This study examined 48 computer-based compositions produced by adolescents (13-14
years old) using evaluations by specialist music teachers and the
adolescents’ self-evaluations and self-assessments. Based on previous
research (Seddon and O’Neill, 2001), we expected that the
teachers’ evaluations of the compositions would not differentiate between
the compositions by adolescents with or without 2-4 years prior experience of formal
instrumental music tuition (FIMT). We also predicted that the self-evaluations and
self-assessments of adolescents with FIMT would be higher than the self-evaluations
and self-assessments by adolescents without FIMT. The results supported our
predictions suggesting that adolescents’ self-evaluations of their ability
to compose and their self-assessments of their own compositions are determined by
their levels of self-perceived competence, and that this is influenced by whether or
not they have previous experience of FIMT. Implications for the use of
self-evaluations and self-assessments in music education are discussed.
Amabile, T.M.
(1982)
‘Social Psychology of Creativity: A Consensual Assessment Technique’
, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology43:
997-1013
.
2.
Amabile, T.M.
(1996) Creativity in Context.
Oxford: Westview Press
.
3.
Bangs, R.L. (1992) ‘An Application of Amabile’s Model of
Creativity to Music Instruction: A Comparison of Motivational Strategies’,
unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Miami, Florida.
4.
Barnard, S.S. (1992-93) ‘Interior Design Creativity: The
Development and Testing of a Methodology for the Consensual Assessment of
Projects’, doctoral dissertation, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State
University (Dissertation Abstracts International, 53(8), p. 22780A).
5.
Blatchford, P.
(1992)
‘Academic Self-assessment at 7 and 11 years: Its Accuracy and
Association with Ethnic Group and Sex’
, British Journal of Educational Psychology62:
35-44
.
6.
Brinkman, D.
(1999)
‘Problem Finding, Creativity Style and Musical Compositions of
High School Students
, Journal of Creative Behaviour33(1):
62-68
.
7.
Burnstead, V.
,
Hinkle, D.
and
King, S.
(1985)
‘Performance Evaluation Reliability at Selected Concert Festivals’
, Journal of Band Research, 21:
22-29
.
8.
Butler, R.
(1990)
‘The Effects of Mastery and Competitive Conditions on
Self-assessment at Different Ages’
, Child Development61:
201-210
.
9.
Covington, M.V.
, and
Omelich, C.L.
(1979)
‘Effort: The Double-edged Sword in School Achievement’
, Journal of Educational Psychology71(2):
169-182
.
10.
Daignault, L. (1997) ‘Children’s Creative Musical
Thinking within the Context of a Computer-supported Improvisational Approach to
Composition’, doctoral dissertation, Northwestern University, Chicago
(Dissertation Abstracts International 57, p. 4681A).
11.
Diener, C.L.
and
Dweck, C.S.
(1980)
‘An Analysis of Learned Helplessness: ll. The Processing of Success’
, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology39:
940-952
.
12.
Fiske, H.E.
(1975)
‘Judge Group Differences in the Rating of High School Trumpet Performances’
, Journal of Research in Music Education23:
22-29
.
13.
Folkestad, G.
(1998) ‘Musical Learning as Cultural Practice:
As Exemplified in Computer-Based Creative Music Making’, in
B. Sundin
,
G.E. McPherson
, and
G. Folkestad
(eds) Children Composing: Research in Music Education, pp.
97-134.
Malmo: Malmo Academy of Music, Lund University
.
14.
Gromko, J.
(1993)
‘Perceptual Differences between Expert and Novice Music
Listeners: A Multidimensional Scaling Analysis’
, Psychology of Music21(1):
34-47
.
15.
Hargreaves, D.J.
and
Colman, A.M.
(1981)
‘The Dimensions of Aesthetic Reactions to Music’
, Psychology of Music9:
15-20
.
16.
Hare, F.A.G.
(1977)
‘Dimensions of Music Perception’
, Scientific Aesthetics1:
271-280
.
17.
Hennessey, B.A.
(1994)
‘The Consensual Assessment Technique: An Examination of the
Relationship between Ratings of Product and Process Creativity’
, Creativity Research Journal7:
193-208
.
18.
Hennessey, B.A.
, and
Amabile, T.M.
, (1988) ‘The Conditions of
Creativity’, in
R.J. Sternberg
(ed.) The Nature of Creativity,pp. 11-38.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
.
19.
Hickey, M. (1995) ‘Qualitative and Quantitative Relationships
Between Children’s Creative Musical Thinking Processes and
Products’, unpublished doctoral dissertation, Northwestern University,
Evanston, IL.
20.
Hickey, M.
(1996)
‘Consensual Assessment of Children’s Musical Compositions’
, paper presented at the Research Poster
Presentation,New York State School Music Association
Convention, November.
21.
Hickey, M.
(1997)
‘The Computer as a Tool in Creative Music Making’
, Research Studies in Music Education(8):
56-70
.
22.
Hickey, M.
(2001)
‘An Application of Amabile’s Consensual Assessment
Technique for Rating the Creativity of Children’s Musical Compositions’
, Journal of Research in Music Education49(3):
234-244
.
23.
Hickey, M.
(2002) ‘Creativity Research in Music, Visual
Art, Theatre and Dance’, in
R. Colwell
and
C. Richardson
(eds) The New Handbook of Research on Music Teaching and Learning,
pp. 398-415.
Oxford University Press
.
24.
Hickey, M.
(2003) ‘Creative Thinking in the Context of
Music Composition’, in
M. Hickey
(ed.) Why and How to Teach Music Composition: A New Horizon for Music
Education, pp. 31-53.
Reston, VA: MENC, The National Association for
Music Education
.
25.
Koestner, R.
,
Ryan, R.
,
Bernieri, F.
and
Holt, K.
(1984)
‘Setting Limits on Children’s Behavior: The
Differential Effects of Controlling vs. Informational Styles Intrinsic
Motivation and Creativity’
, Journal of Personality52:
233-248
.
26.
Lamont, A.
(2003) ‘Musical Identities and the School
Environment’, in
A.R. MacDonald
,
D.J. Hargreaves
and
D. Miell
(eds) Musical Identities,pp. 41-59.
Oxford: Oxford University Press
.
27.
Mellor, L.
(1999)
‘Language and Music Teaching: The Use of Personal Construct
Theory to Investigate Teacher’s Responses to Young
People’s Music Compositions’
, Music Education Research1(2):
147-157
.
28.
O’Neill, S.A. (1992) ‘Research into the Behaviour of
Private Music Teachers Based on the Teacher’s Perception of Individual
Differences in the Personality and Behaviour of Pupils’, unpublished
masters degree dissertation, City University, London.
29.
O’Neill, S.A.
(2003) ‘The Self-identity of Young
Musicians’, in
A.R. MacDonald
,
D.J. Hargreaves
and
D. Miell
(eds) Musical Identities,pp.79-96.
Oxford: Oxford University Press
.
30.
O’Neill, S.A.
and
McPherson, G.E.
(2002) ‘Motivation’, in
R. Parncutt
and
G.E. McPherson
(eds) The Science and Psychology of Music Performance: Creative
Strategies for Teaching and Learning,pp. 31-46.
Oxford: Oxford University Press
.
31.
O’Neill, S.A.
and
Sloboda, J.S.
(1997)
‘The Effects of Failure on Children’s Ability to
Perform a Musical Test’
, Psychology of Music25(1):
18-34
.
32.
Paris, S.G.
and
Newman, R.S.
(1990)
‘Developmental Aspects of Self-regulated Learning’
, Educational Psychologist25(1):
87-102
.
33.
Reese, S.
(2003) ‘Responding to Student
Compositions’, in
M. Hickey
(ed.) Why and How to Teach Music Composition: A New Horizon for Music
Education, pp. 211-232.
Reston, VA: MENC, The National Association for
Music Education
.
34.
Ross, M.
and
Mitchell, S.
(1993)
‘Assessing Achievements in the Arts’
, British Journal of Aesthetics33(2):
99-112
.
35.
Runco, M.A.
,
McCarthy, K.A.
and
Svenson, E.
(1994)
‘Judgement of the Creativity of Artwork from Students and
Professional Artists’
, The Journal of Psychology128(1):
23-31
.
36.
Seddon, F.A.
, and
O’Neill, S.A.
(2001)
‘An Evaluation Study of Computer-based Compositions by Children
with and without Prior Experience of Formal Instrumental Music Tuition’
, Psychology of Music29(1):
4-19
.
37.
Seddon, F.A.
and
O’Neill, S.A.
(2003)
‘Creative Thinking Processes in Adolescent Computer-based
Composition: An Analysis of Strategies Adopted and the Influence of
Instrumental Music Training’
, Music Education Research5(2):
125-138
.
38.
Seddon, F.A.
and
O’Neill, S.A.
(2004)
‘The Application of Q-Methodology to the Study of Criteria used
by Adolescents in the Evaluation of their Musical Compositions’
, Musicae Scientiae8(2):
207-230
.
39.
Seddon, F.A.
,
Joubert, M.
,
Johnsen, G.
, and
Tangenes, I.
(2003)
‘The Effects of Computer-mediation on Cross-cultural
Collaborative Music Composition’
, paper presented at the 5th Triennial ESCOM Conference, 8-13
September, Hanover University of Music and Drama, Germany.
40.
Smith, J. (1983) ‘Memory for Musical Rhythms: The Effect of
Skill’, unpublished doctoral dissertation, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia.
41.
Vispoel, W.P.
and
Austin, J.R.
(1993)
‘Constructive Response to Failure in Music: The Role of
Attribution Feedback and Classroom Goal Structure’
, British Journal of Educational Psychology63:
110-129
.
42.
Vispoel, W.P.
and
Austin, J.R.
(1998)
‘How American Adolescents Interpret Success and Failure in
Classroom Music: Relationships Among Attributional Beliefs, Self-concept and Achievement’
, Psychology of Music26(1):
26-45
.
43.
Webster, P.
(1990)
‘Study of International Reliability for the Measure of Creative
Thinking in Music (MCTM)’
,paper presented at the General Poster Session of the MENC
National Conference, Washington DC, October.
44.
Webster, P
and
Hickey, M
(1995)
‘Rating Scales and their Use in Assessing Children’s
Music Compositions’
, Quarterly Journal of Music Teaching and Learning6(4):
28-44
.
45.
Webster, P.
,
Yale, C.
and
Haefner, M.
(1988)
‘Test-Retest Reliability of Measures of Creative Thinking in
Music for Children with Formal Music Training’
, paper presented at the Poster session, 1988 MENC National
In-Service Meeting,Indianapolis, IN, April.
46.
Younker, B.A.
(2003) ‘The Nature of Feedback in a Community of
Composing’, in
M. Hickey
(ed.) Why and How to Teach Music Composition: A New Horizon for Music
Education, pp. 233-242.
Reston, VA: MENC, The National Association for
Music Education
.
