Chipo & Mwila Article

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International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development

www.allsubjectjournal.com
ISSN Online: 2349-4182 ISSN Print: 2349-5979
Received: 17-05-2023, Accepted: 01-06-2023, Published: 17-06-2023
Volume 10, Issue 6, 2023, Page No. 41-48

Music education context as determinant of students’ participation in high school music programs:
Basis for a music

Chipo Namaiko, Mary Mwila


Music Lecturer, Department of Music, Chalimbana University, Lusaka, Zambia

Abstract
The aim of this study was to investigate the determinants of students’ participation in high school music programs as a basis
for proposing a music program framework. This study was done in order to confirm the observed general low participation in
music programs and suggest a solution thereof. A total of n = 289 participants, 128 males and 161 females, aged 15 to 19
years, sampled through stratified random sampling, drawn from three purposively selected public Zambian high schools were
used in this study. Predictive-correlational research design was used for aligning the study. The study was influenced by the
activity and socio-cognitive theory. The results indicate: low use of music technology, high quality of music programs, strong
peer influence in music, strong family support, strong perceived benefits of music and a low participation in music programs.
Peer influence, music technology, family income and age predicted participation in music programs (p < 0.001). The
implications of the findings suggest that advocacy towards increased use of music technology would greatly improve students’
participation. A music program framework is suggested which encompasses activities and strategies for indoor and outdoor
music activities aimed at enhancing participation.

Keywords: music education, music technology, music programs, peer influence

Introduction music programs, particularly in Zambian high schools. It


The issue of low participation in school music programs investigated the influence of parental support, music
persists despite the popularity of music among students. technology, peer influence and the availability of music
Many teenagers can be seen constantly listening to music programs in schools. By addressing these factors, it aimed at
with earphones, yet they lack motivation to engage in school shedding light on the reasons behind the lack of
music activities such as band, choir, folk dance, and music participation and provide insights for improving music
classes (William, 2011; Emielu, 2011; Leung & Xie, 2011) education and engagement among students.
[39, 9, 22]
. This lack of motivation has led to a decline in music
enrolment worldwide (Emielu, 2011) [9]. Factors such as Statement of the problem
peer influence, family support, family income, and school Despite the widespread love for music among high school
size have been found to influence participation (Falconer, students worldwide, the participation rates in school music
2013) [10]. Studies have also shown that parental perception programs, including choir, band, folk dance, and music
of music as a viable career choice and the influence of classes, remain low. It is anticipated that a majority of high
religious teachings, particularly in Zambia, contribute to the school students would enjoy engaging in these music
low participation rates in music programs (Mumpuka, 2009) activities. However, in Zambia, while studies have been
[28]
. conducted on the status of music education, there is a
In Canada, a decline in the music program in secondary notable absence of research focused on understanding the
schools was observed despite strong government support determinants of students' participation in music programs.
(Fitzpatrick, 2013) [11]. However, the role of peer influence, This knowledge gap poses a significant challenge for
family support, and family income in this decline was not developing a curriculum that effectively caters to the
explored. Similarly, in Australian high schools, there was a contemporary needs of pupils and may lead to a continued
perceived decline in music enrolment, particularly in decline in student participation, potentially resulting in the
classroom and instrumental music (Hartwig & Ng, 2011) eventual extinction of the subject in Zambian schools.
[13]
. Parental support and the availability of quality music
programs were identified as key motivators for
Objectives
participation. In Nigeria, the perception of musicians,
1. To determine the respondents’ perception of music
especially traditional ones, as belonging to the lower strata
context in terms of use of music technology and quality
of society deterred parents from allowing their children to
of music programs.
participate in school music programs (Olusoji, 2013) [30]. In
2. To find out the level of participation of the respondents
Zambia, a lack of resources, willing teachers, and objections
from parents and school authorities hindered participation in in high school music programs.
music programs at both high school and college levels 3. To determine the variables that significantly predict
(Mumpuka, 2009; Musakula, 2014) [28, 29]. students’ participation in high school music programs?
This study highlights the need to understand the factors 4. To formulate a school-based curriculum output from
influencing high school students' participation in school findings.

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International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development www.allsubjectjournal.com

Research questions Therefore, music education context would be understood in


1. How do the respondents perceive music education terms of the environment that supports the learning of
context in terms of level of use of music technology and music, the quality of the program, use of technology and the
quality of music programs. facilities that go along with it. These would involve the
2. What is the level of participation of the respondents in nature of the music classrooms and their proximity to other
high school music programs? buildings as well as the stock of music instruments and their
3. Which of the variables significantly predict students’ condition (Abril & Gault, 2008) [1]. Furthermore, school size
participation in high school music programs? would be an important contextual aspect of music education
4. What output can be developed from the findings of the in determining students’ participation in high school music
study?
programs (Falconer, 2013) [10]. From school facilities as part
of music education context, technology is the greatest
Theoretical framework
influence on the choices that students in high school now
This study was based on two theories the activity and socio-
cognitive theories. The activity theory was formulated by make to study music (Williams & Dammers, 2014).
Aleksei Leontiev a Russian Psychologist in the 70’s as a
reaction to reformation informed by socio-cultural demand Music technology
of Marxism. The foundational pillar of the theory is activity Music technology here will be considered to imply gadgets
involving socio-cultural interaction of the subject (people or like electronic keyboards, external sound modules
ideas) and the object (the immediate world) deemed to be (microphones), multi-track recording software and
transformative, purposeful and developing within the equipment (desktop), synthesizers, hardware sequencers and
interactive structure. a wide range of software applications like Finale, Cubase,
It endeavours to understand human interactions in terms of Sibelius, Fruit loops, that allow the sequencing, notation,
the use of tools and artefacts especially where these tools editing and recording of audio (Mattson, 2012) [24]. Music
are in the cultural context and in constant rapid change. In technology also embrace other forms of musical instruments
music education, use of technology has been one of its like brass, wind, electric guitars and a wide variety of
focus. western instruments. It also includes interface gadgets
Furthermore, the theory has also been used as an which would help other forms be plugged in like computers,
intervention model for shaping and increasing student tablets, phones and laptops.
participation in activity engaged. Other fields of use are the Music technology has the power to improve music
psychology realm and most often in the technology world enrolment in a high school if used properly (MC Curddy,
especially to do with computers and production. (Hashim &
n.d.). As Mattson (2012) [24] suggests that, “Notation and
Jones, 2007; Kaptelinin, 2014; Thomas, 2014) [14, 18, 38].
sequencing software can aid students in the study of
The Socio-cognitive theory was modelled and popularized
composition, aural skills and sight reading. Additionally,
by Albert Bandura in 1977. It is a motivation theory which
is premised on the belief that behaviour is as a result of the accompaniment software aids students in the study of
interplay between the individual and social- environmental improvisation, practice and performance techniques” (p. 5).
factors. Its pillars are the three constructs personal factors, This portrait of music technology is quite impressive and
behaviours and socio-environmental influences. It desirous as an aid to improving music class enrolment.
recognizes self-efficacy as a prime motivation that affect a However there is usually a challenge. This challenge is what
student’s task choice, persistence and achievement. It is Crawford (2009) [5] observed when she studied Information
commonly used in areas of career choices (subjects), and Communication Technology (ICT) resource limitations
manipulative skills and health (Schunk, Meece, & Pintrich, in Australian high schools. The survey revealed that despite
2014) [34]. schools planning for what to procure for various
departments, these resources were usually unequally
Significance of the study distributed. Art and music were usually excluded from the
The study was significant in its undertaking in the sense that list of beneficiaries. Eventually this led to a poor status of
findings revealed the level of participation of high school music education which gave administrators a strong reason
students in music classroom. Also what determines their to deny them further support.
push into participating in the music programs was part of The main ICT gadget used for Internet or Intranet
the findings. These findings are cardinal due to the fact that connections today is a desktop computer. Many schools
they helped to formulate a school based indoor and outdoor have computer laboratories which, on many occasions, may
music programs that would enhance participation. Findings be used by all disciplines of the school. The most common
here would be used by stakeholders such as curriculum problem which often discourage learners of music is the
development centre and ministry of education on a larger computer pupil ratio. In most cases one computer maybe
scale to draw national curricular that would aim at shared by two or more pupils. In cases as these, tasks may
producing a quality music program.
take time to complete. Maintenance and quality of these
Literature review gadgets also play a major role in influencing pupils to
Music education context participate in music. Crashing of hard disk is most often the
Among many, the definition considered here is from the common problem while most schools never have
perspective of an envisaged good music education program contingency funds aimed at maintenance and repair works
which is, “one that improves a student’s ability to (Kvajargah & Saadattlab, 2014) [21]. Therefore, ICT
discriminate, understand and respond meaningfully to music sustenance and appreciation remains a challenge for schools
expressive of worthy human feelings” (Mark, 2013:246) [23]. and students.

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International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development www.allsubjectjournal.com

Quality music programs 2014) [2, 32]. Music context and socio-cultural factors are
A quality music program is characterized by its ability to predictor variables. Prediction correlation design was used
cater to the diverse needs of students, receiving high value to observe the relationships these predictor variables have
and support from the school principal. It should have among themselves, and whether there is one which highly
dedicated and uninterrupted time on the schedule, ensuring predict students’ participation in high school music
minimal conflicts with other subjects. The program should programs.
establish a strong connection between music classes and
instrumental instruction, allowing students to further Sample size
develop their skills. Adequate resources and support from Respondents of the main study were by May 2015 enrolled
administrators, staff, and the community are essential to the students in their respective schools. One high school each
from Kalomo, Monze and Livingstone districts were
success of the program. It should be offered consistently
purposively selected and used for this study. A total of 289
from the first year of school until the final grade of
respondents were used distributed as follows: Kalomo high
secondary school, encompassing a wide range of activities (99), Monze high (91) and Linda high (99).
to cater to students' interests and talents. The program
should include performances such as orchestra, jazz band, Sampling procedure
and choral groups, and should be well-funded to support Schools were sampled using Purposive Sampling based on a
external performances and opportunities for students to criteria that, they offer relatively good music programs.
showcase their talents (Pearson, 2015) [31]. Furthermore, the Stratified Random Sampling was used to sample the
quality of instruction alone can also determine the quality of respondents with grade levels 10, 11 and 12 used as strata.
music program (Falconer, 2013) [10]. The formula nh = (Nh/N) n (Berman, 2015) [4] was utilized
In 2013, Falconer’s study on perceptions of teachers and to calculate the sample sizes for the pilot and final studies
administrators revealed that the quality of music programs based on the gender proportions. The formula involves
was a factor in addressing low participation. From dividing the total number of girls or boys (Nh) by the grand
interviews conducted, it was noted that government budget total (N) and then multiplying it by the desired sample size
cuts were a hindrance to most schools to establish a good (n). Using this formula, individual total numbers of girls and
music program. It was noted especially that this problem boys were computed for each grade level. A sample size of
was evident at elementary and middle schools. The problem 50 was determined for the pilot study, and a sample size of
here is that, this has a spilling effect in the sense that, 100 was determined for the final study. To ensure
secondary school enrolment depends on the feeder representation from each gender in each grade level, Simple
elementary and middle schools. If these feeder schools have Random Sampling was employed. This involved randomly
a poor music program, there would be firstly, no students to selecting 50 participants for the pilot study and 100
enrol at secondary school and therefore continuity suffers. participants for the final study from each gender group
Secondly, secondary schools depend on building from the across the different grade levels. The sampling process was
conducted within each school, considering the strata defined
foundation laid at elementary and middle school. Without
by gender.
students from this level this build up is impossible.
The above findings were consistent with what Ng and Data collection procedure
Hartwig (2011) [13] found out in Australia when studying the This study was conducted using questionnaires as an
teachers’ perception about the declining enrolment of instrument for collecting data. It was purely a quantitative
students in high schools. The revelation was that parental study using self-constructed closed ended questions. Close
support and the quality of music program were high ended questions were chosen because they are convenient
predictors of enrolment. and do not waste time (Battey, 2015) [3].

Students’ participation in high school music program Data collection instruments


Kratus (2007) [20] contends that the problem of participation In order to gather data involving quite a big number of 289
has nothing to do with budget cuts for music education as respondents, a self-constructed questionnaire containing
others have suggested. He rather states that music education closed ended questions was used.
has disconnected itself from the current culture. Students are
made to perform music which they rarely hear on the radio, Validity and reliability
home and so on. The teachers also base their curricular on The self-constructed questionnaire was subjected to content
their goals than the students’ needs. Classical music also validation using seven experts. Reliability was achieved by
puts an emphasis on group ensembles while pop music subjecting the instrument to a pilot test using respondents
which is readily available can be done in their rooms on a outside the target sample (Kimberlin & Winterstein, 2008)
guitar or simply a keyboard. [19]
.
Montgomery (2012) [27] in his study in the US, reveals that
participation in band was highly affected by the price of the Data analysis
music instruments which were too high for students to The gathered data was analysed using Statistical Package
afford as compared to joining sports. Many opted to stay for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 22. The data
away from music programs and joined others that were less consisted of both descriptive and inferential statistics.
expensive. Descriptive analysis involved calculating common measures
of central tendency such as the mean, standard deviation,
Material and methods and frequency distribution to describe the extent and
The study used quantitative methodology embedded in a perception of the participants. Inferential aspects aimed to
Predictive-correlational research design. The design focuses identify a significant predictor among the variables for
on identifying from the given variables the one that would students' participation in high school music programs, was
positively predict the outcomes (Al-Mahmood, 2011; Rippy, determined through regression analysis. To assess errors and

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significance, a level of significance of 5% was utilized, of the level of use of music technology and the quality of
assuming a normal distribution of the sample (Kalla, 2009) their music programs.
[17]
. The analysis allowed for a comprehensive examination Music education context refers to the environment that
of the data, providing insights into the factors influencing supports music learning which embraces use of music
students' participation in music programs at the high school technology and the quality of music programs offered. To
level. adequately measure it as regards how respondents perceive
it in terms of level of use and quality, two dimensions were
Ethical consideration
used that is, music technology and quality of music
Permission from school authorities were sought before
programs. The questions were assigned a scaled response of
conducting the study. Respondents were informed that their
strongly agree, agree, disagree and strongly disagree.
participation was merely on voluntary basis and could pull
out at any point of the research. Their identities were also
Level of music technology use
kept anonymous to maintain confidentiality.
Under this dimension, a total of 10 questions were assigned.
Findings and discussion The result is that level of music technology use is low (M =
This section is about the findings of the study and the 1.77, SD = 0.52). This implies that, the respondents have
interpretation of the collected data. little or no exposure at all in music technology in their
classes and outdoor music programs. This is not a positive
Determine the respondents’ perception of music context indicator in the sense that the world is moving fast and
in terms of use of music technology and quality of music trying to catch up with available technology which is being
programs. updated every now and then. See table below for detailed
This was the first objective which aimed at ascertaining the data on the mean and standard deviations of the responses
respondents’ perception of music education context in terms arranged from high to low.

Table 1: Level of music technology use (N=289)


No. Items Mean SD Scaled response Interpretation
1. I use keyboards to learn music in class 2.53 1.03 Agree High
2. The computers available are used to help teach music in class 1.86 0.87 Disagree Low
8. I record music meant for music class using recording and editing software 1.81 0.84 Disagree Low
7. I compose songs meant for our music class using finale software 1.75 0.84 Disagree Low
9. I use recording or editing software in music class 1.71 0.76 Disagree Low
3. I use my phone to download music meant for our music class 1.69 0.84 Disagree Low
5. I download music videos from YouTube or other sites for use in a music class 1.66 0.79 Disagree Low
6. I use computers to arrange and rearrange music in a music class 1.62 0.78 Disagree Low
10. I use microphones in our music class 1.58 0.72 Disagree Low
4. I use my computer to record my voice in a music class 1.47 0.63 Strongly disagree Very low
Music technology overall 1.77 0.52 Disagree Low
Note: Mean scores are interpreted as follows: 3.5-4.0=Very high, 2.5-3.49=High, 1.5-2.49=Low and 1.0-1.49=Very low.

Table 1 above, manifests that the highest mean of teachers are comfortable to use a keyboard and neglect other
respondents agreed that the musical keyboard was forms. This is because in Zambia the most available and
prevalently used in their music class lessons (M = 2.53). In cheap music instrument is a keyboard. It is hard to find a
contrast, the results show that respondents disagreed that the piano and those available are way far beyond what most
available computers were used to help teach music in class schools can afford. This finding in this study, is contrary to
(M = 1.86). Further, respondents disagreed using recording studies of Watson (2011) and Crawford (2009) [5] who
and editing software to record music meant for music class found synth pads common and lack of keyboards in schools
(M = 1.81). It is also evident from the findings that sampled respectively.
respondents disagreed on using microphones during music
lessons (M = 1.6). The lowest mean recorded showed that Quality of music programs
the respondents disagreed on using computer to record voice This section presents a component of music education
in music class (M = 1.47). context above, which focus on an envisaged good music
The implications of the findings above are that despite program. The measure of the quality of music programs was
having many forms of music technology at their disposal, done through the use of 20 items.

Table 2: Quality of Music Programs (N=289)


No Items Mean SD Scaled response Interpretation
5. Our teachers of music are all trained to teach music 3.29 0.77 Agree High
3. The school administration provides instruments for the music class 3.16 0.80 Agree High
13. The school music program comprise of choir, band, folk dance and music class 3.13 0.84 Agree High
2. Our school music programs encourage creativity 3.10 0.75 Agree High
Lessons learnt are usually put into practice by playing music instruments in and
6. 2.90 0.88 Agree High
outside class
The large part of activities in our music programs is dedicated to dancing,
20. 2.83 0.90 Agree High
singing and playing
8. Music resource books are readily available 2.79 0.88 Agree High

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The school sponsors in campus music performances like choir, band and folk
14. 2.75 0.93 Agree High
dance
The administration allows those who have done music at junior secondary
4. 2.62 0.97 Agree High
school to continue with it at high school
The school sponsors off campus music performances like choir, band and folk
15. 2.61 0.96 Agree High
dance
18. Activities in music programs are usually hands on 2.56 0.82 Agree High
10. All teachers speak positively about our music programs 2.54 0.90 Agree High
11. People in the community attend school music competitions 2.49 1.00 Disagree Low
12. The school offers music in all grade levels 2.48 0.97 Disagree Low
9. Score sheets are enough for all music students 2.47 0.86 Disagree Low
Our school music programs are designed for the able bodied and the physically
1. 2.43 0.95 Disagree Low
challenged students
There is a well-planned schedule for each student on learning an instrument
7. 2.39 0.88 Disagree Low
after music class
17. There are enough music teachers 2.19 0.91 Disagree Low
19. We go on field trips to watch actual bands and choirs singing and playing 1.98 0.99 Disagree Low
The school music programs in terms of band, choir, folk dance and music class
16. 1.72 0.78 Disagree Low
do not need to be improved
Quality music program Overall 2.62 0.39 Agree High
Note: Mean scores are interpreted as follows 3.5-4.0= Very High,2.5-3.49=High,1.5-2.49=Low and 1.0-1.49= Very Low.

The respondents’ perception of the level of quality of music The study reveal that respondents agreed that music
programs in their schools is high (M = 2.62, SD = 0.39). programs in their schools included choir, band, folk dance
This implies that music programs from these schools have and music class (M = 3.16). This is another indicator for a
met above average the yardstick for a quality or envisaged quality music program. However, availability is not a
music programs as stated in the definition of terms. guarantee that students will participate, but it offers a better
Collated information from Table 2, reveal that the chance that they will if certain conditions and enhancers are
respondents affirmed that their music teachers were trained put in place than when not.
to teach music (M = 3.29). They agreed also that their This finding above was in part consistent with Fitzpatrick
school adminstration provides instruments and equipment (2013) [11] who studied factors affecting music education in
for learning music with a response rate with mean score of Ontario Canada and found that band was most prevalent. It
3.16 interpreted as high. Results also show that schools was further supported by a study conducted by Abril and
sampled had choir, band, folk dance and music class in their Gault (2008) [1] on secondary schools in United States and
music programs (M = 3.13). found band, choir, music class being prevalent except for
Furthermore, scores with disagree as response, indicate that folk dance.
though the available teachers are trained, they are few in Furthermore, the results posits a view that, there are few
number and therefore likely not to meet students’musical trained teachers of music and consequently, individualized
needs (M = 2.19). This is very much related also to a lack of instrumental program after class is non- existent. This
well-planned schedule for each student on learning an finding has the potential to influence participation
instrument after music class, as shown in the results (M = negatively. The situation is as a result of firstly few training
2.39). institutions that offer specialized music knowledge.
In the three schools sampled, results designate that all music Secondly, that there are very few people who are willing to
teachers in those schools are trained and qualified to teach. take up studies in music as a career since the perception is
This finding is supported by studies done in Australia that, it is a preserve for the talented and gifted. Thirdly, the
involving primary and secondary schools (Hoeg-Guldberg, confidence of the trainees come into play. It appears their
2013) [15]. In the study it came out that of the ten schools training is not adequate and so there is phobia to teach the
that were sampled, nine had teachers who were highly subject. So in most cases they would rather switch to other
trained and qualified. The percentage of these secondary subjects usually English language (Digolo, Andan'go, &
school teachers was 89% from a sample of 141 which is a Katuli, 2011; Gove & Vaizey, 2011; Eckeskog, 2010) [7, 12,
8]
significant number to warrant a generalization. . Surprisingly Fine Arts is not affected by this apathy
Respondents agreed that the school administration provides exihibited by teachers.
instruments and equipment for learning music (M = A particular note is made on the lowest runged response
3.16).This gesture is an indicator that administrators in the where respondents disagreed that the current music
sampled schools are ready to support the learning programs should be left as they are. This implies that they
environment of music. Though it may not be clear whether are aware that though the program rating is high and are
this equipment is usually new or donated or adequate to available, there is still room to make them better to hit the
balance the ratios as well as the frequence of provision. This very high mark by increasing the use of upto date music
finding is corroborated by the findings of (Abril & Gault, technology.
2008; Crawford, 2009) [1, 5] who recognized government and
adminstrative support in terms of equipment in United Find out the level of participation of the respondents in
States and Australian high schools. However, their findings high school music programs.
bring a question of preferential budgeting when music and This was the second objective which refers to high school
art is viewed in the light of other subjects, this was not so in students’ level of involvement in music programs such as
the current study. band, choir, folk dance and music class.

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International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development www.allsubjectjournal.com

using: Always (5), Often (4), Sometimes (3), Rarely (2) and reliability test. The respondents’ level of participation in
Almost never (1). A total of 12 items were used after music programs is low (M = 1.91, SD = 0.74).
knocking off 29 to regulate redundancy noticed during

Table 3: Students’ Participation in High School Music Program (N=289)


No. Item Mean SD Scaled Response Interpretation
9. I attend my music class lessons 3.52 1.80 Often High
11. I attend recitals as a requirement for my music class 2.29 1.57 Rarely Low
12. I take part in dancing in the music class 2.21 1.52 Rarely Low
10. I take part in the music class field trips 1.99 1.50 Rarely Low
1. I play an instrument in the school band 1.78 1.05 Rarely Low
3. I sing in the school choir 1.70 1.25 Rarely Low
2. I play with the school band in the school programs 1.69 1.07 Rarely Low
6. I dance in music festivals organized by the school 1.68 1.22 Rarely Low
5. I sing with the choir in political functions like a visit by the minister of education 1.55 1.11 Rarely Low
8. I play drums or instruments for the dancers 1.53 0.95 Rarely Low
4. I sing in choral competitions in schoo1. 1.52 1.14 Rarely Low
7. I dance in folk dance competitions in the school 1.44 1.00 Almost never Very low
Participation overall 1.91 0.74 rarely low
Note:4.5-5.0=Always,3.5-4.49=Often,2.5-3.49=Sometimes,1.5-2.49=Rarely,1.0-1.49 Never

Data from Table 3 show that, the highest score confirms that Rare attendance to dancing in music class confirms the
respondents often attend their music class (M = 3.52), but observations of Tembo (2012) [36] that, majority of people in
rarely attend recitals as a music class requirement (M = Zambia are embarrassed to dance partly because of their
2.29). They also rarely take part in dancing in the music church beliefs or teaching and colonial influence.
class (M = 2.21). The implication is that the highest
participation is in music class than other programs despite Determine the variables that significantly predict
others being available too. However, essential ingredients of students’ participation in high school music programs.
a good music class are non-existent as can be seen in rare This was the third objective which sought to find out the
attendance to recitals and dancing. It is not clear whether variable that highly predict students’ participation in high
this is because they are non-existent or it is a choice school music. Regression analysis was used to test if music
respondents make. education context and personal profiles are significant
This finding is different with the studies of (McDaniel, predictors of participation in music. Results indicate that
2011; McPherson & O'neill, 2010; Sahin & Jale, 2011) [25, 26, there are four factors that are significant predictors: Peer
33]
who found low partcipation in music class due to the influence, music technology, family income and age.
respondents’ view of music as not being important Together they explain 21.3% of the variance in participation
compared to other subjects. As a consequence, some states in music programs (R2 =.213, F = 15.053, p <.001). See
in California phased out music classes. table below

Table 4: Predictors of Students' Participation in High School Music Programs


Unstd. Std R2
Variables Coefficients Coefficients T Sig. Change
B Std. Error Beta
Constant .350 .285
Peer Influence .392 .080 .299 4.897 .000 .120
Music Technology .347 .085 .248 4.063 .000 .054
Family Income -.134 .052 -.153 -2.571 .011 .022
Age .076 .035 .128 2.156 .032 .016
R =.461, R2 =.213, F = 15.053, p <.001

Peer influence explains 12% of the variance in participation studies of Theorell, Lennartsson, Madison, Mosing, & Ullén
in music that is fitted by the regression model. Meaning (2015) [37] as well as (Siebenaler, 2006) [35]. It aligns well
participation is likely to increase slightly if peer influence is with the Socio-Cognitive theory which (Schunk, Meece, &
increased by one unit due to the small explained percentage Pintrich, 2014) [34].
above. Music technology explains 5.4% of variance.
Meaning that there would be a slight increase in Formulate a school-based curriculum output from
findings.
participation when use of technology is increased. Family
This served as the fourth objective of the study. The study
income explains 2.2% of the variance. Implying that, the
indicated low participation in band, choir and folkdance in
higher the income of parents the lower the participation in
sampled schools. Therefore a framework meant to act as a
music. Age explains 1.6% of the variance. Hence, the higher basis on which current curriculum, can be modified at
the age the more likely students are to increase their school level to encourage participation by students was
participation in music programs. This is corroborated by the suggested.

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International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development www.allsubjectjournal.com

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Conclusion design-10326627
This study aimed to examine the impact of music education 3. Battey K. Survey questions and answer types.
context on students' participation in high school music QuestionPro. Retrieved from, 2015.
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technology in the context of music education was generally vey-questions
low, leading to a lack of engagement and participation. 4. Berman H. Sample size: Stratified random samples.
Although the quality of the music programs was perceived Retrieved from Stat Trek, 2015. stattrek.com/survey-
as high, there was a desire for improvement. Overall, the research/stratified-sampling-analysis.aspx?Tutorial
level of participation in high school music programs was 5. Crawford R. Secondary school music education: A case
low, with varying levels of involvement in band, choir, folk study in adapting to ICT resource limitations.
dance, and music class. Peer influence, music technology, Australasian Journal of Educational
family income, and age were strong predictors of Technology,2009:25(4):471-488. Retrieved from
participation, with peer influence having the highest www.ascilite.org.au/ajet/ajet25/crawford.pdf
contribution. Increasing peer influence, music technology, 6. Demski J. The device versus the book. Campus
and age were found to positively impact participation, while technology,2010:23(9):26-34.
a decrease in family income was associated with increased 7. Digolo B, Andan'go E, Katuli J. E-learning as a strategy
participation due to high-income families' aspirations for for enhancing access to music education. International
more prestigious careers not related to music. Journal of Business and Social Science, 2011, 2(11).
8. Eckeskog H. A study about the integration of art and
Recommendations music within the education in Zambia. Retrieved from,
To summarize the recommendations, administrators should 2010.
collaborate with music teachers, provide necessary www.divaportal.org/smash/get/diva2:327223/FULLTE
technology and budgets, promote the use of online XT01.pdf
resources, and create policies that allow the use of 9. Emielu A. Some issues in formal music education in
individual phones in music classes. They should ensure Nigeria: A case study of Kwara state,2011:28(3):353-
equal access to computers, prioritize budgets for music 370. doi:10.1017/S0265051711000246
programs, and promote participation through school-wide 10. Falconer L. A comparison of the perception of music
announcements. Teachers should advocate for student educators and school administrators regarding trends in
participation, consider students' cultural backgrounds, secondary curricular offerings and implications on
incorporate technology, organize performances, and align student body participation. Retrieved from, 2013.
repertoire with students' churches. The proposed music scholarworks.boisestate.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article
program framework should be tested and used as a = 1610&context
supplement to existing programs. 11. Fitzpatrick L. Factors affecting music education in
Students should be informed about the benefits of music, Ontario secondary schools: Teachers' perspective.
including improved communication, association, electronic thesis and dissertation repository. Retrieved
appreciation, and critical thinking skills. They should be from, 2013. ir.lib.uwo.
encouraged to continue their involvement in music ca/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2549&context=etd
programs and inspire others to join by highlighting these 12. Gove M, Vaizey E. The importance of music: A
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13. Hartwig K, Ng C. Teachers' perceptions of the
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