And that we learned to read music a lot

and learned a lot of things.

In addition to discussing concerts and songs, some students remembered what
they had learned in sixth grade choir. One eighth grade girl commented, “I just
remember it being, like, really fun and how we learned to do a bunch of new stuff. Like,
we learned how to make our vowels better and learned how to read music exactly. It was
fun!” Another eighth grade girl responded similarly, “That we started out learning all the
basic stuff, basic music, and just worked our way up from there.”

Three current choir students responded to question three by discussing their peers.
However, these two responses were quite different. A seventh grade girl answered, “It
was really fun because we got to sing with our friends and we all had a really good time.”
An eighth grade boy responded, “I remember there was a lot of people and we had some
fun, but there were a lot of people who were joking around a lot and didn’t really want to
be in choir.” An eighth grade boy remembered, “Me and Andrew were kind of, we
always sat next to each other and sounded a lot alike.”

Question four asked, “Do you remember why you chose choir in the sixth grade?”
There were three main themes to the answers for question four: love of singing, family,
and not wanting band class. One eighth grade girl simply answered, “Because I love to
sing.” Family influence played a part in a seventh grade girl’s participation in choir,
whose answer to question four was, “Because my sister was in choir and she always said
how fun it was, so I wanted to try it out too.” An eighth grade boy also commented on
family and choir, “One of the reasons was my older brother had been in choir in sixth

grade and I couldn’t play instruments very well in elementary school.” This comment

about playing instruments was not uncommon in answers to question four. Some of the
students who chose choir in the sixth grade attributed it, in some way, to band class. One
seventh grade girl commented on her choosing choir in sixth grade, “I just wanted to try
something new, but I wasn’t sure if I wanted to take band.” An eighth grade boy’s
response to question four was, “Yeah, because, I didn’t really want to be in band. And I
had taken choir in elementary school and I really liked it and Iheard that Mrs. Sweet was
good.” Another seventh grade boy approached choir because of band, in a different way
from his peers, “Well, my first choice was band. Except, I really couldn’t afford to, you
know, be in band. So I decided that I’d be in choir. But...and...after, I am glad I really
did take choir, cause I really like it.”

“What was the name of your seventh grade school?” was question six, to which
all current choir students interviewed responded, “Beagle Middle School.” Question
seven asked, “Were you in choir in seventh grade?” and all current choir students
interviewed responded “yes.” Therefore, all current choir students who were interviewed
chose choir class whenever it was offered in middle school.

Question eight asked, “If yes, why did you choose to take choir in the seventh
grade?” Because the students interviewed had all been in choir in the sixth grade, they
were able to reflect on their sixth grade experiences when deciding whether to take choir
in the seventh grade. According to student responses, sixth grade experiences did
influence this decision for some students. One seventh grade girl commented, “Because
last year was really fun and she would teach us to learn some moves and dance and stuff.
I thought I’d try it out” and a second seventh grade girl said, “I really liked it in sixth

grade and I thought that I should keep doing it.” A seventh grade boy interviewed

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commented, “Well it was. . .I liked it a lot last year so I decided and it’d be probably more
fun this year. Since we. . .it’d be, like new songs and stuff like that.”

According to responses to question eight, experiences with the choir teacher and
enjoyment of singing also influenced students to choose choir again in the seventh grade.
Two eighth grade girls commented, “Pretty much the same reasons. Because I love to
sing and the teacher was cool. I liked her and stuf .” and “I enjoyed singing and I liked
the teacher and the people that were in the class.”

The year that the interviewed eighth grade students were seventh graders, choir
classes were split by gender. Third hour choir was boys and sixth hour choir was girls. It
was possible to sort the classes that way for one year because of the size of the classes.
Before that and since then, those classes each remain combined choirs of boys and girls.
The opportunity to participate in an “all-boy” choir was an important factor in the re-
enrollment in choir of two eighth grade boys. One eighth grade boy said:

Because in sixth grade I really liked it and I liked the concerts at the high school.

And I thought that I did a good job so I wanted to do it again. And when we got

into seventh grade, we had an all-boys choir and I liked that.

Another eighth grade boy commented, “Because I heard that we’d have an opportunity to
be an all-guy’s choir and I just thought it’d be fun.”

Question ten asked, “What do you remember about your choir experiences in the
seventh grade?” Answers to question ten belonged to three main themes: class activities,
peer behavior, and improvement of singing. One eighth grade girl stated, “We just
worked on more stuff we didn’t learn in sixth grade and harder stuff.” The eighth grade

boy who commented earlier on peers and sharing a sixth grade choir class with people

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who he felt did not belong there, commented again on peer behavior when asked about
his experiences in seventh grade choir, “It was a little bit better because some of the
people who didn’t really want to be in choir were gone, so it was a lot more fun, but there
were still some people who didn’t act like it.”

The most responses to question ten were related to observations of singing
improvement as students developed, individually and as choirs. One seventh grade girl
responded, “Well, at first we all started out and we really weren’t together and but now
we’re starting to come together a little more. And we are used to each other’s voices.”
One eighth grade girl commented, “I remembered, it like, because everyone’s voices
were changing, it started getting a lot...the sound started getting a lot more...better. And
like, everyone was becoming a better singer.” One eighth grade boy commented again on
being a part of an all-boy choir:

I remember that it was an all-boys choir and that was, kind of fun. And my voice

was changing and we weren’t with the girls, so that was easier. (laughs) And it

was a small class, so we got to do a lot of stuff. And I remember going to festival
and us getting a “2” and not a “.”3

Question 12 was, “What do you like best about choir?” The responses to question
12 were very similar, in that the students generally enjoy singing and taking part in
activities associated with choir. The comments for question 12 included, “I liked going
to festival and I like doing the concerts” and “That I like to sing so I enjoy coming to this
class.” The teacher was influential to one student, “I like that Mrs. Sweet is really nice.
That we learn a lot from her. And we get to sing different parts.” One eighth grade

student looked at her being in choir as a special thing, “The singing part and, like, if you

”4

 

sing out loud nobody makes fun of you. Like if you go outside and sing, people are, like,
oh! You’re in choir!” One seventh boy’s comments seem to encompass all of the
response categories for question 12, “I like the singing. I like what we do, like warm-ups
and I like...it’s just fun to be in choir. All around.” The majority of answers to question
12 involved positive feelings towards singing. It could be assumed that the current choir
students returned to choir class largely because of their enjoyment of singing and
participating in class activities.

“What do you like least about choir” was question 13. Two seventh grade
students, one boy and one girl, responded that they liked everything in choir. The boy
commented, “I don’t think I really dislike anything at all, really. I like all of it, you
know?” The seventh grade girl stated, “I really like everything. I like it all.” Although
these two students enjoy all parts of choir, other current choir students identified aspects
of choir class that they did not care for. Three students simply stated, “Sightreading”
when asked question 13. Two students did not discuss class activities when asked what
they disliked, but rather, discussed the behavior of their peers as a negative aspect of
choir. An eighth grade boy who has been previously quoted with comments about his
peers’ behavior in choir class, said, “There’s still a couple people who kind of goof
around in class and it kind of wastes a lot of our time.” Although some current choir
students did identify negative aspects of choir, such as specific class activities and
behavior of peers, these aspects did not negatively impact students enough for them to
not re-enroll in choir class.

Question 14 asked students about their choir teacher and her influence on their

joining choir, “You knew that Mrs. Sweet would be your choir teacher. Has she been a

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part of your decision to join choir and if so, how or why?” All responses to question 14
were very positive, in favor of the teacher. One seventh grade boy said, “Yes, because
she does stuff that’s a lot more fun than maybe some other teachers, other choir teachers.
So that really...that is...helps the decision for coming back to choir.” One seventh grade
girl discussed her relationship with the teacher:
Yes, she’s a part of it. She’s my first choir teacher and she’s really nice. And I
was new to Grand Ledge two years ago, I told her a lot and she was, like, helping
me to get through it. Telling me everything would be all right.
Another seventh grade girl agreed that the teacher was one of the reasons for joining 2. ~-
choir again. “Yes, she has because I like having her as a teacher because she’s really neat
and has fun ideas to share with us, and I know I’ve learned a lot from her.” It could be
assumed from the positive comments that the teacher was a positive factor in students’ re-
enrolling in choir class.
For insight into family background, these current choir students were asked
question 15, “How has music been a part of your life as you have grown up?” The
responses to question 15 could be divided into two themes. The first theme would
involve family influence of music on the students and the second theme would involve
personal factors and feelings about music as the students have grown up. Responses to
question 15 that reflect family influence would include one eighth grade girl’s statement,
“My dad is big into music, so I always sang with him.” Another response belonged to

one seventh grade boy:

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Well, when I was little my dad and sister used to sing a lot. I don’t know why.

But, they used to do that a lot. And depending on the song, I used to sing with

them. But, so I guess that helped a little.

Students who did not comment on family influence in their response to question 15
discussed how music has been important to them. One eighth grade boy commented,
“I’ve always been kind of musical, because I go around the house humming a lot and
whistling some tunes and stuff. And so it’s been kind of a big part of my life.” Another
eighth grade boy said, “In my free time I always listen to the radio and cd’s and when I’m
doing stuff, like cleaning my room or whatever, I’ll turn the radio on. So I like to listen
to it and it helps me.” A seventh grade girl described why she feels music is important:

Well, I think music is very important because if you don’t have music, then...you

have a lot of fun when you can play an instrument or when you sing. So if you

don’t have that, you might miss out on something.
It is clear from her comments that another girl, an eighth grade student, feels very
strongly about music, “I sing every day. It’s like, the only thing that can cheer me up
sometimes. So, when I sing in choir, I don’t know, it always makes me happy.”

Student responses to question 16, “What do your friends or family say about you
being in choir” varied but were mostly positive. One seventh grade girl discussed how
her family is interested in her choir performances:

My family always is, like, oh! When are you going to have a choir concert,

because I really want to go. My brother who lives in Detroit always wants to

come to the choir concerts. But you can’t come, because you are in Detroit! He’s

always like, but I want to come! Because he’s in a choir too, so...

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Some students responded simply to question 16, “They liked that I was in choir,” or
“They think it’s great for me to be in choir.” One eighth grade boy discussed how he is
sharing new experiences with his family by his being in choir, “My mom’s family really
likes it because when they were in school, they weren’t in choir or anything. So it’s kind
of new to them. They like it a lot.”

One student, a seventh grade boy, felt that people did not really comment on his
being in choir, “Nothing. They don’t discourage me or anything. They like me to be in
choir because my sisters have been in choir. So, but my friends. . .most of my friends are
in choir too, so. . An eighth grade boy commented that his father did not have much to
say about his being in choir, but his brothers did. “My dad really didn’t say anything, but
my brothers kind of made fun of me for wanting to be in choir, a little bit.”

Question 17 was “Tell me about why you like to sing.” Student answers to
question 17 involved three themes: performing, learning, and music as an emotional
outlet. Two students answered very similarly, discussing how they enjoy performing.
One of the students, a seventh grade boy, stated, “I just like to do it. I like the concerts
and stuff. To sing to all the people.” The other student, an eighth grade boy, commented,
“I like to sing because...well, I think I’m pretty good at it. And I think it’s fun and I like
to sing in front of people.”

Some of the students interviewed gave “emotional” answers to question 17. One
student, a seventh grade girl, said, “I like to sing because it expresses my feelings through
song. And if there are words sometimes it all comes out. So, I get into the song.
Everybody else is doing it, so I do it too!” Another girl, an eighth grader, responded

similarly, “I don’t know. It just makes me happier because it kind of just takes me away

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from all my problems for a while.” A third student, another seventh grade girl,
commented, “I like to sing because it comforts me when I’m sad or in any mood and I
enjoy it a lot. Because it just releases stress.”

Question 18 asked current choir students, “Tell me how you see singing or music
as a part of your life in the future.” The majority of responses indicated that students see
themselves involved with music through listening and perhaps as a choir member later in
life. One of the seventh grade girls said “I’ll always sing later in my life and it will
always be a part of me because it’s something that is very good to have and I don’t want
to lose it.” A seventh grade boy stated, “I don’t know. I might, in high school, I might
be in choir. I probably won’t pick a singing career. But in high school I probably will be
in a choir, or whatever singing group they have.” Another eighth grade student
commented on his willingness to sing in the future, but to not build a career out of it. “I
think that I would like to sing in choir later in my life, and I guess that’s it.” One eighth
grade girl plans to make music her life goal. “I would love to sing in my future. Just,
like, yeah, that’s basically what my life is about. I love to sing.” Whether or not these
current choir students embark on a music career, many of them will enjoy music in
different ways. One of the eighth grade boys said:

I think it will be big for me in the future, because, like, if I have a stressed out

day, I will just go up in my room and listen to music and stuff. It kind of calms

me down and stuff.
Comparison of Interview Results of F ormer and Current Choir Students
The interview questions posed to current and former choir students were similarly

worded. From the eighteen questions asked, several resulted in similar responses from

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former and current choir students. Similar responses were given to questions three, ten,
12, 14, and 16, which included questions about specific years of choir participation, choir
enjoyment, the choir teacher, and family and friends responses to students’ participation
in choir. Six of the eighteen interview questions resulted in quite different responses
from former and current choir students. These questions, four, eight, 13, 15, 17, and 18,
will be presented here.

Reasons for Joining Choir

Interview question four was the same for current and former choir students, “Do
you remember why you chose choir in the sixth grade?” The majority of former choir
students interviewed responded that they chose choir in sixth grade so they would not
have to take band class, which was their only other option in sixth grade. Current choir
students’ responses did include some comments about band; however, these comments
also included one student who wanted to take band instead of choir in sixth grade.
Because of the costs involved with playing an instrument, this student switched to choir
and stayed for two years, so far. This student said in his interview, “I am glad I really did
take choir, because I really like it.” Other responses to interview question four from
current choir students included, “Because I love to sing,” as well as discussion of other
family members having participated in choir. It could be concluded that some of the
students who discontinued with choir only joined in the first place to avoid being in band,
whereas current choir students mostly joined to be a part of choir.

Students were asked if they were in choir in seventh grade in question seven. If
they responded “yes,” students were then asked why they chose choir in the seventh

grade. Only one former choir student answered question eight, and he responded that he

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only joined choir because he had no other choices. This student moved into the district in
the middle of the year. He was not trained well enough to participate in band, and the
“skills” classes were full. He only spent one year in choir at Beagle Middle School,
quitting as soon as he had the opportunity. The current choir students chose choir again
based on past experiences (sixth grade choir), the choir teacher, and the opportunity to
participate in choirs split by gender. Responses to question eight could be interpreted to
mean, as with question four, that the former choir student took choir in the seventh grade
only because he had to and the current choir students remained in choir specifically for
the choral experience.

Least Enjoyed Aspects of Choir

Former and current choir students’ responses to question thirteen, “What do you
like least about choir?” identified different aspects of choir class. The majority of former
choir students identified class activities as what they liked least about choir. Activities
named included singing, concerts, listening logs, music theory, and the “daily routine.”
Many current choir students said that there was nothing that they disliked about choir.
However, some students identified disliking one class activity, sight-reading, as well as
disliking the behavior of certain individuals during class time. It could be concluded
from these responses that the students within choir class enjoyed most of the activities
that occurred and may have stayed in choir to participate in the class activities. Those
activities that former choir students named as their least favorite were, for the most part,
frequent occurrences in choir class. If students were not enjoying these activities, then it

is understandable that these students did not re-enroll in choir class.

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Music ’5 Role within Students’ Development

Question fifteen asked all students that were interviewed, “How has music been a
part of your life as you have grown up?” The responses of former choir students were
divided. One group felt that their year in sixth grade choir was their only experience with
music and that music had not been a part of their lives growing up. The other group of
former choir students gave examples of family members who were involved in music or
who sang to them as children. Therefore, according to these responses, former choir
students came from households at opposite ends of the spectrum. From interview
responses of former choir students, it seems that home musical background does not
determine whether children will participate in music classes when they are older.

The current choir students’ responses to question fifteen also belonged to two
themes of ideas, but they somewhat different from those of former choir students. One
group, as with the former students, discussed families’ involvement with music and how
these students sang and were sung to as children. Within the interviews, current choir
students tended to mention siblings’ participation with music more than former choir
students. The other responses to question fifteen focused on what music meant to the
studentsas a means of personal expression. These interview responses suggested that the
current choir students held music in very high regard. One eighth grade girl said about
music, “I sing every day. It’s like, the only thing that can cheer me up sometimes. So,
when I sing in choir, I don’t know, it always makes me happy.” It could be assumed
from these responses that the current choir students tended to have musical backgrounds

and have clear ideas of what music means to them. Perhaps the current choir students

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remained in choir because of their home musical background combined with their
personal feelings about music.

Singing Enjoyment

“Tell me why you like to sing” was interview question 17 for all current choir
students and “tell me about why you do or do not like to sing” was question 17 for former
choir students. The majority of former choir students responded in a negative way to this
question, suggesting that they did not have confidence in their singing abilities. They did
not like the songs that were taught in choir class. Current choir students’ responses were
much more positive and included answers that discussed students’ love of singing. Some
of these students also discussed how music was an emotional outlet for them. From the
responses given, it may be assumed that the majority of former choir students simply did
not enjoy singing, which may have been a leading factor in their decision to stop taking
choir. In addition, it may be assumed that the majority of current choir students
continued with choir because of their enjoyment of singing and music’s intrinsic value to
them.

Students’ Future with Music

The final interview question asked to all students was, “Tell me how you see
singing or music as a part of your life in the future.” The majority of responses from .
former choir students were that they did not see music in their futures, and many stated
that they probably would never sing again. Although one student would like to be a disc
jockey and another would like to sing in weddings in the future, the majority of responses

were negative. If these students did not see music as a part of their futures, than their

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stopping singing in choir so they could focus their energy and attention on projects that
they did see as beneficial to them in their lives is not surprising.

The majority of current choir students indicated that music would remain
important to them in the future. Many students acknowledged that they most likely
would not pursue a career in music but would listen to it, and many expressed a desire to
sing in choirs in high school and as adults. One student specifically said that she would
like a professional career in music. These current choir students seem to believe that
music is valuable to them in their lives, and, therefore, these beliefs were most likely
influential when deciding whether to continue with choir class.

Summary

Responses from student interviews offered insight into why students did or did
not continue with choir in middle school. The majority of students interviewed did not
mention that their parents sang in a choir, but the students who mentioned parents that did
sing at home were evenly distributed between former and current choir students. Former
choir students rarely mentioned sibling involvement with music but siblings of current
choir students tended to be mentioned as having participated in a choir.

The former choir students, with the exception of one, participated in choir for
sixth grade only. It could be assumed from responses to interview questions that the
former choir students did not really want to be in choir from the beginning. However,
between the choice of choir or band, these students chose choir for their sixth grade
school year. Following sixth grade, they chose the “skills” rotation, which they indicated
was a main reason for not taking choir in the seventh grade. The one student who did

take choir in the seventh grade was placed in choir by the school. From his interview, it

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became clear that, although he did well while he was in choir, he chose to leave the
following year to be with his friends in other classes. These former students expressed
their lack of interest in class activities and concerts, as well as a lack of confidence in
their singing abilities. When asked about the choir teacher, students agreed that she was
not a factor in their discontinuing with choir. In fact, one student said that she was a
reason for his joining choir in the sixth grade instead of band. The majority of former
choir students did not see themselves singing or working with music in the future, and a
number of them stated that they would probably never sing again.

The current choir students who were interviewed all chose choir in the sixth
grade, largely because the majority of these students enjoyed singing and music, and have
continued with choir to the present year. According to one seventh grade student, he
wanted to take band in the sixth grade, but because of financial reasons could not.
However, because he enjoyed choir as a sixth grader, he joined again the following year.
Many of the students agreed that they, too, enjoyed choir as a sixth grade student, so they
re-enrolled. Students indicated that singing, concerts, and other class activities were
positive aspects of the choir experience, and the majority of these current students
enjoyed singing very much. The majority of these current choir students indicated that
they would like to continue with music in the future, however, not necessarily as a career.
Many students plan to continue listening to music and singing, somehow, after middle

school.

 

CHAPTER SIX
Comparison of Student Survey Results with Student Interview Results

The surveys and interviews completed by former and current choir students offer
much insight into why students may choose to take or not take choir in the seventh and/or
eighth grades. Because of the differences in structure of the surveys and interviews, this
chapter will be divided into topics, based on the responses of students to survey and
interview questions. This discussion will combine responses from former choir students
and current choir students and only includes topics that were addressed both in the
surveys and the interviews.

Family Involvement with Music

Students were asked several questions about their musical background, especially
in regards to their family’s involvement with music. There were more questions on the
survey that pertained to this discussion than were included in the interviews. Survey
question six asked former and current choir students about their parents’ involvement in
choirs or singing. The results indicated that, although some students’ parents may have
sung in a choir, the majority of adults in former and current choir members’ families were
not involved much, if at all, in choirs. Although most parents did not sing in choirs,
singing did occur within homes of many students, but there was a difference between the
former and current choir students’ responses. According to the survey results of former
choir students, singing at home was not discouraged, but it was not a prominent activity
in their homes or during their upbringing. Singing was somewhat more prominent in the

homes of some current choir members, even if this was not the case for all.

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Former and current choir students were asked one interview question about how
music was a part of their lives growing up. One current choir student responded in the
interview, “My dad is big into music, so I always sang with him.” Another response
belonged to one seventh grade boy:

Well, when I was little my dad and sister used to sing a lot. I don’t know why.

But, they used to do that a lot. And depending on the song, I used to sing with

them. But, so I guess that helped a little.

There was much more information gathered on surveys than on interviews
regarding family’s involvement with music. However, the few comments that did
emerge in interviews were in support of survey results.

Survey question 23 asked former and current choir students about their brothers’
or sisters’ participation in choirs. Responses to survey question 23 indicated that former
and current choir students’ siblings tended to be more involved in choir than adults within
the family.

There were no interview questions asked focusing on siblings’ involvement with
choir. Only a few current choir students commented in response to other questions on
siblings’ participation in choir and how their brothers or sisters were influential in
encouraging their own participation in choir. One seventh grader commented, “Because
my sister was in choir and she always said how fun it was, so I wanted to try it out too.”
An eighth grade boy said, “One of the reasons was my older brother had been in choir in
sixth grade.”

Although the responses to survey and interview questions indicated that some

students’ siblings have participated in choir, the type of information gathered was

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somewhat different between the surveys and the interviews. The surveys suggested that
some of the former and current choir students did have siblings who sang in choirs, but
the only information from interviews about siblings focused on this involvement
influenced the current choir students to participate in choir. Therefore, the survey and
interview results should be referred to for different information.
Family ’s View of Participation in Choir

Survey question five was, “My parents/family wanted me to take choir.”

Responses to question five by former and current choir students indicated no opposition

from family members to students taking choir, but many also indicated no encouragement

 

to participate in music. Three additional survey questions asked students about reactions
of family members and friends to their participation in choir. , Student responses
suggested that family members and friends either were positive about their involvement
in choir or they did not give a reaction.

Former and current choir students were asked one interview question about family
members’ reactions to their participation in choir. A common response from former and
current choir students was, “I really didn’t hear anything.” However, one former choir
student revealed his family’s preference for choir over band, “They said. . .hope you’re
having fun and they liked me better in choir than band.” Current choir students’
responses included, “They liked that I was in choir,” and “They think it’s great for me to
be in choir.”

Responses given to survey and interview questions support that family members

of current and former choir students either responded positively to the students’

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participation in choir, or they did not respond at all. Interview responses indicated that
parents did not react negatively to current or former choir students’ participation in choir.

A number of survey questions gathered information on the occurrence of
derogatory remarks or teasing by friends or family members towards students who sing in
choir. Former and current choir students’ surveys indicated that students, overall, did not
feel that family members teased them for being in choir. The majority of students
surveyed agreed that family members did not make negative comments about boys or
girls who joined choir. Even though parents and siblings tended to not be involved in
music, particularly singing, they did not make derogatory remarks about people who were
involved with singing and choir.

There were no interview questions that specifically asked about the occurrence of
teasing for participation in choir. Only one student, an eighth grade boy currently in his
third year of choir, commented in his interview that his brothers teasing him for staying
in choir.

The survey results as a whole about teasing did not support the one interview
response about teasing. Although one student clearly endured teasing by his brothers for
singing, most students were not teased.

Peers

Former and current choir students were asked survey questions about friends’
reactions to their participation in choir. Their response indicated that students felt
approval and support from friends for their being in choir; they did not feel they were
teased. In addition, students did not feel that peers made negative comments, in general,

about boys or girls who joined choir.

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One eighth grade current choir student indicated in her interview that she did not
feel at risk for being teased for her participation in choir. “The singing part and, like, if
you sing out loud nobody makes fun of you. Like if you go outside and sing, people are,

'9’
C

like, oh! You’re in choir Survey and interview responses regarding being teased or
harassed for participation in choir support the conclusion that friends or peers did not
tease choir students.

-Former and current choir students were asked one survey question about whether
they joined choir to be with their friends. The majority of current choir members
surveyed indicated that they did not join choir to be with their friends, and, therefore,
friends did not seem to be the deciding factor in whether to take choir. However, some
former choir students did indicate on surveys that they did not join choir again because
their friends were not re-enrolling in the class.

The responses to interview questions were different between current and former
choir students. Current choir students never mentioned their peers when asked about why
they chose choir. When students were asked about what they remember about choir,
current choir members occasionally mentioned peers, but peers were never listed as a
reason for choosing the class. However, former choir students when asked what he had
enjoyed about choir said, “I just had fun and some of my friends were in it.” Another
eighth grade student, when asked why he did not choose to not take choir in the eighth
grade, responded, “Because I wanted to be with all my friends.”

Survey responses were similar to interview responses regarding peer influence

when deciding whether to join choir. Responses to survey and interview questions

support the conclusion that peers were not the deciding factor in the majority of current

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choir students’ decisions to remain in choir. In addition, responses to survey and
interview questions support the conclusion that peers were a deciding factor in former
choir students’ decisions to not continue with choir.

Singing Enjoyment

Both the survey and the interview inquired about students’ enjoyment of singing.
Former choir student responses to survey questions were divided into two groups. Half
of the former choir students indicated that they enjoyed singing and half indicated that
they did not enjoy singing. In addition, half of the former choir students did not like
singing in a choir and half did enjoy singing in a choir. However, according to the
surveys, the majority of former choir students did enjoy one aspect of singing, which was
singing with the radio, a non-performance-based activity. A majority of current choir
students responded positively to survey questions about singing and singing in a choir,
and also responded positively to questions about singing with the radio. Clearly,
although everyone enjoyed singing with the radio, those who remained in choir seemed to
enjoy singing in other contexts more than those who were no longer in choir.

One interview question specifically asked students about why they did (or did not)
like to sing. There were a variety of responses from former choir students; however any
negative responses were not about enjoyment of singing, but rather, were related to the
students’ perception of his or her voice. A former choir student who did enjoy singing
said, “I like to sing because you can just open up and sing really anything you want.”
The responses from current choir students were positive, as indicated by one seventh

grade student, “I like to sing because it expresses my feelings through song.”

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Information collected from survey and interview questions supported the
conclusion that some of the former choir students did enjoy singing and others did not.
Although the interview responses from former choir students did not discuss singing
within the choir class, they did support survey results that some former choir students did
enjoy singing. Information gathered also supported the conclusion that the majority of
current choir students enjoyed singing, in or outside of choir.

Perceived Singing Ability

On the survey, current and former choir students were asked if they thought they
sang well. The majority of current choir students responded positively to this and
indicated that they were good singers. However, survey results for former choir students
suggested that they were less confident in their singing abilities than current choir
students.

There were no interview questions specifically about perceived singing ability,
even though singing ability was discussed in responses to various interview questions.
One eighth grade current choir student said, “I like to sing because. . .well, I think I’m
pretty good at it.” Former choir students felt less confident about their singing abilities.
One eighth grade former choir student said, “I like to sing, but I don’t think I have a very
good voice.” A different eighth grade boy, formally in choir, commented, “Because I am
not good at it and I kind of get embarrassed when people hear me sing.” The eighth
grade girl, formally in choir said, “I don’t really think I’m that good of a singer.”

Responses from current choir students to survey and interview questions

suggested that the current choir singers were confident of their singing abilities. For

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former choir students, interview responses did suggest that former choir students were
less confident of their singing abilities.

The topic of “voice change” was presented to current and former choir students in
only one survey question. The majority of students surveyed indicated that their voice
change did not affect their participation in choir and was not a factor “for” or “against”
being in choir. However, because of the large standard deviation results, it appeared that
a few current choir students did consider discontinuing with choir because of their voice
change.

Only one student, a current choir student, mentioned his voice change in his
interview. Reflecting on his choir experience in sixth grade, the eighth grade student
said, “I remember that my voice started changing a little bit and that I was on the alto side
the whole year.” When asked about being in an all-boy choir, this student mentioned,

. .And my voice was changing and we weren’t with the girls, so that was easier.”

The responses to the survey question about “voice change” and the interview
response support one another. Voice change was not a factor for most students in
deciding whether to re-enroll in choir. However, there were a few for whom it was a
factor. Survey responses indicated that the majority of students did not decide about
whether to remain in choir because of their voice change, and the interview response is a
boy’s reflection on aspects of his own voice change.

The Teacher ’s Role

The majority of students’ responses to survey questions about the choir teacher

indicated that students, both currently and formerly in choir, liked the choir teacher and

that she made them feel like an important part of the choir.

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One interview question asked current and former choir students if the choir
teacher was part of their decision to not return to choir. One seventh grade former choir
student answered, “No, she’s not part of it. She’s actually a pretty good teacher.” When
asked why students re—enrolled in choir in the seventh grade, one current choir student
commented, “Because I love to sing and the teacher was cool. I like her and stuff.”

Current and former choir students’ survey responses to questions about the choir
teacher were supported by students’ responses to interview questions about the choir
teacher. The teacher played a positive role in current and former choir members’
experiences.

Class Activities

Current and former choir students were asked survey questions about their
enjoyment of music theory. Survey results indicated that half of the former choir
students enjoyed learning to read music or music theory and the other half of former
choir students disliked these class activities. Current choir students responded positively
to these survey questions, suggesting that, overall, they did enjoy learning about music
. theory.

There were no interview questions that directly asked about music theory.
However, current and former choir students gave opposite opinions about music theory
within answers to other interview questions. When asked what he liked least about choir,
a seventh grade former choir student said, “Probably, like, writing. Like doing notes, like
writing notes. It was not really that fun.” On the other hand, one eighth grade current
choir student, when asked what she remembered from sixth grade choir, commented, “I

just remember it being, like, really fun and how we learned to do a bunch of new stuff.

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Like, we learned how to make our vowels better and learned how to read music exactly.
It was fun!”

The interview response from the current choir student supported survey results
that current choir students, overall, enjoyed learning to read music and music theory.
Although three of these students said that sight-reading was their least favorite part of
choir, many responded that they liked everything about choir. It is possible that the three
students liked sight-reading less than the other activities, but still viewed it positively.
The interview response from the former choir student supports the survey results that
some former choir students did not enjoy learning music theory. However, no interview
responses were given by former choir students to support the conclusion that some
former choir students did enjoy learning about music theory, as was implied in the survey
results.

One survey question asked current and former choir students about their like or
dislike for class activities such as singing, dancing, stretching, creating, discussing, and
listening. According to survey results, students, both currently and formally in choir,
enjoyed these types of activities the most.

Current and former choir students made several comments about class movement
activities within interview sessions. One current choir student said, “Because last year it
was really fun and she would teach us to learn some moves and dance and stuff.” In
interviews, former choir students also made positive comments about these class

activities, such as, “We didn’t have to be as quiet in that class as every other class.”

 

Survey results and interview responses support one another in the conclusion that
students, both currently and formerly in choir, enjoyed class activities during which
students were able to move or use their bodies.

Concerts and festivals were important activities for choir class. The current choir
students responded positively to survey questions about concerts and festivals, and the
majority of students indicated that they enjoyed such activities. When the former choir
students were asked about concerts and festivals in the survey, they responded less
positively than current choir students. As a whole, they disliked concerts and festivals.

One interview question asked students, “What do you like best about choir?”
Responses from current choir students included, “I liked going to festival and I like doing
the concerts,” and “That I like to sing so I enjoy coming to this class.” However, when
asked what they liked least about choir, two eighth grade former choir students said in
interviews, “The concerts.”

Survey responses from current choir students about enjoyment of concerts and
festivals were supported by responses given in interviews. The indication that many
former choir students disliked concerts and festivals was supported by both survey and
interview responses.

Other Class Options

Current and former choir students were asked survey questions about class
choices and choir. One of these questions asked students about their decision to join or
not join choir with regards to decisions about joining band class. Former choir students

strongly indicated that their reason for not joining choir was not that they wanted to be in

136

 

band; they did not join band after leaving choir. Most of the current choir students
surveyed indicated that they did not choose choir because they could not take band.

Many students indicated through interview statements that the reason for initially
joining choir was to avoid taking band. One seventh grade former choir student said,
“Because I didn’t really want to play, like, the instruments in band.” One student, a
seventh grade boy, said that he chose choir because, “I heard it was easier and a lot more
fun.” One seventh grade current choir student said, “I just wanted to try something new,
but I wasn’t sure if I wanted to take band.” Another current choir student, an eighth

grade boy, commented, “Yeah, because, I didn’t really want to be in band.” In both the

 

surveys and the interviews, only one of the current choir students wanted to initially
enroll in band instead of choir, and many of the former choir students initially enrolled in
choir to avoid band.

Current and former choir students were asked about their participation in choir
with regards to the “skills” classes that are offered to seventh and eighth grade non—choir
students. Survey question results indicated that many former choir students did not join
choir after the sixth grade because they wanted the “skills” classes. Survey results for
current choir students indicated that a few of the students did choose choir to avoid the
“skills” classes, but the majority joined choir to participate.

When asked in interviews about reasons for not returning to choir, an eighth grade
former choir student stated, “I wanted to try new classes.” Another former choir student
commented, “I wanted to try different things and see what the other classes were like.”
Current choir students did not comment on the “skills” classes within interview sessions.

Again, the survey and interview responses supported one another.

 

137

Summary
The surveys and interviews yielded much information about personal and
environmental factors that may have influenced students’ decisions of whether to remain
in choir. When the survey and interview results for this study pertained to the same
topics, it was possible to compare and contrast information given by students, and thus
resulted in a more complete perception of factors that influenced these students’
decisions. Conclusions developed with the help of this information are discussed in

Chapter Seven.

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CHAPTER SEVEN
Summary, Conclusions, Implications for Practice, and Suggestions for Future Research
Summary
The purpose of this research was to improve participation levels in my middle
school choir by gathering information about what motivates students to participate in
choir. The problems of the study were: (a) to determine what personal and environmental

factors influence a sixth grade choir student’s decision of whether to enroll in choir for

Ii

_ - JAJJ'UI'IH’

his or her seventh grade school year, (b) to determine what personal and environmental

factors influence a sixth grade choir student’s decision to not enroll in choir for his or her ’ " "

 

seventh grade school year, (c) to determine what personal or environmental factors

influence a seventh grade choir student’s decision to enroll in choir for his or her eighth

grade school year, ((1) to determine what personal or environmental factors influence a i
seventh grade choir student’s decision not to enroll in choir for his or her eighth grade

school year, and (e) to determine what personal or environmental factors influence a non-

choir student’s decision to enroll in choir class for either his or her seventh or eighth

grade school year.

Two forms of a survey were developed by the researcher who also wrote two
parallel sets of interview questions; one form and set was for current choir students and
the other form and set was for former choir students. All choir students currently in the
seventh or eighth grade choirs at Beagle Middle School were asked to participate in this
research study. Out of the 148 current choir students asked to participate, 111 students
agreed. In addition, 30 former choir students were asked to participate. Out of the 30

former choir students asked to participate, 11 students agreed.

139

All students that participated in this study completed surveys that asked questions
about personal and environmental factors that may have been influential to students’
decisions to join or not join choir. All surveys remained anonymous. In addition to the
surveys, seven current choir students and eight former choir students were randomly
chosen for private interviews conducted by an adult other than the researcher. The
information gathered from the surveys was analyzed and then compared with responses
students gave to interview questions. L I“.

Conclusions

When survey results and interview responses were cross—compared, themes 7 " '

 

appeared that are main factors that may have influenced both current and former choir
students choices to take or not take choir. The “environmental” themes were family
influence, peers, the choir teacher, class activities, and other class options. There was
only one “personal” theme discussed in the comparison between survey and interview
questions. However, an additional “personal” theme, the future with music, emerged
through interview responses only. This additional theme will be discussed at the end of
this conclusion section.

“Family influence” included the amount of music in the home, family members’
involvement with music, and the encouragement or negativity of family members about
participating in choir. Families can be influential in students’ decisions of whether to
take choir. However, some of the current choir students were raised in families with little
music exposure, and they are some of the most passionate music students. This result
conflicts Kirkpatrick’s (1962) research that concluded that children from homes with

“poor” musical environments, those who did not have much experience with musical

140

activities at home, tended to be more withdrawn when participating in music. In
addition, some of the former choir students were raised in homes where music was a part
of growing up, and they have made the decision to not remain in choir, themselves. This
result challenges Kirkpatrick’s ( 1962) statement that homes that were “excellent to good”
musical environments produced the largest percentage of singers and least percentage of
non-singers. Therefore, family background, alone, does not determine if a student will
remain in choir. Family and home environment may be influential, but according to
results of this study, other factors contributed to the decision of whether to remain in
choir. These results do conflict somewhat with Kirkpatrick’s (1962) belief that exposure
to music and singing within the home environment during childhood can greatly
influence participation in a choir class later in life.

The theme of “peers” seemed to be more influential to former choir students than
to current choir students. The current choir students indicated that it was nice having
friends in choir, but friends or peers were not the main factor for their returning to choir
class. The former choir students, however, indicated that peers were quite important, and
where their friends went, they would go. Therefore, it could be concluded from the
results of this study that friends and peers are a main factor in some students’ decisions of
whether to remain in choir. The students who remained in choir must have been
influenced by factors that are more compelling than “peers.” In addition, it is a
possibility that students’ friends remained in choir, so these current choir students
remained in choir. These results that some students must have been influenced by other
factors, are somewhat similar to what Mizener ( 1993) found in her research with

adolescent music students. Mizener (1993) concluded that “increasing the interest of

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young students in choir may best come from sources within the school since, in general,
the opinions of family and friends, and peers did not exert much influence on the
subjects’ desire to be in choir” (p. 242).

“Perceived skill in” and “love of singing” were personal factors that seemed to
influence students. Current choir students within this study indicated that they enjoyed
singing, whether by themselves, in a choir, or with the radio. Many former choir
students, however, indicated that they did not like singing. If students do not find
meaning in music, particularly singing, often students will choose not to participate in the
choral experience. Reasoner (1991) believed that children not comfortable with singing
remained as such, and developed into adolescents who were self-conscience of their
singing abilities. If they were to sing, the former choir students said that it would be with
the radio, for this was the kind of singing activity they enjoyed. According to Mizener’s
(1993) study, a strong relationship existed between wanting to sing in a choir and liking
to sing, but less than half (45%) of those who liked to sing wanted to sing in a choir. If
students do not feel that they have the desire to participate in such activities and therefore
will not put forth the effort needed to succeed, then they will tend to choose a class other
than choir (Asmus, 1985).

Current choir students all said that they felt they were good singers. “Knowledge
of self gained through musical experiences may lead to an enhanced self-concept and
sense of worth” (Hylton, 1981, p. 299). Reasoner (1991) stated that with confidence,
students are able to make choices, such as the decision to sing, without fear of failure or
rejections. Few former choir students felt as confident with their singing skills as did the

current choir students. The majority of former choir students did not feel they were good

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singers, and many stated that they probably would not sing as an adult. Therefore it
could be concluded that the current choir students, who very much enjoyed singing and
thought they were good singers, remained in choir simply because of the singing they
would be able to do. Because they enjoyed the activity and had confidence in their
abilities, students were likely to stay in the class. “Singing” was likely an influential
factor on current choir students’ decision to re-enroll in choir class. For the former choir
students, because they did not enjoy singing and did not think they were very good at it,
the amount of singing in choir probably influenced their decision to not re-enroll in choir
class. Therefore, it could be assumed that these former choir students, and perhaps the
current choir students as well, attributed success or failure in choir to “ability.” This
assumption conflicts with Mizener’s (1993) study that concluded that students did not
consider “ability” as one of the factors required for success or as a cause for failure in
music.

“The choir teacher” was another factor that influenced current choir members’
decisions about choir. All choir students, current and former, indicated that they liked the
teacher and she made them feel like an important part of the choir. They also felt that
they learned from her. The current choir students suggested that she was a reason that
they re-enrolled in choir class, and the former choir students felt that the teacher was not
a part of the decision to not take choir again. In fact, some former choir students
mentioned that she had been the reason for initially choosing choir over band in the sixth
grade. According to Scheidecker and Freeman (1999), the teacher’s personality can be
influential on the involvement of students in a class. Therefore it could be concluded that

this choir teacher was a positive influential factor in students’ decision of whether to take

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choir in seventh and eighth grade, but this influence was not strong enough to convince
students who did not like to sing to re-enroll in choir.

Other factors that were influential in whether students’ remained in choir were
“class activities.” The majority of current choir students indicated that they enjoyed the
activities associated with choir class, such as singing, dancing, performing, learning to
read music, music theory, creating, and listening. The students responded positively to
questions asking about feelings about participation in concerts or singing at festival.
However, many former choir students indicated that they disliked several of the
classroom activities, especially those that involved learning about music theory and how
to read music. According to Maehr (1993), two learning settings exist: “task goal
situations” which places emphasis on the process of performing the task for intrinsic
value and “ego goal situations” which emphasizes comparisons of students’ performances
and promotes competition between students. If students worked more efficiently in one
situation and not another, perhaps the former choir students discontinued with choir
because the program was not meeting their needs or developing an interest in learning.
Many of the former choir students did not care for singing in the concerts, and some even
said they were embarrassed to sing in front of others. Perhaps the repertoire studied and
the process with which music was learned and performed within choir class was a
negative factor to these students. Many former choir students indicated that they only
enjoyed singing with the radio, but the choirs at Beagle Middle School were
performance-based groups that worked on polishing and finessing their sound, even when
working on “lighter” pieces. From this information, it may be concluded that class

activities were a positive factor in the current choir students’ decision of whether to

144

 

 

 

remain in choir and were a negative factor in the former choir students’ decision of
whether to remain in choir. With regard to the former choir students, “If a student does
not want to learn about music, he or she won’t” (Asmus, 1994, p. 5).

The choice of other classes and the initial reasons for joining choir were
additional factors that influenced students’ decisions of whether to remain in choir.
Many current and former choir students indicated that they chose choir as their music
class in the sixth grade to avoid participating in band class. Clayton (2000) said that in
many situations, students are forced to make a choice between music and other courses,
or even between music and extracurricular activities. This statement is somewhat true at
Beagle Middle School because students must choose between the “skills” classes and a
music class. Current choir students indicated that they did not take choir to avoid other
classes offered, and that they did not wish they could have been placed in the other
classes instead of choir. On the other hand, the majority of the former choir students
indicated that they wanted to take the “skills” classes and as a result dropped choir. “If a
student does not want to learn about music, he or she won’t” (Asmus, 1994, p. 5).
Therefore, it may be concluded that the desire to sing in choir was more compelling than
the other class options for current choir students, whereas the desire to explore other
options was more compelling than choir for the former choir students.

The last theme that emerged within this research had to do with how these
students perceived music as a part of their future. The majority of current choir students
indicated that they would be music consumers and many would continue to sing as
adults, whether in church, in a choir, or as a soloist. The majority of former choir

students indicated that they did not see music as a part of their future. It is possible that

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I
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students see music as a part of their lives in the future influences their involvement with
choir now. If students do not plan to participate in music in their future, they will most
likely put their energy into something they do see as more “long-term.” The former choir
students did not enjoy singing, did not feel they were good singers, and indicated that
they did not see music in their future. On the other hand, many current choir students
enjoyed singing, enjoyed their voices, and saw music as an important part of their future.
It was logical that these students would re-enroll in choir.
Implications for Practice

This research study utilized a group of former and/or current choir students of the
researcher as its participants. Because of the qualitative nature of this study, it is not
possible to generalize these results to other middle school settings or other seventh
and/or eighth grade students. However, they might be transferable to a similar setting.

The purpose of this research was to improve participation levels in choir by
gathering information about what motivates students to participate in choir.
Environmental factors such as family influence, peers, the choir teacher, class activities,
and other class options, as well as personal factors such as singing and a future with
music, did prove to be influential to both current and former choir students’ decisions of
whether to re-enroll in choir. By being aware of these factors that could influence
students’ involvement in choir, teachers may be more prepared to meet the needs of
adolescents within a music class. For example, by knowing that students enjoyed
movement activities more than “sitting still activities,” such as worksheets and
boardwork, teachers may choose to incorporate more movement or group work into

activities, such as theory lessons. Students may then be more interested in the lesson or

146

 

subject matter, which may lead to a greater understanding of the subject matter and assist
in developing student interest to learn even more.

Teachers should remember that every student will not be interested in singing.
Each student is unique and has his or her own interests. Some students will enjoy and
want to continue with singing and some will not. This is not to say that music is not
important within a person’s education, but it is important to realize that no matter how a
teacher may change a choir program, it may never be enough to keep all of the students
“coming back for more.”

Not all students will enjoy singing activities, especially if they are self-conscience
of their singing voice. Positive feedback from the teacher is essential in raising a
students’ self-confidence, especially with singing. In addition, it is important that effort
is often recognized within the classroom setting and not always ability. Music educators
must remember to provide constant positive feedback when working with adolescent
music students, so that they are able to feel accomplished and successful at what they are
doing. If students do not feel ashamed or embarrassed to sing, they may allow
themselves to work harder and perhaps will continue with choir, even if they had not
originally planned to.

Girls surveyed felt more approval from friends about singing in choir than did
boys. One of the conclusions from this question was that it is possible that some of these
boys, at some point, will choose a class other than choir to receive more support from
peers. Perhaps teachers should also take special care to encourage boys and to make sure

that peers do the same.

147

Former choir students indicated in this study that they did not necessarily enjoy
singing, especially in a choir setting, but they did enjoy singing with the radio. Perhaps
these students, who were not interested in participating in a performance-based choir,
could be given the opportunity to participate in another type of singing group. Perhaps a
“pop” choir could be created for these other students. A choir that was non-performance-
based may interest some of these students who enjoy singing with the radio but don’t
want to be in a polished choral group. j n

The boys who participated in the all-boy choir the year before this study made

n 1.2. ’ MIX; 3." r a}

several comments about how they enjoyed singing in an all-boy ensemble. The boys i '-

 

were able to sing out more freely without fears of embarrassing themselves in front of the
girls. Also, when voices were changing and did crack, the boys said that it was not
embarrassing because the girls were not there to hear them. Therefore, it seems that an
all-boy choir in seventh grade might allow middle school boys to experience and
experiment with their voices in a safe environment and perhaps develop an even greater
interest in singing.

Within the choir class, students (both former and current) agreed that they
enjoyed movement and group activities more than standard music theory lessons on the
board or worksheets. Perhaps music theory lessons could be modeled after the movement
and group work that students enjoy. If students are more engaged in class activities, they
are likely to retain more information and be more interested in learning. As a result, they
may also be more likely to enroll in choir.

This research study showed that home musical background can result in students’

joining a music class, but it will not guarantee students’ participation in choir. As well,

148

 

some of the students who have been most successful in choir did not come from a
musical background. Therefore, it is important as music educators to encourage music at
home but understand that this encouragement will not necessarily result in music
participation in school.

Various results of this study indicated that parents were not necessarily
encouraging their children to participate in music, specifically choir. If this trend
continues, especially for boys, it is possible that these students will stop taking choir
because of the lack of reassurance they are receiving from their parents. “Parenting style
is not only key in terms of availability of parental support, but also a key determining
factor in the child’s overall motivation level to learn an instrument” (Davidson &
Borthwick, 2002, p. 123). Music educators should try to inform and educate parents
about the benefits of choral music, even though all parents will not necessarily increase
the amount of encouragement they give their children to take a music class. Therefore,
teachers should try to emphasize the benefits of music directly to the students.

Suggestions for Future Research

There are several suggestions for future researchers when studying personal and
environmental factors that influence sixth and seventh grade students determinations of
whether to remain in choir. The first suggestion would be to acquire a larger sample of
former choir students to complete surveys and interviews. It would be beneficial to have
a large enough sample of former boys and girls so that results could be analyzed and
reported by gender as well as by grade.

In designing the survey and interview questions for future research studies, even

more attention should be made to cross—connect questions from surveys and interviews.

149

 

 

For example, on the survey designed for this study, no questions inquired about students’
interests in pursuing a career in music, but students were asked about their future with
music within the interviews. Another example of this was the number of questions on the
survey that asked students about appropriateness of singing for boys versus girls.
However, no questions asked during interviews gathered any information on students’
perceptions on appropriateness of singing within the two genders. Survey and interview
questions should be very specific and be able to support each other for analysis.

When creating survey or interview questions, another suggestion is to write
questions inquiring about the opinions of friends or family separately. On a number of
occasions, students were asked questions such as, “What do your friends or family say
about you being in choir?” Students’ responses to these types of questions tended to be
about family more than friends, which made comparing survey and interview information
difficult. It would be better to ask, “What do your friends say about you being in choir?”
and “What does your family say about you being in choir?”

One question that arose from this research study was how students’ responses and
results would vary, if at all, if this study were conducted at the other middle school in
Grand Ledge or in middle schools in other districts? Would other directors’ students
respond, similarly to those who participated in this research study?

Other questions arose. How would the current eighth grade students respond if
they were surveyed and/or interviewed next year, as freshmen at the high school? What
would be students’ reasons for continuing or not continuing with choir at the high school?

In ten years, how many of these current choir students will still be singing? Will any of

150

the former choir students be singing in ten years? How do students’ religious
backgrounds affect decisions to participate in choir?

Adolescence and “the middle school years” tend to be difficult. With so many
changes occurring, whether physical, emotional, or societal, students are in need of a
positive focus. For many students, this outlet or focus is music or singing. During the
awkward period of adolescence and the beginning of a search for self-identity, music and
singing can be a tool for self-discovery. Offering students the opportunity to perform and
understand music gives them a key to exploring their own thoughts, feelings, and

interpretations through their singing voice.

151

 

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-—.—_
1.; .

 

Appendix A

PERSONAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE SIXTH AND SEVENTH
GRADE STUDENTS’ DETERMINATIONS OF WHETHER TO REMAIN IN CHOIR

September 3, 2002
Dear Choir Parents and/or Guardians:

I am a candidate for a master’s degree in music education at Michigan State University and am currently
working on my research thesis. The title: PERSONAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS THAT
INFLUENCE SIXTH AND SEVENTH GRADE STUDENTS’ DETERMINATIONS OF WHETHER TO
REMAIN IN CHOIR. Knowledge of how and why students decide to take or not take choir will help me
in planning more effective music instruction as well as to ensuring that I am meeting the needs of my
students.

You are being asked permission for your child to complete a survey about choir class and their
thoughts/reasons for taking or not taking choir. From the students surveyed, eight current choir students
and eight former choir students will be randomly chosen for an interview. Interview questions will be
similar to the survey questions. Participation is voluntary and students may choose to not participate at all.
They may also refuse to participate in certain procedures or answer certain questions or may discontinue
the experiment at any time without any penalty. There are no risks to you or your child for participating in
this study, or for refusing to participate.

Date gathered from the students will be kept completely confidential. Your privacy will be protected to the
maximum extent allowable by law. The only personal information about your child necessary for my
purposes is gender and current grade level.

Surveys and interviews with current choir students will be completed during their choir class hour.
Surveys and interviews with former choir students will occur during an an'anged time during the school
day. Surveys will take approximately fifteen minutes to complete and all data gathering will be completed
within three school days. All interviews will be audio taped and interviews will be conducted by a Beagle
Middle School staff member other than me. All interviews will be transcribed and compared to the results
from the surveys to see which themes emerge relating to participation in choir. Interview tapes will be
destroyed when all research is complete.

If you have any questions about this study, please contact Dr. Cynthia Taggart at (517)432-9678 or at
taggartc @ msu.edu. If you have any questions or concerns regarding your rights as a study participant,
or are dissatisfied at any time with any aspect of this study. you may contact — anonymously, if you wish -
Ashir Kumar. M.D., Chair of the University Committee on Research Involving Human Subjects (UCRIHS)
by phone: (517) 355-2180, fax: (517) 432-4503, email: ucrihs@msu.edu, or regular mail: 202 Olds Hall,
East Lansing, MI 48824.

 

After the study is complete. I would be happy to share my findings upon request. Thank you very much for
your help.

Sincerely,

Bridget Sweet

Beagle Middle School Choir Director
600 West South Street

Grand Ledge, Michigan 48837
(517)627-4274

158

FT"

 

 

Appendix B

CONSENT FORM

Please check one of the following, sign below, and return THIS PAGE to me
or to the school office as soon as possible. Please keep the first page for
your records.

Thank you!

Bridget Sweet

I voluntarily agree to participate in this study.

 

I will NOT give consent to participate in this research study.
My child will not be participating.

 

Student’s signature:

 

Parent’s signature:

 

Date:

 

159

Appendix C
CURRENT CHOIR STUDENT SURVEY
PLEASE DO NOT PUT YOUR NAME ON THIS SURVEY!
Circle one: BOY GIRL Grade Level: 7th 8th

Name of my sixth grade school:

 

Were you in choir in sixth grade? YES NO

Name of my seventh grade school:

 

Are you currently, or were you in choir in seventh grade? YES NO
If you are an eighth grade student, are you in choir this year? YES NO

DIRECTIONS: Read each sentence carefully and circle the number that best corresponds with how you
feel.

 

l = Strongly Agree 2 = Agree 3 = Neither agree nor disagree 4 = Disagree 5 = Strongly Disagree

1. I want to be in choir because I love to sing. I 2 3 4 5
2. I like to sing with others in choir. 1 2 3 4 5
3. When I hear songs on the radio, I enjoy singing along. I 2 3 4 5
4. I joined choir because my friends were joining. 1 2 3 4 5
5. My parents/family wanted me to take choir. l 2 3 4 5
6. Some adults in my family sing in a choir. l 2 3 4 5
7. I joined choir because I could not take band. 1 2 3 4 5
8. I joined choir because I did not want the “skills” classes. 1 2 3 4 5
9. Someone in my family sang to me when l was younger. l 2 3 4 5
10. My family sings a lot at my house. 1 2 3 4 5
l l. I like the choir teacher. 1 2 3 4 5
I2. I enjoy learning how to read music. 1 2 3 4 5
I3. I like it when the teacher explains to us all 1 2 3 4 5

about the notes of the songs we sing.

14. The choir teacher makes me feel like I am 1 2 3 4 5
an important part of the choir.

15. When I am at home, someone in my family 1 2 3 4 5
likes to listen to me sing songs.

160

1 = Strongly Agree 2 = Agree 3 = Neither agree nor disagree 4 = Disagree 5 = Strongly Disagree

16. I am a good singer. 1 2 3 4 5
17. People tease me for being in choir. 1 2 3 4 5
18. I enjoy singing in the concerts and at choral festival. 1 2 3 4 5
19. My voice change (girls AND boys) made me 1 2 3 4 5
consider not singing anymore.
20. Friends or family say unkind things about girls who join choir. 1 2 3 4 5
21. Friends or family say unkind things about boys whojoin choir. l 2 3 4 5
22. My friends approve of my singing in choir. 1 2 3 4 5
23. I have brothers and/or sisters who sing in a choir. l 2 3 4 5
24. It is important for people in choir to like the choir teacher. 1 2 3 4 5
25. I like the things that we do in choir class 1 2 3 4 5
(sing, dance, stretch, create, discuss, listen, etc.).
26. I think that singing is just as much for girls as for boys. ' l 2 3 4 5
27. I think that singing is mostly for boys. 1 2 3 4 5
28. I think that singing is mostly for girls. 1 2 3 4 5

I61

Appendix D

CURRENT CHOIR STUDENT INTERVIEW

I am interested in why students choose to take or not take choir alter the sixth grade.

Please be 100% honest with your answers and tell me whatever comes to mind, with as much detail as
possible. You can take as much of this class as you like. 1 do not want you to give your name, only your
grade and gender. You and I will be the only people who will know what is said here, and you will not
offend me with anything that you say. Anything said here will not affect your grade or performance in my
class or in any other class. If you are unclear about any of the questions, please ask. Do you have any
questions before we begin?

Choose one:
Grade: 7‘h 8‘h Gender: BOY GIRL

1. What was the name of your sixth grade school?
. Were you in choir in sixth grade?
. If yes, what do you remember about choir when you were in the sixth grade?
. Do you remember why you chose choir in the sixth grade?

. If you did not take choir in the sixth grade, why not?

2

3

4

5

6. What was the name of your seventh grade school?

7. Were you in choir in seventh grade?

8. If yes, why did you choose to take choir in the seventh grade?

9. If you did not take choir in seventh grade, why not?

10. What do you remember about your choir experience in the seventh grade?

11. If you are currently an eighth grader, why did you choose to take choir in the eighth grade?

12. What do you like best about choir?

13. What do you like least about choir?

14. You knew that Mrs. Sweet would be your choir teacher. Has she been a part of your decision to join
choir and if so, how or why?

15. How has music been a part of your life as you have grown up?

16. What do your friends or family say about you being in choir?

17. Tell me about why you like to sing.

18. Tell me how you see singing or music as a part of your life in the future.

162

 

Appendix E
FORMER CHOIR STUDENT SURVEY
PLEASE DO NOT PUT YOUR NAME ON THIS SURVEY!
Circle one: BOY GIRL Grade Level: 7th 8th

Name of my sixth grade school:

 

Were you in choir in sixth grade? YES NO

Name of my seventh grade school:

 

Were you in choir in seventh grade? YES NO

DIRECTIONS: Read each sentence carefully and circle the number that best corresponds with how you
feel.

I = Strongly Agree 2 = Agree 3 = Neither agree nor disagree 4 = Disagree 5 = Strongly Disagree

1. I don’t want to be in choir because I don’t like to sing. I 2 3 4 5
2. I like to sing, but not in a choir. l 2 3 4 5
3. When I hear songs on the radio, I enjoy singing along. 1 2 3 4 5
4. I did not join choir because my friends were not joining. l 2 3 4 5
5. My parents/family wanted me to take choir. l 2 3 4 5
6. Some adults in my family sing in a choir. l 2 3 4 S
7. I did not join choir because I wanted to take band. I 2 3 4 5
8. I did not join choir because I wanted the “skills” classes. 1 2 3 4 5
9. Someone in my family sang to me when I was younger. I 2 3 4 5
10. My family sings a lot at my house. 1 2 3 4 5
1 1. I don’t want to be in choir because I don’t like the choir teacher. 1 2 3 4 5
12. I enjoyed learning how to read music. 1 2 3 4 5
l3. I liked it when the teacher explained to us all 1 2 3 4 5

about the notes of the songs we sing.

14. The choir teacher made me feel like I was 1 2 3 4 5
an important part of the choir.

15. When I am at home, someone in my family 1 2 3 4 5
likes to listen to me sing songs.

16.1amagood singer. l 2 3 4 5

17. Peopleteased me for being in choir. l 2 3 4 5

163

1g?)

l = Strongly Agree 2 = Agree 3 = Neither agree nor disagree

18

19

20.

21.

22.

23.

24.

25.

26.

27.

. I enjoyed singing in the concerts and at choral festival.

. My voice change (girls AND boys) made me
not want to sing anymore.

My friends approved of my singing in choir.
I have brothers and/or sisters who sing in a choir.

I liked the things that we did in choir class
(sing, dance, stretch, create, discuss, listen, etc.).

I think that singing isjust as much for girls as for boys.
I think that singing is mostly for boys.

I think that singing is mostly for girls.

164

4 = Disagree

Friends or family say unkind things about girls who join choir.

Friends or family say unkind things about boys who join choir.

5 = Strongly Disagree

Appendix F

FORMER CHOIR STUDENT INTERVIEW

I am interested in why students choose to take or not take choir after the sixth grade.

Please be 100% honest with your answers and tell me whatever comes to mind, with as much detail as
possible. You can take as much of this class as you like. I do not want you to give your name, only your
grade and gender. You and I will be the only people who will know what is said here, and you will not
offend me with anything that you say. Anything said here will not affect your grade in any class nor will it
affect your grade should you decide to take choir next year. If you are unclear about any of the questions,
please ask. Do you have any questions before we begin?

Choose one:

Grade: 7‘h 3‘“ Gender: BOY GIRL

H

. What was the name of your sixth grade school?
. Were you in choir in sixth grade?

. If yes, what do you remember about choir when you were in the sixth grade?

 

. Do you remember why you chose choir in the sixth grade?
. If you did not take choir in the sixth grade, why not?

. What was the name of your seventh grade school?

. Were you in choir in seventh grade?

. If yes, why did you choose to take choir in the seventh grade?

\OOOQCNM-BWN

. lfyou did not take choir in seventh grade, why not?
10. What do you remember about your choir experience in the seventh grade?
11. If you are currently an eighth grader, why did you choose to not take choir in the eighth grade?
12. What did you like best about choir?
13. What did you like least about choir?
14. You knew that Mrs. Sweet would be your choir teacher. l-las she been a part of your
decision to notjoin choir and if so, how or why?
15. How has music been a part of your life as you have grown up?
16. What did your friends or family say about you being in choir?
17. Tell me about why you do or do not like to sing.

18. Tell me how you see singing or music as a part of your life in the future.

 

I65

   

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