Effects of Parental/ Home Environment

Parental and home environment have been known to affect the outcome of music lessons. This section
will provide an overview of the literature on parental involvement, then the literature on home
environment.
As mentioned in the Introduction, Linda Svetka Mavich Govel assessed in her dissertation "An
Examination of the Types of Parental Involvement Among Piano Dropouts," what parental factors led
to cessation of piano study. A 95-item questionnaire was distributed among four middle/intermediate
schools in the southern bay area of Los Angeles to students who were either considering dropping out
of piano lessons or had already dropped piano lessons. Students who wanted to drop out of piano
lessons cited that they "don't have enough time," "too busy," "boredom," "don't like piano," "sports,"
and "homework." Those who had already dropped out mentioned "loss of interest," "other after-school
activities," "wanting to play other instruments," "too much homework," "scheduling conflicts," as the
main reasons for quitting. Govel suggested making piano lessons more fun and interactive to increase
the retention of piano students.
In the 1990s, Davidson et. al in "The role of parental influences in the development of musical
performance," studied 257 children of varying musical ability and their parents through interviews. It
was found that “overall, the most musically able children had the highest levels of parental support.”
This, along with other studies of related material, confirms the fact that involved parents usually signify
successful music students.
In 1993, Zdzinski published "Relationships Among Parent Involvement, Selected Student Attributes,
and Learning Outcomes in Instrumental Music." He conducted cognitive and performance tests to 406
students and distributed surveys to their parents. He found "no significant relationship between
parental involvement and performance achievement or overall music achievement (Harris, 2008.) He
did, however, find that "parental involvement's effects upon musical achievement may differ with
student age."
In the most recent study to date, Amanda Kay Harris explored the relationship between
adolescents and parental involvement. Interviews were conducted with 28 students and their teachers
and parents, on these terms: “parental involvement levels, student achievement, and student satisfaction
using a five-point Likert scale (Strongly Disagree- Strongly Agree.) In her conclusion, she states that
"there is little relationship between parental involvement and both student achievement and
satisfaction." (Harris, 2008.) For further study, she suggests studying students who have discontinued
piano lessons, more students to participate in the study, a “thorough testing of the students’ abilities by
the teacher,” and a “more comprehensive parent survey.”
Home environment also factors in the outcome of piano lessons. In 1991, Vivian Graziano of
Columbia University Teachers' College wrote a dissertation entitled "A Descriptive Analysis of
Various Relationships Between Home Environment and Success in Piano Study." In this study, she
sought what factors in the home environment contribute to a successful outcome in piano lessons.
Research was conducted through 12 in-depth interviews with 10 different families spanning four
counties in the state of New York. Families were asked county of residence, studio and lesson type,
piano methods, parental involvement, and definition of success. She found that "parental values such
as concern for education, having goals and expectations, gaining basic musical skills, maintaining
regular practice, developing discipline, commitment, responsibility, and perseverance have positive
influences on children's participation and success."
Henry Bonfati, in "The Impact of the Home on Environment on Success in Instrumental Music,"
studied 19 home families with children involved in instrumental music programs. He examined his
students through “descriptive” and “qualitative” analysis, as he thought it would be the best method for
his study. Bonifati modeled his study on Graziano’s (above) but focused his subjects to children
studying in band. His results yielded that “the most important variables for successful music were
parental concerns, such as support and encouragement.” MORE
K.M. Power did a study between the American and Japanese cultures in “A cross-cultural study
between mothers' and teachers' attitudes toward the music education in the US and Japan.” In it, she
sent questionnaires to mothers and teachers both in America and Japan asking them to describe their
teaching strategies for their children. Her results yielded that, contrary to popular opinion, American
mothers are more demanding on their children even though Japanese children had higher levels of
achievement. Although American teachers take responsibility for success, Japanese teachers take the
blame for failure.
Student Attitudes and Motivation/ Dropout behavior
One aspect of piano study deals with psychological factors such as motivation, perception/attitudes,
and behavior. This section will cover the research that has been done in this branch of study as it
relates to music study.
In 1991, Edith Irene Colvin Dyal conducted a study entitled "An Examination of Factors Which
Associate with a Successful Outcome in Piano Lessons." A questionnaire was distributed among 506
piano students across five different areas of the United States to assess "factors attributed to success in
piano study". Her three major conclusions were:
1. Good practice procedures are of vital importance if piano lessons are to have a successful
outcome.
2. Encouragement and praise for work well done plays a strong role in the unfolding of successful
piano lessons.
3. A balanced program of study, including a wide variety of music and each of the facets of music
learning are found to be a factor in successful lessons.
It seems that be successful in piano study requires the right combination of practice, reward, and
balance. Furthermore, Dyal suggested recommendations to further “promote rewarding lessons in the
future:”
1. More attention to good practice procedures
2. Abundant positive constructive criticism
3. Extra weekly music lessons in order to include all facets of music learning
4. Broader training for teachers
5. Further research with a more representative sample of the various ethnic groups
Eugenia Costa-Giomi, in her study "Piano Lessons of Beginning Students Who Drop Out: Teacher
Behavior, Student Behavior, and Lesson Progress," looked at "behavioral differences between children
who dropped out of piano lessons and those who continued for three years." (Costa-Giomi, 1995.) 14
pairs of students with each pair studying with the same teacher were "systematically observed to record
the duration or frequency of occurrence of selected student and teacher behaviors." Two behaviors that
Costa-Giomi noticed more in dropouts were "lowered motivation and diminished achievement."
Dropouts also sought more approval from their teachers than their peers. It can be concluded that
despite "cognitive abilities, musical abilities, motor proficiency, self-esteem, and demographic factors,"
dropouts exhibited three types of noticeable behavior more than those who do not dropout.
Three authors, D. Dubal, D.C. Sanders, and K.M. Powers express their opinions about dropouts in
various musical periodicals. Dubal, in an article entitled "Thoughts and afterthoughts," commented
that one of the biggest reasons children drop out of piano is from "too much competition from other
activities." He also noted that unrealistic expectations from parents, such as practicing only something
that is assigned by the teacher or “something nice,” can also lead to dropouts. Students who are in a
constricting environment, not encouraged to “tinker” or “explore,” often feel that music is a boring and
laborious activity. Sanders states that one of the reasons that children do not stick with music lessons is
because music is not appealing as other activities, and children think that "musical studies don't benefit
later in life." Power, found that one reason parents place their children in piano lessons is because they
are interested in "personal and social development through music." Student dropout can be attributed
to a number of reasons, both from the student and parent perspective.