Surprise, surprise! She cannot teach! An empirical follow-up study concerning the influence of prejudices and motivation on students' evaluation of music teaching

Abstract

Our study pursues the question, to which extent prejudices affect the perception and evaluation of music teaching. It is assumed that students of different secondary schools evaluate lessons of non-specialist teachers more negatively than lessons of a head of a musical department. Further effects are to be expected concerning music lessons given by novice, prospective teachers as opposed to seasoned experts. Moreover, the evaluation of music teaching is likely to be determined also by the type of school of the observed lessons (lower secondary school vs. grammar school). Beside these situational anticipations we investigate possible interaction effects connected to students’ motivation in music teaching analogous to the Elaboration-Likelihood-Model. Video-based tests with two randomized student groups each (N=216) took place at several schools (lower secondary schools and grammar schools). The test consisted of three sequences of miscellaneous music lessons, which had to be assessed in open reply forms and rating scales. The groups were shown identical video sequences, however, with different hints regarding the degree of expertise (lower secondary school vs. grammar school, novice teachers vs. seasoned experts, non-specialist teachers vs. head of a musical department). The area-specific motivation of students in a music teaching context has been gathered in the Motivation in Musical education Inventory (MMI). The MANOVA did not yield an interaction effect with regard to motivation in music teaching and prejudice, yet a high over-all effect (cf. Cohen, 1998) of the prejudice on the evaluation of music teaching (F=9,90; p=,000; h²_part= 0,12).

 

Keywords: evaluation, motivation, music teaching, prejudice