This study examines students' attitudes toward singing and choir participation related to gender, age, and ethnic background. It also looks at attitudes toward recordings from basal music series that are designed to provide an appropriate model and to encourage singing. Participants (N = 249) were third to fifth graders enrolled in two public schools in Texas. After completing a brief survey concerning their attitudes toward singing and choir, participants listened to nine recordings of various songs selected from two music textbook series. For each song, participants indicated their preference for the singers and the song. Results indicate few significant differences between boys and girls in their attitudes toward singing, but less positive attitudes for singing from the Hispanic participants, particularly the males. African American participants did not differ by gender and were more positive toward singing and all types of song recordings. The decline of positive attitudes toward school music was found primarily with the fifth graders.
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