Improving Students' Motivation in Learning Music

The Research about Motivation by McPherson

The music educator, McPherson's study showed that most children “intrinsically motivated” did not think that they wanted to become musicians even though they had interests in music, but very few children “less intrinsically motivated” thought the music was an important to learn from the interview of beginning instrumentalists, seven and nine years old.

Most children had in their mind that music was one of school activities that they supposed to do. On the other hand, very few children treated music as “their future careers” according to O’neill and McPherson.

Moreover, students who decided to play the instruments only for couple years did not spend much time on practicing, and they improved very slowly. On the other hand, other students who promised to play till the end of the school education spent much more time on practicing and their musicality improved a lot.

What do you think about the results of his study?

Improving students' motivation is very important for them to enjoy and continue playing music.

Our music teachers share experiences with students, inspire them to achieve their goals, interacting individually with them, and being a strong role model to students are significant requirements for increasing students’ interest in learning.

If students are interested in a subject, they will be motivated to spend more energy in pursuing it. Moreover, our teacher's job is not only developing students musically and academically, but also assisting them to succeed in their lives as well-functioning members of their profession and their society. As part of their education, our music teachers provide opportunities for students to learn healthy social skills.