Browsing by Author "Tuominen, Marika"

Goal. The goal of this thesis was to examine what factors affect the musical self-concept of elementary school pupils and what kind of teaching supports the growth of a positive musical self-concept. The hypothesis was that several factors affect a pupil’s musical self-concept, such as social environment, subjective experiences and received feedback. The theoretical framework and most research on this subject were done in Finland during the early 1990’s in a study conducted by Kirsti Tulamo. International sources usually referred to the work of Albert Bandura, who had developed the theory of self-efficacy and conducted extensive research about the subject. The purpose of this thesis was to gather all scientific study of the subject in recent years. Methods. The method used in this thesis was a systematic literary review. After utilizing strict search criteria six studies from 2011 to 2015 were found regarding the subject in both Finnish and English. Common themes were analyzed from these studies, from which larger conclusions were made to answer the questions brought up in this thesis. Results and Conclusions. The results were mostly in line with the hypothesis. According to studies the musical self-concept of young pupils is influenced and affected by social environment, experience, the pupil’s own hobby interests and perceptions of talent. The effect of gender has a contradictory result according to research. From a teaching perspective the development of a musical self-concept is affected the schools and class’s cultural activities, the teachers own attributes and the teachers way of evaluating the pupils. The results of this thesis can help teachers reflect the purpose and practice of teaching music and to also instill thoughts of the importance of motivation and evaluation.