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dc.contributor.authorCorso, Dawn T.
dc.date.accessioned2019-02-12T15:59:02Z
dc.date.available2019-02-12T15:59:02Z
dc.date.issued2003
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10150/631663
dc.descriptionAuthor's dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Education in the Graduate College of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2003. Digital copy provided by author.en_US
dc.description.abstractThe purpose of this qualitative study was to describe and analyze the musical content and learning processes apparent among African-American children in Tucson, Arizona, in two settings—an out-of-school summer program and an in-school student-focused musical activity period. Of primary interest were how African-American children demonstrated musical knowledge and skills amongst each other and what the knowledge and skills consisted of. The theoretical issues guiding this study came from research focused on sociocultural perspectives of learning, African-American children’s musical play, and multicultural music education. The conceptual framework for the study is a sociocultural approach based upon Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory (1978, 1986) and modem interpretations of Vygotsky, such as Barbara Rogoffs (1990) notion of apprenticeships and Jean Lave and Etienne Wenger’s (1991) communities of practice. Data was collected primarily through participant observations and formal and informal interviews of the two aforementioned groups in a combined ethnographic and case study design. Field notes, audiotape recordings, videotape recordings, photographs, school enrollment forms, and participant-requested materials were all procedures and devices used in data collection. Jordan and Henderson’s (1995) method of interaction analysis provided the outline for data analyses, while the specific protocol of Emerson, Fretz, and Shaw (1995) was implemented for field note and audiotape analyses and Collier and Collier’s (1986) method of photograph and videotape analyses was followed. The results of this study lead to several arguments. First, children learn music by participating to varying degrees within a community of practice. Individuals within the group serve as sources of information and skill based upon their own expertise and interest creating an environment of reciprocity and shifting leadership. Furthermore, the bonds of friendship strengthen these communities of practice by providing pre-established common ground, intimacy, and concern amongst members. Second, musical play simultaneously functions to prepare children for adult life and allows children to engage in recreational entertainment. Moreover, the activities serve the distinct purposes of identity and gender-role formation and allow for exploration in areas of power and sexuality, especially as they apply to females. Finally, although specific musical abilities may not be chronologically developmental, engaging in particular musical activities is. Handclaps were most common among children ages seven to nine years, drills were practiced mainly between the ages of nine to 11 years, and dances were most frequent amongst children ages 11 to 12 years. A possible reason for the age-graded activities might be the increasing awareness and use of social commentary present in the lyrics and movements of a music activity genre, rather than the technical complexity across a musical activity genre or genres. The implications of these findings are for music educators who would like to improve their understanding of African-American musical traditions and revise their teaching methods to be sensitive to this cultural group; creators of music curricula and standards choosing to reform existing ideology and materials to be more multiculturally comprehensive; ethnomusicologists concerned with expanding information regarding the musical culture of African-American children; and educational psychologists interested in expanding the area of sociocultural learning theory, especially regarding ideas of learning through practice, contexts of activity, and developmental sequencing of knowledge and skills.en_US
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.publisherThe University of Illinois (Urbana, Illinois)en_US
dc.rightsCopyright © is held by the author.en_US
dc.rights.urihttp://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
dc.title"Smooth As Butter": Practices of Music Learning Amongst African-American Childrenen_US
dc.typeDissertation-Reproduction (electronic)
dc.description.collectioninformationThis item from the UA Faculty Publications collection is made available by the University of Arizona with support from the University of Arizona Libraries. If you have questions, please contact us at repository@u.library.arizona.edu.en_US
refterms.dateFOA2019-02-12T15:59:02Z


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