Aiming for the singing teacher: An applied study on preservice kindergarten teachers’ singing skills development within a music methods course

Abstract

This study examined the effects of a music methods course offered at a Cypriot university on the singing skills of 33 female preservice kindergarten teachers. To systematically measure and analyze student progress, the research design was both experimental and descriptive. As an applied study which was carried out in situ, the normal procedures of the course were not altered. The methods course incorporated singing instruction in 24 lectures and two 10-minute private singing tutorials at the beginning and middle of the semester. Students’ singing ability was measured before and after the course with a Singing Skills Assessment which required pitch matching and whole-song singing tasks. At the onset of the course 52% of participants could not echo sing accurately la-sol-mi patterns, 58% made several melodic mistakes when singing the criterion songs and only 36% could sing above A4. T test comparisons showed that by the end of the semester participants improved their singing skills significantly in the areas of pitch-matching melodic fragments (p < .001), singing simple children’s songs (p < .001), and highest pitch (p < .001). It is proposed that music methods instructors include some private vocal tuition in their courses, in addition to learning children’s songs, training in melodic patterns and simple vocal exercises.

Development of vocal exercises for training musical skills (Desarrollo de ejercicios vocales para entrenar las habilidades musicales)

“…New learning scenarios are emerging with information technology (Bolívar-Chávez et al, 2021). Vocal learning websites have been developed around the world, targeting different age groups (Neokleous, 2015). Course content is not just about rigid knowledge requirements but also about interesting components added to make learning less monotonous (Pérez-Gil et al, 2016).…”

“…Con la tecnología de la información están surgiendo nuevos escenarios de aprendizaje (Bolívar-Chávez et al, 2021). Se han desarrollado sitios web para el aprendizaje vocal en todo el mundo, dirigidas a distintos grupos etarios (Neokleous, 2015). El contenido del curso no versa únicamente sobre a rígidas exigencias de conocimientos sino sobre componentes interesantes incluidos para hacer el aprendizaje menos monótono (Pérez-Gil et al, 2016).…”

A WSQ-based mobile peer assessment approach to enhancing university students’ vocal music skills and learning perceptions

“…Vocal music is one of the courses in which skill acquisition is required. Differing from instruction in traditional subjects emphasising, memorising, understanding and applying knowledge, one of the characteristics of vocal music education is that it aims at improving students' singing performance and skill development (Neokleous, 2015). The communication between teachers and students is mainly considered as direct experience, emphasising the importance of students' deliberate follow-up practice after learning (Ericsson et al, 1993).…”