Young Children: Singing

Effects of Melodic Perception Instruction on Pitch Discrimination and Vocal Accuracy of Kindergarten Children

Apfelstadt, H. (1984). Journal of Research in Music Education, 32, (1), 15–24.

Research Design:
N = 61 (three intact kindergarten classes)
Two experimental groups and one control group
An orientation, pretest, and posttest were conducted.

Purpose:
The purposes of this study were:

• to investigate the effects of instruction in melodic perception on pitch discrimination and vocal pitch-matching accuracy
• to determine whether there is a relationship between gender and performance on pitch discrimination and vocal pitch-matching tests
• to determine whether there is a relationship between vocal pitch-matching ability and the home musical environment
• to determine whether there is a relationship between pitch discrimination and vocal pitch-matching accuracy.
   

Procedure:
To determine each student's musical background, a questionnaire was distributed to the parents with a return rate of 91.8% (fifty-six questionnaires were returned). The questions focused on three areas: (1) parent and sibling involvement in music both inside and outside the home, (2) the child's involvement with music both inside and outside the home, and (3) the type of music equipment and instruments in the home.

Orientation: The orientation consisted of seven half-hour classes with the investigator over three-and-a-half weeks. This instruction did not include any reinforced pitch training, and all songs were learned by imitation only. Although the control group was taught by another music specialist, for consistency the investigator visited with the children in this group several times before the testing began.

Pretest: The pretest consisted of the Primary Measures of Music Audiation (PMMA) by Edwin Gordon, a test of vocal accuracy by Eunice Boardman (requiring the children to echo twenty melody patterns and sing a self-chosen song), and a rote-song test.

Instruction: Each of three intact kindergarten classes (sixty-one children total) were randomly assigned to receive a different type of music instruction. The first experimental group (eight males, sixteen females) received vocal instruction from the investigator. Icons, physical movement, and stair-step resonator bells were used to focus on melodic perception. The second experimental group (nine males, thirteen females) received vocal instruction from the investigator that consisted primarily of imitation alone. The control group (six males, nine females) received traditional music instruction from another music specialist that was activity oriented with no emphasis on perceptual or conceptual development. The experimental classes were thirty minutes in length and met twice a week for eleven weeks. Of the thirty minutes, one third of the period was devoted to song learning and the development of pitch (the first group) or duration (the second group). The remaining time was devoted to other music concepts taught in an identical fashion in both groups. The control group met twice each week for twenty minutes plus a thirty-minute recreational singing period.

Posttest: The posttest, which was administered during the week following the final music class, was identical to the pretest, with the exception that the rote-song measure included two songs taught to all three groups.

Results:
Instruction in melodic perception did not affect pitch discrimination or vocal pitch-matching accuracy. However, children in the experimental groups who received music concept instruction scored significantly higher on vocal pitch matching than the children in the control group who received only activity-oriented instruction. It is possible that these differences resulted from the different teaching styles of the music specialist and the investigator rather than differences in the instruction itself.

There was no relationship between gender and performance on pitch discrimination and vocal pitch-matching tests. No relationship was found between pitch discrimination and vocal pitch-matching accuracy.

"In general, better singers came from homes with high and medium musical environment levels, whereas poorer singers came from homes with medium- and low-level musical environments" (Apfelstadt, p. 21).
 

The Effect of Piano Accompaniment on Kindergartners' Developmental Singing Ability

Atterbury, B. W., & Silcox, L. (1993). Journal of Research in Music Education, 41, (1): 40–47.

Research Design:
Control group
Pretest and posttest, as well as an additional posttest
N = 205 (kindergartners)

Purpose:
The purpose of this study was to answer the following questions:

• After a year of instruction, is there a difference in singing ability between children who are taught songs without using a piano and those who are taught songs with piano accompaniment?
• After a year of instruction, is there a difference between children in the above two groups who have high, moderate, or low musical aptitude as measured by the Primary Measures of Music Audiation (PMMA)?
• Is there a difference in the composite scores of the PMMA between children who are taught songs without a piano and those who are taught songs with piano accompaniment?
   

Procedure:
Fifteen kindergarten classes were randomly assigned to the experimental (taught songs without piano accompaniment) and control groups (taught songs with piano accompaniment).

Pretest: The pretest was administered after three weeks during which all children were taught the song "Pinto Pony" by rote. The pretest consisted of each child individually singing this song into a tape recorder during music class. The children were evaluated on the following scale:

• Presinger: does not sing but chants song text
• Uncertain singer: sustains tones, uses both speaking and singing voice, when singing uses a limited range of about a third
• Partial singer: sings some phrases correctly but not entire song
• Singer: sings entire song correctly in one key.
   

Instruction: Music instruction was provided for thirty minutes once each week. The lesson plans and instructor were the same for both experimental and control groups with the exception of piano accompaniment during all singing in the control group classes. The weekly instruction included ten to twelve minutes of activities promoting the development of the children's singing skills. The remaining instruction was concept-based, emphasizing register, duration, dynamics, and form. Activities included playing classroom percussion instruments, movement, and song stories with emphasis on the steady beat.

Posttest: The posttest, which was administered during the first week of June, consisted of the same "Pinto Pony" song used during the pretest, with the addition of the Primary Measures of Music Audiation. Based on PMMA test results, the children were placed in one of three musical aptitude categories: high aptitude, average aptitude, and low aptitude.

Results:
After a year of instruction, there was no significant difference in singing ability between children who were taught songs without piano accompaniment and those who were taught songs with piano accompaniment.

Children with high musical aptitudes as measured by the Primary Measures of Music Audiation had significantly higher posttest song scores.

No significant difference was found in the PMMA composite scores between the children in the experimental and control groups.
 

Pitch-Pattern Accuracy, Tonality, and Vocal Range in Preschool Children's Singing

Flowers, P. J., and Dunne-Sousa, D. (1990). Journal of Research in Music Education, 38, (2), 102–14.

Research Design:
Descriptive
N = 93 (aged three, four, and five years)

Purpose:
The purposes of this study were:

• to evaluate the ability of young children to echo short pitch patterns in relation to maintaining a tonal center in self-chosen and taught songs
• to observe age differences in ability to maintain a tonal center and to echo pitch patterns
• to observe the accuracy of vocal reproduction in echoing pitch patterns
• to determine the size of the vocal range used for different singing tasks.
   

Procedure:
Ninety-three children of three, four, and five years of age from two preschools participated in the study. The children from both preschools had similar musical experiences, and no substantial differences existed between the preschools in any other significant aspect.

During at least four music sessions with the children, the experimenter taught them an unfamiliar song, "The Little White Duck" from The Silver Burdett Centennial Songbook, 1985. Following these sessions, each child was recorded singing a self-chosen song and "The Little White Duck" and echoing twenty tape-recorded four-beat pitch patterns. The pitch patterns consisted of equal numbers of one-, two-, three-, and four-note patterns with descending, ascending, combination, and single-pitch contours. The twenty examples spanned an octave, and they were recorded by a soprano at different pitch levels and sung at two different tempos. Children were presented with pitch patterns at a pitch level corresponding to the lowest pitch comfortably sung during the self-chosen song. Children at the first preschool (forty-two children) were given the pitch patterns with the slower tempo, and the faster pitch patterns were given to the children in the second preschool (fifty-one children).

Assessment of pitch pattern echoes included:

• the number of pitches sung accurately
• the number of patterns sung completely accurately
• the number of patterns with intervals sung correctly but at different pitch level
• the number of patterns with correct melodic contour, but incorrect pitches and intervals.
   

Assessment of ability to maintain a tonal center included identifying the self-chosen song as "modulating" (more than three modulations), "somewhat modulating" (one to three modulations), or "not modulating" (none or one modulation with the song ending in the same key in which it began).

The taught song was evaluated by measuring the interval between a single pitch from each of the six phrases and a pitch from the phrase preceding it (the pitch from the first phrase was compared with the starting pitch given by the experimenter). If all of the intervals were accurate, the child received a score of six; if the child modulated once and maintained that tonal center, he or she received a score of five.

Results:
Modulating singers in the self-chosen song had more difficulty matching pitches and contours than those who did not modulate. There was also a low but positive relationship in the singing of "The Little White Duck" between the ability to maintain a consistent tonality throughout the song and the ability to echo pitch patterns accurately. In the self-chosen songs, 47% of the children were classified as modulating, 38% as somewhat modulating, and 16% as not modulating. Only 14% of the children began three or more phrases of "The Little White Duck" in the same key as the previous phrase, and 29% sang no two consecutive phrases in the same key. It was noted that modulations typically occurred when a pitch moved beyond the limits of the child's comfortable vocal range.

In the self-chosen song, there was a significant relationship between age and modulation. Sixty-eight percent of three-year-olds, 33% of four-year-olds, and 46% of five-year-olds were classified as modulating singers. (It is important to note that these results were affected by the differing levels of difficulty of the songs chosen by the children.) There was no significant relationship between age and modulation in children's performances of "The Little White Duck."

Pitch accuracy was low, with the number of correct pitches ranging from 10% (three-year-olds at preschool 2) to 35% (five-year-olds at preschool 2). Older children were generally more accurate than younger children, especially at the faster tempo (preschool 2). More children sang intervals correctly at different pitch levels. A large gain was seen in the number of children who were able to sing the melodic contour correctly—the melodic contour of over 50% of the patterns were sung correctly by the four- and five-year-olds. The five-year-olds who were given patterns at the faster tempo were able to sing the correct melodic contour of 84% of the patterns.

The mean size of the vocal range in the self-chosen song was a sharp perfect fifth for three-year-olds, a flat minor sixth for four-year-olds, and a sharp major sixth for five-year-olds. Although "The Little White Duck" spanned an octave, the mean vocal range sung by the children was a sharp perfect fifth for the three-year-olds, a sharp minor sixth for the four-year-olds, and approximately a minor seventh for the five-year-olds. Although the pitch patterns also spanned an octave, the children expanded their range a little more for the patterns than they did for the song. The mean vocal range sung when echoing patterns was a flat major sixth for the three-year-olds, a flat minor seventh for the four-year-olds, and a sharp major seventh for the five-year-olds.
 

The Relationship of Pitch-Matching and Pitch-Discrimination Abilities of Preschool and Fourth-Grade Students

Geringer, J. M. (1983). Journal of Research in Music Education, 31, (2), 93–100.

Research Design:
Descriptive
N = 144 (seventy-two four- and five-year-old children and seventy-two fourth graders)

Purpose:
The purpose of this study was to determine whether preschool students and fourth grade students who are grouped by pitch-discrimination ability will demonstrate significant differences on vocal pitch-matching tasks.

Procedure:
Seventy-two four- and five-year-old children randomly selected from a large, ethnically mixed preschool and seventy-two fourth graders randomly selected from five public schools were tested for pitch-discrimination ability and vocal pitch-matching ability. The pitch-discrimination test items included a descending tritone, an ascending minor third, a descending quarter tone, one ascending and one descending eighth tone, and four unison pairs, all within the vocal ranges of the children. The children were asked to verbally state whether two tones were the same or different, or whether they were uncertain. Based on their performance on the pitch-discrimination test, the children were grouped into three ability groups. The vocal pitch-matching test consisted of recordings of an unaccompanied three-measure song with simple words on the pitches do, re, mi, do, presented in three different keys (C, E, and F-sharp major). The children were played the recording in each of the three keys, each time being asked to sing the final sustained note after hearing the song.

Results:
Overall, there was no significant difference in the vocal pitch-matching ability among the three pitch-discrimination ability groups. A moderate relationship was found between pitch-discrimination ability and vocal pitch-matching ability only in the fourth grade children. Both the pitch discrimination scores and the vocal pitch matching scores of the fourth graders were significantly higher than those of the preschool children.

Factors Affecting Accuracy in Children's Singing

Goetze, Mary (1985) [CD-ROM]. Abstract from: ProQuest File: Dissertation Abstracts Item: 8528488. Reviewed by Kenneth H. Phillips in the Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education, No. 102, (Fall 1989), 82–85.

Research Design:
Descriptive N = 165
(grades K, 1, and 3)

Purpose:
The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of the following on accuracy in young children's singing:

• singing with other children in unison compared to individual singing
• singing with a text compared to a neutral syllable.
   

Procedure:
One hundred and sixty-five children in kindergarten, first, and third grades participated in the study. The children were taught two similar melodic phrases. The investigator sang the phrases and the children were asked to imitate her in four situations:

• individually, singing the phrase with a text
• individually, singing the phrase on "loo"
• in unison with five other subjects and the investigator, singing the phrase with a text
• in unison with five other subjects and the investigator, singing the phrase on "loo."
   

The children's singing was recorded and evaluated using a device that determined the frequency of each tone. Two scores were given for each task: the accuracy of the pitch level and the accuracy of the melodic contour.

Results:
Individual vs. group unison singing: The children sang more accurately individually than in a group. Singing with text vs. on a neutral syllable:

• The children sang more accurately when singing on "loo" than with text.
• The kindergartners and first graders benefited more from singing on "loo" than the third graders.
   

Additional findings:

• The children sang most accurately individually on "loo."
• The third graders tended to sing more accurately than the kindergartners or first graders.
• Girls sang more accurately than boys, particularly in group unison singing. "The largest gains in pitch level accuracy were made between kindergarten and first grade, and the largest gains in contour were made between first and third grade," indicating that pitch-level accuracy may be achieved before accuracy in contour (Goetze, p. 133–134).
   

A Comparison of the Pitch Accuracy of Group and Individual Singing in Young Children

Goetze, M., & Horii, Y. (1989). Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education, No. 99, 57–73.

Research Design:
Qualitative
N = 100

Purpose:
The purpose of this study was:

• to compare the effects of individual and group singing on the pitch accuracy of children in kindergarten through first grade
• to determine whether these effects differ by gender and grade level.
   

Procedure:
Nine kindergarten, first, and second grade classrooms (100 children) participated in the study. The researcher visited the classroom to teach the students the melodies used in the data collection sessions. The children then went to a separate room in small groups of three to record their responses. Individuals were asked to echo each melody after the researcher performed it. This was done twice—once with words and once on "loo." After each individual had been recorded, the next group of three children joined the group, and the six subjects practiced the song together. The three new children practiced the song individually. Then the group was recorded singing the song with words and then on "loo." Only phrase two of four phrases was evaluated. If a subject failed to sing phrase two, phrase four was substituted.

Results:
Four observations were made:

• The children sang more accurately when singing individually.
• In general, more third graders sang accurately than kindergartners or first graders.
• Girls sang more accurately than boys, especially in group singing.
• The difference in boys' accuracy between individual and group singing was more pronounced that of the girls.
   

The Identification of and the Training of the Vocal Range of Three-Year-Old Preschool Children

Harkey, B. L. (1978).7911572. [CD-ROM]. Abstract from: ProQuest File: Dissertation Abstracts Item: 7911572. Reviewed by Charles A. Elliott in the Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education, No. 65, (1981), 40–42.

Research Design:
Qualitative Study
N = 60
Experimental group A (N = 20?) and one control group (N = 20?)
A treatment and a posttest were conducted.

Purpose:
The purpose of this study was to identify the three-year-old child's vocal range and determine the effects of training on this age group.

Procedure:
Qualitative Study

a. The children sang favorite songs.
b. The children sang songs taught by the researcher.
c. Vocalizations were observed when the children were left alone in a room with several toys.
d. Same as "c" above, with the addition of the recording of a female vocalist being played in the room.
e. Same as "c" above, with the addition of the recording of a male vocalist being played in the room.
 

Treatment—PostTest
The children were divided into two experimental groups and one control group, and they received the instruction described below. Following the period of instruction, all of the children were asked to sing the songs for the researcher.

The children in group A (control group) were taught four songs, each in a different key and range, for ten fifteen-minute sessions. The children in group B were taught the four songs in a standard key and range (high) for the same period of time. The children in group C were taught the four songs in a standard key and range (low) for the same period of time.

Results:
When singing their favorite songs, the children's "practical" range spanned B-flat–G-flat 1, which is lower than most previous research indicated. The vocal quality was also heavier than the researcher expected. The presence of the vocal stimulus in the unstructured situations had no effect on the range of the children's spontaneous singing, but it did affect key choice. Children who were taught to sing songs in a high or low key reflected that training when asked to sing the songs for the researcher. The children were more accurate in rhythm than in pitch. Sixty-five percent of the children sang in at least one of the situations in which they were left alone (c, d, and e above).
 

Toward a Theory of Music Syntax: Some Observations of Music Babble in Young Children

Holahan (1987). In J. C. Peery, I. W. Peery, & T. W. Draper (Eds.), Music and child development (pp. 96–106). New York: Springer-Verlag, 1987.

Research Design:
Qualitative
N = 125 (five months to five years)
N = 25 (three to five years), longitudinal study over two years

Purpose:
The purpose of this study was "to gain insight into the nature of music syntax as it develops in young children" (Holahan, p. 99).

Procedure:
Two groups of children participated in the study. The first group included 125 children aged five months to five years (five age groups) who were enrolled in a day care center. They participated in informal music activities and were observed twice a week for thirty minutes for four months. The investigator interacted with the children aged three through five in large groups and with the younger children in small groups and individually.

The second group consisted of twenty-five three- to five-year-old children enrolled in a nursery school. The children participated in informal music activities one day each week for two academic years. The investigator made observations based on participating with the children throughout the day during play, work, and mealtime activities.

The investigator provided both groups with informal music instruction including singing songs in major, minor, and modal tonalities with and without accompaniment on a guitar or Autoharp. The children sang familiar songs of their own choosing and created songs. Children were encouraged to move to music using movements suggested by the investigator as well as their own movements. The music included duple, triple, and unusual paired meters (e.g., 5/8 meter).

The informal nature of the instruction allowed children to listen and participate without restrictions or demands imposed by the investigator. Rote teaching was not utilized. No attempt was made to teach musical concepts. The children were never told that a response was inadequate or incorrect. "Recorded music and music instruments were never used as substitutes for use of the human voice and body in music activities" (Holahan, p. 100).

Results:
The observations suggested three levels of music babble:

• Level 1. The first level of babble occurs only with musical stimulation. At this first level, children perform a pitch, a tonal pattern, or a rhythm pattern synchronized with a musical stimulus.
• Level 2. Children at the second level perform combinations of music elements (pitch, melodic pattern, and rhythmic pattern) without tonal or rhythmic organization. They may perform these "babbles" apart from any musical stimulus. The fact that these are spontaneous performances indicates that children at this level can represent musical sounds mentally.
• Level 3. At the third level, children's spontaneous and creative performances utilize a recurring pitch center and a consistent tempo, indicating a tonal and rhythmic syntax. A performance of a familiar song resembles but is not identical to the characteristics of the song. Children at this level are becoming aware of relationships between sounds in music
   

Pitch Pattern Instruction and the Singing Achievement of Young Children

Jarjisian, C. S. (1983). Psychology of Music, 11, (1), 19–25.

Research Design:
Treatment 1 Group (T₁): two first-grade classes
Treatment 2 Group (T₂): two first-grade classes
Treatment 3 Group (T₃): two first-grade classes
The classes represented two different elementary schools—a black school and a white archdiocesan school—that differed in respect to socioeconomic status, teachers, and music instructional time.
A posttest was conducted.

Purpose:
The purpose of this study was:

• to determine the effects of the instructional use of pentatonic or diatonic melodies on the rote-singing achievement of young children
• to determine the effects of socioeconomic status on the rote-singing achievement of young children
• to determine the effects of musical aptitude on the rote-singing achievement of young children.
   

Procedure:
The children in six first grade classes, representing two elementary schools, were tested tonally using Edwin Gordon's Primary Measures of Music Audiation (PMMA). For four months, all classes received regular music instruction from a music specialist. Students at one school received forty-five minutes of instruction once a week, and students at the other school received two thirty-minute periods of instruction each week. Each school received ten to fourteen minutes of diatonic (T₁), pentatonic (T₂), or combination (T₃) pitch pattern instruction each week, consisting of the children echoing the teacher singing the patterns a cappella on a neutral syllable or with syllable names. The same diatonic and pentatonic song was also taught to the children each week, and they participated in rhythmic, listening, and movement activities determined by each teacher. At the end of the four months, the children were individually recorded singing two diatonic and two pentatonic songs that had been taught during the third month of instruction. A five-point rating scale was used to evaluate the performances.

Results:
Four major observations were made:

• The combination group achieved significantly higher ratings than either the diatonic or pentatonic groups.
• No significant difference was found between the diatonic and pentatonic groups.
• No significant difference was found between the two schools that represented different socioeconomic backgrounds.
• Children with high tonal aptitude test scores on the PMMA achieved significantly higher ratings than those with low aptitude scores.
   

The authors also suggest that the diatonic pattern instruction may have aided the development of the children's tonal center, and the pentatonic pattern instruction may have contributed to in-tune singing or a sense of melodic contour, so that the combined instruction would offer the children the best of both methodologies and thus the higher ratings.
 

An Experimental Study of the Comparative Effects of Singing Songs with Words and Without Words on Children in Kindergarten and First Grade

Levinowitz, L. M. (1987) [CD-ROM]. Abstract from: ProQuest File: Dissertation Abstracts Item: 8716497

Research Design:
N = ? (not indicated in abstract) The group consisted of three classes each of kindergarten and first grade children.
A pretest and a posttest were conducted.

Purpose:
The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of song instruction with and without words on levels of developmental music aptitudes and on the singing achievement of children in kindergarten and first grade.

Procedure:
Pretest: Three classes of kindergarten children and three classes of first grade children were administered the Primary Measures of Music Audiation (PMMA) test.

Instruction: The six classes received one of three types of song instruction for one academic year. The classes:

• primarily sang songs with words
• primarily sang songs without words
• sang all songs with words.
   

Posttest: All of the children were administered the PMMA and were also individually tape-recorded singing two songs.

Results:
Three observations were made:

• Song instruction with and without words enhances the audiation of young children with low developmental music aptitudes.
• None of the three types of song instruction was more effective than another in developing the audiation of children with high developmental music aptitudes.
• None of the three types of song instruction was more effective than another in developing the children's singing achievement.
   

An Investigation of Preschool Children's Comparative Capability to Sing Songs with and without Words

Levinowitz, L. M. (1989). Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education, No. 100, 14–19.

Research Design:
Descriptive
N = 35.

Purpose:
The purpose of this study was to determine whether a child performs rote songs with words better than rote songs without words and whether any differences found may be related to language development.

Procedure:
Thirty-five four- and five-year-olds in two classes in a nursery school participated in the study. Both classes received thirty minutes of music instruction once a week for five months. The activities included rhythm, movement, and rote singing. Half of the rote songs in any one class had words, and other songs were sung on a neutral syllable. During the final month, the children in both classes learned two songs by rote—one with words and one on a neutral syllable. At the end of the final month, the children's performance of these two songs was tape-recorded and rated according to tonal and rhythm criteria. Language development was assessed using the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT).

Results:
Three observations were made:

• There was no significant difference between the performance of rhythm in the song with words and the song without words.
• The tonal performance of the song without words was significantly better than that of the song with words.
• No relationship was found between the children's language development and their performance of songs with or without words.
   

A Study of Musical Auditory Information Processing of Preschool Children

McDonald, D. T., & Ramsey, J. H. (1979). Contributions to Music Education, 7, 2–11.

Research Design:
N = 26
A pretest and a posttest were conducted.

Purpose:
The authors cite a hypothesis by two British researchers, Sergeant and Roche, that "a critical time exists for the development of absolute pitch," because at some point children shift from a focus on the dominant property of melody (e.g., absolute pitch) to its organizational relationships (McDonald & Ramsey, p. 2). The purpose of this study was to determine if similar results would occur with American preschool children.

Procedure:
Pretest: The spontaneous musical vocalizations of twenty-six children in four age groups—two years, three to four years, five years, and six years—were recorded on tape for two-hour periods twice each week for three weeks.

Instruction: The children received six thirty-minute training sessions over a period of three weeks during which they were taught to sing four songs by rote at the same pitch level each time without harmonic accompaniment. Each song was taught utilizing a different motivating activity:

• The children played the opening phrase on individual tone bars.
• The children learned to trace the melodic contour with their hands.
• A "song game" was played while singing the song.
• Circular "rolling" hand motions accompanied the singing.
   

Posttest: One week after completing the training sessions, the children sang the four songs and a self-chosen song, all of which were recorded, transcribed, and rated for pitch and melody (direction, tonality, and interval).

Results:
Pitch scores were not significantly related to age. However, the mean pitching scores revealed a slight decline at age six. Also, the most accurate pitchings occurred on song A (thirty-five compared to two or three for the other songs) for which the children accompanied the first phrase with tone bars. Changes were not significant between consecutive age groups, but were significant over the total span of two to five years and two to six years.
 

A Comparison of Musical Performance Accuracy between Teacher-Taught and Peer-Taught Kindergarten and First Grade Students

Prickett, C. A., & Jones, M. (1993). Missouri Journal of Research in Music Education, 30, 1–7.

Research Design:
N = 46 (twenty-four kindergartners and twenty-two first graders)
A posttest was conducted.

Purpose:
The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of peer teaching by very young children on musical performance and on the ability to generalize learning.

Procedure:
Forty-six children from a public elementary school (twenty-four kindergartners and twenty-two first graders) participated in the study.

Instruction 1 (teacher taught): Twenty-one of the children were taught to play "Row, Row, Row Your Boat," by an adult music teacher on an Omnichord (using music with color-coded blocks representing the chords to be played) while singing the song. After being taught how to play the Omnichord, the child was given two practice trials. Then the child performed the song while being taped on a tape recorder, while the adult sang along quietly with the child.

Instruction II (peer taught): A day or two later, each child was randomly assigned a partner. The teacher explained that the child was going to show a classmate how to play the Omnichord. The teacher briefly reviewed how to play the song and then stepped back to let the child teach the classmate. The teacher stayed in the room, interfering only when necessary to assure that the child being taught was given the opportunity to play the instrument. As before, the peer-taught child was given two practice trials and then performed the song while being taped on a tape recorder, with the adult singing along quietly.

Posttest: A day or two following instruction, each child returned to the music room individually to play the song again. This performance was not taped. The child was then asked to sing "Are You Sleeping?" (generalization song) and play it on the Omnichord following the color-coded chart, with the teacher singing along quietly as before. The child was given one practice trial; the second time the performance was taped.

Results:
Five observations were made:

• The peer-taught children in this highly structured setting were as effective as the adult music teacher.
• The number of correct chords played by the teacher-taught and peer-taught children did not differ significantly either on the original song or the generalization song.
• Peer-taught scores on the generalization song were significantly higher than their scores on the initial song. Teacher-taught scores did not differ significantly between the original and generalization songs.
• Twenty-three students received perfect scores on the generalization song; fifteen of these were peer-taught children.
• Teacher-taught students were more likely to remember to give four initial strums when performing both the original and generalization songs.
   

The Effects of Vocal Modeling and Melodic Direction on Development of Head Voice Placement in Four-Year-Old, Nonsinging Children

Rupp, C. E. (1993). Missouri Journal of Research in Music Education, 30, 55. Reviewed by William M. Jones in the Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education, No. 120, (Spring 1994): 84–86. Abstract

Research Design:
N = 87 (age four years)
A posttest was conducted.

Purpose:
The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of the following three variables on the incidence of head-voice singing in four-year-old children:

• the gender of the children
• the voice placement (head voice or chest voice) used by the teacher
• an ascending or descending melodic line.
   

Procedure:
Instruction: Eighty-four four-year-old nonsingers (in prescreening they could not get into singing quality, but remained in speaking range) were divided into two treatment groups. One group (twenty-one boys and twenty-four girls) received instruction from a certified vocal music teacher who used only head voice throughout the teaching period. The other group received instruction from a vocal teacher using only chest voice. Each group was further divided to receive two different types of instruction. The first type utilized predominantly ascending melodies, and the second type utilized predominantly descending melodies.

Classes of no more than four children received twelve fifteen-minute lessons over a period of one month. The lessons consisted of:

• three minutes of musical dialogues with the children
• vocal warm-ups on the syllable "loo"
• teaching songs to the children.
   

Posttest: The children were each asked to sing two songs. Judges rated whether the children used head voice or chest voice.

Results:
The gender of the student did not have a significant effect on the use of head voice or chest voice, and the number of children who sang with head voice after instruction from the teacher who used head voice was significantly higher than the number singing in head voice after instruction from the teacher using chest voice.

Melodic direction had no significant effect on the used of head voice by the children who received instruction from the teacher who used head voice. However, for those children who received instruction from the teacher who used chest voice, the number of children who sang in head voice after receiving ascending melodic instruction was significantly higher than those who received descending melodic instruction.
 

Effect of Restricted Song Range on Kindergarten Children's Use of Singing Voice and Development Attitude

Rutkowski, J. (1989). [CD-ROM]. Abstract from: ProQuest File: Dissertation Abstracts Item: 8619357. Reviewed by Betty Atterbury in the Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education, No. 100, (Spring 1989), 44–53.

Research Design:
Two treatment groups (N = 70 and N = 78) and one control group (N = 24) A pretest and a posttest were conducted.

Purpose:
The purposes of this study were

• to examine the effectiveness of two types of instruction on the singing achievement and developmental music aptitude of kindergarten children:
  —instruction using a restricted song range found to be natural to children
  —instruction using song ranges utilized by basic music series texts.
• to determine whether differences exist between boys and girls in the use of singing voice and developmental music aptitude
• to determine whether differences exist between boys and girls in the effectiveness of the two types of instruction
• to determine whether teacher differences play a role in the effectiveness of the two types of instruction
• to determine the nature of the relationship between the use of the singing voice and developmental music aptitude before and immediately after the instruction is received.
   

Procedure:
The two types of instruction were randomly assigned to six intact kindergarten classes taught by three teachers. Children received music instruction once a week for thirty minutes for fifteen weeks. The control group, from another school in the same town, received no music instruction from a music specialist. Children were administered the Primary Measures of Music Audiation (PMMA) test and The Singing Voice Development Measure (SVDM) immediately before and immediately following the fifteen-week instruction period.

Results:
The following observations were made:

• No significant differences were found between the treatment and control groups, indicating that the children with music instruction did not have higher singing achievement or development aptitude scores than children who had no music instruction.
• No significant differences were found between the treatment groups, indicating that neither instructional treatment appeared to be more effective than the other.
• No differences were found between boys and girls regarding the use of singing voice and developmental music aptitude.
• An interaction between treatment groups and teacher existed, indicating that teacher behaviors/attitudes may play an important role in student singing voice achievement.
• There was a very small relationship between use of the singing voice and developmental music aptitude.
   

The author also concluded that the amount of music instruction given may not have been sufficient for kindergarten children, that the curriculum utilized by the school district may have been ineffective and that children with high music aptitude may not necessarily be those with high singing achievement.
 

The Singing of Selected Tonal Patterns by Preschool Children

Sinor, E. (1985). (Doctoral Dissertation, Indiana University, 1984). Dissertation Abstracts International, 45, 3299A. Reviewed by Linda K. Damer in the Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education, No. 103, (1990), 64–67.

Purpose:
The purpose of this study was to determine the level of difficulty of forty-eight four-tone patterns for preschool children to sing and to compare these findings to the following five hypotheses based on Kodály and other prevalent methodologies:

• Half steps are more difficult to sing than whole steps.
• Large intervals are more difficult to sing than smaller ones, except for the minor second.
• The descending minor third is the easiest interval to sing.
• Descending patterns are easier to sing than ascending ones.
• Successive leaps are difficult to sing.
   

Procedure:
Ninety-six children aged three through five were asked to echo patterns sung by the investigator on a neutral syllable. The children's singing was recorded and rated on a five-point scale. The patterns were within the range of D to B above middle C. They represented typical motives found in children's songs with a variety of contours, ranges, pitch sets, and textures.

Results:
Five observations were made:

• The author noted that factors not examined in the study, such as children's familiarity with a pattern, would affect children's ability to sing the patterns correctly. Half-steps were not consistently more difficult to sing than whole steps or thirds.
• Patterns consisting of only stepwise motion and thirds were sung more correctly than those containing sixths.
• The majority of the easiest items contained the descending minor third.
• The findings partially support the hypothesis that descending patterns are easier to sing than ascending ones. Of the ten easiest items, three were descending and two were down-up-down.
• Performance was not consistently affected by repeated leaps in the same direction.
   

An Investigative Study of Young Children's Vocal Problems and Remedial Needs

Van Zee, N. (1984). Missouri Journal of Research in Music Education, 5, (2), 55–71.

Research Design:
Descriptive, longitudinal, case study
N = 82 (first grade)

Note: The term "investigator" is used to refer to the investigator, the children's music teacher, and two music education students, all of whom participated in carrying out this research.

Purpose:
The purpose of this study was to help first-grade children determined to be conversational and/or inaccurate singers by:

• identifying types of vocal problems
• identifying the patterns and ranges sung most easily
• exploring a variety of materials and approaches and determine their remedial value
• gathering information regarding the outcomes of individual remedial help.
   

Procedure:
This study was done in three phases over two school years.

Phase I: Eighty-two children (forty-seven boys and thirty-five girls from ten first-grade classrooms) participated in this phase. The investigators met with two or three children at a time in a private testing area during the children's regular music class period once a week for three successive weeks for approximately ten minutes at each session. The sessions, which were tape-recorded, included the following:

The investigators used songs familiar to the children containing patterns of two to five pitches. The patterns were sung in the keys of C, D, and E-flat. The investigators used several approaches including humming, singing vowels and words, indicating pitch and direction with visuals and body movements, and playing step bells. During the final session, some of the children were taught to play the kazoo with varying degrees of success.

Phase II: Fifty-six of the original group of children participated in this phase the following year (second grade). Responses to activities similar to Phase I were recorded. Most children had learned to sing reasonably well by this time.

Phase III: Of those children in Phase II who still needed help, eight were chosen for intensive, individual instruction and met with the investigators for fifteen minutes a day for two weeks in succession.

Results:
Six types of vocal problems were observed:

• confusing speaking and singing in the low register
• don't hear direction correctly
• confuse loud and high
• poor vocal control—switch back and forth between speaking and singing
• little vocal flexibility—no head tones
• speaking voice low pitched, heavy quality.
   

The patterns and ranges sung most easily by the children are presented below:

The easiest pattern and the one most accurately sung was ascending sol-do, particularly in the range a-d¹ (c¹ is middle c), where 70% matched the pitches. The children were less accurate in the d¹-g¹ range (44%).

Sixty-one percent of the children accurately sang an ascending stepwise pattern in the c¹-g¹ range. Forty percent sang a descending pattern in the same range accurately. The children were less accurate in the d¹-a¹ range (33 1/3%).

The tonic chord (do-mi-sol) was sung correctly by 51% of the children in both the c¹-g¹ and e-flat¹ b-flat¹ ranges. The investigators concluded that the range of c¹-a¹ is the easiest for young children to sing.

The most successful approaches included:

• Approaches to Singing
  —Squeaking (finding head tones) phrases from "Goldilocks and the Three Bears"
  —Humming (echoing patterns) then play on kazoo.
• Speaking versus singing: echoing ("say then sing") names, conversations, phrases from "Goldilocks and the Three Bears," and nursery rhymes.
• Developing Flexibility
  —Conversations using puppets: Grouch (low), duck (high), mouse (high), and dog (both)
  —Imitations of animal sounds: rooster and baby duck (easiest for high), duck, pig, lamb, and cow
  —Imitations of environmental sounds
  —Imitations of train whistle, telephone, and jingling money.
• Tone Matching: short familiar tonal patterns in a variety of keys.
   

The investigators came to five conclusions regarding the outcome of receiving remedial help:

• Some nonsingers are unable to learn to use their singing voice in regular classroom activities and need much individual help over a long period of time.
• The problem of the nonsinger needs to be addressed before the end of the first grade. There should be a focus on helping children learn to sing in preschool and kindergarten.
• A variety of approaches must be tried (see the successful approaches listed above).
• The ability to match tonal patterns does not always transfer to singing the songs from which they were taken. Tonal memory for longer phrases must be developed.
• Children having vocal problems need positive reinforcement for their willingness to try and for any success they have in matching pitches and patterns.
   

The Singing Competencies of Five-Year-Old Developing Singers

Welch, G. F., Sergeant, D. C., & White, P. J. (1995/96). Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education, 127, 155–62.

Research Design:
Longitudinal study
N = 180

Purpose:
The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of four different types of singing tasks on children's observed singing competency and to relate the findings to a model of pitch-matching development compiled from a review of previous research.

Procedure:
A sample of 186 children was drawn from ten primary schools in the Greater London area with ages ranging from 4.58 to 5.83 years (including a mixture of social classes, ethnicity, and urban/suburban locations). The children were asked to perform four different types of singing tasks as follows:

• six glissandi (These glides were designed to assess ability to match direction of pitch change.)
• pitches
• melodic patterns
• two songs that contained the melodic patterns.
   

The children were taught the songs by their teachers from an audiotape during the two weeks prior to testing. The glissandi, pitches, and melodic patterns were recorded on audiotape and played for the children at the time of testing. All subjects were assessed individually, and their responses were tape-recorded and evaluated according to a seven-point scale utilizing clearly defined criteria.

Results:
A hierarchy of vocal pitch-matching competence in the four singing tasks was determined, from highest rating to lowest rating as seen below. Overall, pitch matching in the songs was rated lower than the other three tasks.

• pitches/simple glides (maximum of two directions such as up/down)
• melodic fragments
• all glides
• songs
• complex glides (four changes of direction).
   

Based on this data, the following four observations were made:

• The children's ability to change pitch direction was better in the melodic fragments than the glides, possibly indicating that it is easier for them to respond to direction changes when there are discrete pitches.
• Significant differences were found between schools in children's competency in vocal pitch-matching. These differences were only partly due to the difference in average age at the different schools, indicating that differences in the educational environment and teaching strategies may be important.
• No significant differences were found between the singing competencies of boys and girls.
• The words of the songs were matched more accurately than the melodic contour. Without the words, the children were more accurate in matching pitches and melodic fragments.
   

The authors concluded that developing singers should be taught words and music separately.