Abstract: The purpose of this study was to examine relationships between pitch-matching and grade level, sex, ethnicity, and classroom teachers’ use of music among K-3 students (N = 289) taught by the same general music teacher. Portions of the data from a pitch-matching exercise that functioned as the music teacher’s roll-taking procedure during the 2005-06 school year were treated as pre- and post-tests. There were no significant pretest differences between ethnic groups (Hispanic, White, Other). There were significant pretest differences among classes taught by different classroom teachers, as well as the female students scoring significantly higher than males. Covariance analysis (pretest as covariate) revealed significant improvement by girls over boys on the posttest. There were no significant pretest differences among grade levels, suggesting a lack of carryover of pitch-matching skills from previous years, despite significant improvement (pre-post) for every grade level during the year under study. The boys performed poorly relative to girls in higher grades, though the interaction was not significant. Finally, the study revealed relationships between classroom teachers’ reported use of music and student gain scores (pre-post) in pitch-matching.

||VEZA IZMEĐU REPRODUKOVANJA ZADATOG TONSKOG NIZA I RAZREDA, POLA, ETNIČKE PRIPADNOSTI I METODA KORIŠĆENJA MUZIKE U NASTAVI NA PREDŠKOLSKOM UZRASTU I U PRVA TRI RAZREDA OSNOVNE ŠKOLE
Cilj rada je bio da se ispita veza između reprodukovanja zadatog tonskog niza i razreda koje dete pohađa, pola, etničke pripadnosti i načina na koji nastavnici razredne nastave koriste muziku u nastavi kod predškolske grupe i učenika od prvog do trećeg razreda (N = 289) kojima predaje isti nastavnik muzike opšteg smera. Podaci dobijeni na bazi vežbe za reprodukovanje zadatog tonskog niza koje je nastavnik muzike koristio u procesu prozivke učenika tokom školske 2005/06. godine su delom iskorišćeni kao predtestiranje i post-testiranje. U predtestiranju nije bilo značajnijih razlika među etničkim grupama (Hispanjolci, belci, ostali). Značajne razlike u predtestiranju evidentirane su između odeljenja kojima su predavali različiti nastavnici razredne nastave, a bilo je primetno i da su rezultati devojčica bili značajno viši u odnosu na dečake. Analizom kovarijanse (sa predtestiranjem kao kovarijantom) u post-testiranju je utvrđeno značajno poboljšanje kod devojčica u odnosu na dečake. U predtestiranju nije bilo značajnijih razlika između različitih razreda, što je sugerisalo da nije bilo prenošenja veštine reprodukovana zadatog tonskog niza iz prethodnih razreda, i pored značajnog poboljšanja (predtestiranje – post testiranje) u svakom razredu tokom referentne godine. Dečaci su imali slabije rezultate u odnosu na devojčice u višim razredima, iako interakcija nije bila važna. Konačno, studija je ukazala na vezu koja postoji između načina na koji su nastavnici razredne nastave koristili muziku u nastavi i napretka koji su učenici pokazali u pogledu reprodukovanja zadatog tonskog niza (predtestiranje – post-testiranje).

Compulsory education and school laws were enacted in the British colonies of North America beginning from the 1640s. Compulsory school laws were gradually enacted in all states of the United States of America between 1852 and 1918, with enforcement of the laws following gradually and but unevenly in the various states. Today, most states require attendance up to age 16. Music was gradually introduced to the elementary school curriculum from the 1830s. Today, music is mandatory for all (general) students in Grades 1-6 in most schools and in some schools in Grades 7-8, and is an elective subject in most schools in Grades 7-12. General music classes in the U.S. are similar to compulsory music classes in many other countries. Approximately 25 percent of American public secondary school students participate in elective music performing ensembles, which are a distinctive and positive feature of American music education.

The purpose of this study was to standardize the Primary Measures of Music Audiation in Greece (N = 1,188). Split-halves reliability was acceptable across grade levels (K through 3) for the Tonal and Rhythm subtests, but test-retest reliability was generally unacceptable, especially for the Rhythm subtest. Concurrent validity was mixed, with teacher ratings of musical achievement generally significantly correlated with Tonal but not Rhythm subtest scores. Composite test means were significantly higher for suburban and urban samples than for rural samples and were significantly higher for higher grade levels. Item difficulty coefficients were significantly correlated across grade levels. The Greek and U.S. composite means were similar except for a significantly higher U.S. mean for grade 1. However, when the rural subgroup was removed from the Greek sample to equate with the U.S. norming sample, there were nonsignificant differences from grades K through 1, but significant differences in favor of the Greek sample for grades 3 and 4.

The purpose of this study was to examine the classroom observation ability of pre-service music teachers in Greece (N = 62). Two groups of undergraduates, one near the beginning and one near the end of a two-year course sequence in teaching methods that included in-class and in-school training in observation ("juniors" and "seniors," respectively), observed videotapes of one elementary (4th grade) and one secondary (8th grade) general music class, each being taught by its own expert music teacher. Subjects wrote comments that judges classified into subcategories within overall categories of lesson, teacher, and students. Results largely confirmed those of previous research from the USA, with the more experienced subjects making significantly more comments and both groups focusing more on teachers than on lessons or students. There were also differences between subcategories and significant intersections involving experience level and sex of the subjects.

N₂ fixation and ammonia oxidation (AO) are the two most important processes in the nitrogen (N) cycle of biological soil crusts (BSCs). We studied the short-term response of acetylene reduction assay (ARA) rates, an indicator of potential N₂ fixation, and AO rates to temperature (T, -5°C to 35°C) in BSC of different successional stages along the BSC ecological succession and geographic origin (hot Chihuahuan and cooler Great Basin deserts). ARA in all BSCs increased with T until saturation occurred between 15 and 20°C, and declined at 30–35°C. Culture studies using cyanobacteria isolated from these crusts indicated that the saturating effect was traceable to their inability to grow well diazotrophically within the high temperature range. Below saturation, temperature response was exponential, with Q₁₀ significantly different in the two areas (~ 5 for Great Basin BSCs; 2–3 for Chihuahuan BSCs), but similar between the two successional stages. However, in contrast to ARA, AO showed a steady increase to 30–35°C in Great Basin, and Chihuhuan BSCs showed no inhibition at any tested temperature. The T response of AO also differed significantly between Great Basin (Q₁₀ of 4.5–4.8) and Chihuahuan (Q₁₀ of 2.4–2.6) BSCs, but not between successional stages. Response of ARA rates to T did not differ from that of AO in either desert. Thus, while both processes scaled to T in unison until 20°C, they separated to an increasing degree at higher temperature. As future warming is likely to occur in the regions where BSCs are often the dominant living cover, this predicted decoupling is expected to result in higher proportion of nitrates in soil relative to ammonium. As nitrate is more easily lost as leachate or to be reduced to gaseous forms, this could mean a depletion of soil N over large landscapes globally.