Engaging Aural Skills Students with Model-Eliciting Activities

Abstract

This mixed-methods study explores how using Model-Eliciting Activities (MEAs) in an aural skills classroom can promote student motivation and engagement. MEAs require students to create models to solve progressively complex problems. As students develop and refine their models, they engage in a testing and iteration process that prioritizes learning over final outcomes, which fosters student empowerment. The specific MEA implemented was focused on music transcription skills and used the MUSIC Inventory of Motivation survey to assess student motivation and engagement, complemented by follow-up interviews that explain the results of the survey. Many students scored high on this survey and expressed similar results in qualitative follow-up. Additional findings included students expressing excitement for collaboration and benefits to their perceived transcription skills. Overall, the findings suggest that MEAs foster high levels of student motivation and engagement within the aural skills curriculum.