Copyright (c) 2010 All rights reserved. http://works.bepress.com/david_rickels Recent documents in David A. Rickels en-us Tue, 16 Mar 2010 22:13:07 PDT 3600 http://works.bepress.com/david_rickels/10 http://works.bepress.com/david_rickels/10 Mon, 15 Mar 2010 10:11:42 PDT David A. Rickels Music Teacher Recruitment http://works.bepress.com/david_rickels/9 http://works.bepress.com/david_rickels/9 Thu, 04 Mar 2010 18:45:28 PST This paper reports one of three parallel investigations in a large study funded by the Sounds of Learning project and designed to investigate the outcomes and values associated with an effective K-12 public school music program. The word "effective" was included in the call for proposals, and the researchers chose to define "effective" in certain ways. These decisions and the data collected led to questions of access and equity, and point to the complexities of social justice in both research and practice. Demographic data (gender, ethnicity, SES) were obtained for all secondary students attending 19 schools in a single district. The same variables were calculated for students enrolled in secondary school music courses, then compared to district aggregates. Approximately 15% of the total secondary school population was enrolled in music. The sample of music students was composed of more females, more students of white ethnicity, fewer students of other ethnicities except Asian, and fewer students of low-SES backgrounds. Similar findings occurred when data were examined by school. While words such as "opportunity," "access," and "offered" appear in national documents and reports to describe secondary school music, social justice problems arise when these terms are misconstrued to mean equitable and just. David A. Rickels Demographic Analysis http://works.bepress.com/david_rickels/8 http://works.bepress.com/david_rickels/8 Sun, 04 Oct 2009 09:53:59 PDT This article presents several strategies for music teachers who are struggling with the assimilation of new technology for their classrooms. David A. Rickels Technology http://works.bepress.com/david_rickels/7 http://works.bepress.com/david_rickels/7 Sun, 04 Oct 2009 09:51:35 PDT Music teachers are often overwhelmed by the amount of technology available in the schools today. One way to bring technology into your classroom is to repackage an old lesson with a technology that you might use every day. Examples are included for several different grade levels. David A. Rickels Technology http://works.bepress.com/david_rickels/6 http://works.bepress.com/david_rickels/6 Tue, 15 Sep 2009 15:32:53 PDT The purpose of this study was to construct a demographic and workload profile of the typical music education faculty member in the United States. Participants were selected from a random sample of NASM-accredited institutions offering music education degree programs. Through an online survey, participants responded to questions regarding higher education work history and demographics, including: (a) degrees held; (b) sex; (c) K-12 teaching experience; and (d) age. Certain characteristics of the profile varied according to the type of institution at which the respondent worked. The exploration of demographic and workload norms in the music education professoriate may be of interest to those who prepare music teacher education faculty. Wesley D. Brewer Demographic Analysis http://works.bepress.com/david_rickels/5 http://works.bepress.com/david_rickels/5 Thu, 03 Sep 2009 08:25:24 PDT The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine influences on high school music students' decisions about pursing a career in music education. Participants were selected from the 11th and 12th grades of four high school music programs, representing band, choir, and orchestra participation. After responding to an initial questionnaire, six participants were purposefully selected for a series of interviews. Based on the data collected, several themes emerged that highlighted similarities and differences between participants in the way that they related their personal career influences. These themes included a passion for music performance, altruistic feelings about sharing a music experience with others, and influences of key role models. David A. Rickels Music Teacher Recruitment http://works.bepress.com/david_rickels/4 http://works.bepress.com/david_rickels/4 Thu, 03 Sep 2009 08:10:11 PDT The purpose of this pilot study was to survey prospective undergraduate music education majors to learn what motivated them to aspire to a career in music education. Respondents were candidates auditioning, but not yet accepted, for music teacher preparation programs at four institutions (N = 228). Findings corroborate prior research that suggests that school music teachers and/or private lesson teachers are highly influential. This study sought to quantify the types of experiences participants had in teaching roles at the time of their college audition, supporting other research suggesting that such experiences may increase interest in a music teaching career. Recommendations include engaging music educators at all PK-12 levels in actively recruiting and encouraging future teachers; providing private instructors and performance majors with teacher recruitment information; emphasizing earlier identification and preparation of prospective educators; and refining and continuing the work begun in the pilot study. David A. Rickels Music Teacher Recruitment http://works.bepress.com/david_rickels/3 http://works.bepress.com/david_rickels/3 Sun, 30 Aug 2009 21:49:20 PDT The purpose of this study was to examine a set of nonperformance variables pertaining to high school marching bands, and the relationships between these variables and the scoring results of marching band contests in the United States. The term "nonperformance variable" refers to a characteristic of a competing marching band or its director that was not overtly evaluated by performance criteria at a contest. The need for this study results from the widespread and historically established nature of band competitions, and evidence in prior research demonstrating pressure to compete. This study merged single-state methods and limited sets of variables employed in previous research by using a multi-state sample to examine a set of 22 nonperformance variables in a multivariate design.To create a generalizable sample that could accurately reflect high school marching band activity around the United States, a sample of six states was randomly selected from a stratified design to avoid bias for geographic region and population size. Using an online questionnaire, data were collected from marching band directors whose bands participated in representative contests in the selected states, resulting in a response rate of 52.15%. Results of a stepwise multiple regression analysis indicated five significant models predicting 50.0% of the variance in contest scores. The five significant predictor variables included the size of the marching band; the number of uncertified paid assistant instructors; a scale of the director's attitudes towards marching band and competition; the hours of weekly rehearsal; and, the dollar budget of the marching band. All five predictors were positive, and all exhibited log-linear or inverse-linear relationships to the contest score, indicating a complex relationship.The high percentage of variance in contest scores explained by this set of nonperformance predictors (50.0%) carries strong implications for participants and administrators of band contests, and raises issues of equity and fairness in the competitive process, particularly when considering that these variables are often largely beyond the control of the student performers. Further attention to these issues is suggested in research and practice, with a goal of ensuring that competitive outcomes are maximally determined by actual student performance. David A. Rickels Dissertation Competition http://works.bepress.com/david_rickels/2 http://works.bepress.com/david_rickels/2 Sun, 30 Aug 2009 21:45:32 PDT David A. Rickels History http://works.bepress.com/david_rickels/1 http://works.bepress.com/david_rickels/1 Sun, 30 Aug 2009 21:40:43 PDT This study investigated the relationships between scores at high school marching band festivals during the fall 2004 Arizona marching season and 16 contributing variables of participating bands. Directors of 115 schools that participated in such festivals were invited by electronic mail to complete a questionnaire using the internet, and 76% responded (N = 87). Using Pearson product-moment coefficients, ANOVA tests, and t tests, the variables found to have significant relationships with festival scores included marching band budget, total band-program budget, number of part-time assistant/non-certified marching staff, marching band enrollment, total band program enrollment, number of festivals attended, school enrollment, and concurrence of concert band programs. Analyses of the variables of teacher's years of experience, teacher's years at current school, number of full-time certified staff instructing the marching band, rehearsal hours per week, school geographic locale, internal program co-participation requirements, school Title I status, or director's rank of marching band priority among other band programs did not reveal any significant relationships to festival scores. David A. Rickels Competition