Uloga vrjednovanja u učenju i poučavanju glazbe
Authors:   , Novak Marina 
Published: December 2024

The teaching of and learning music rely heavily on assessment procedures, most often formative. Formative assessment directs the course of teaching and affects the selection, scope, and arrangement of content, teaching methods, and time planning. Summative assessment is still the predominant form of testing specific knowledge and skills related to music performance. The objectivity of judgement is sought to be achieved through the assessments of several evaluators and the use of criterion scales and rubrics, but their reliability is limited. The Doctoral thesis examines two aspects of assessment in teaching of and learning music. The first aspect is the assessment procedures used to teach and assess what has been learned; the second is the grades derived from these procedures. The topic of assessment in the field of learning and teaching music was discussed in the theoretical part of the paper and through two stages of research. In the first part of the research the data obtained by a systematic review of the literature on assessment in music education was qualitatively analysed. In the second stage, the data on primary and secondary music school grades in the sample weas quantitatively analysed. Both stages looked at a 25-year sample. The research covers all levels of formal music teaching (primary, secondary, and tertiary) in general education and specialised music educational institutions, as well as in group and individual forms of teaching with particular emphasis on assessing performing music subjects. The first stage of the research is based on a thematic analysis of data collected by a systematic review of scientific research papers in the field of assessment in classical music education published over 25 years, including 154 pieces of original empirical research. According to the topics covered, the research can be divided into 11 groups that problematise two main areas: 'assessment of musical performance' and 'assessment processes in music teaching'. Within the area of 'assessment of musical performance', these are the development, testing and application of various assessment instruments (assessment scales, rubrics); differences between assessors and the fairness and reliability of their assessments; influence beyond musical factors on the assessment of musical performance; respondents' attitudes on the issue of assessment musical performance. In the area of 'assessment processes in music teaching', seven main topics were detected: the position of assessment in music teaching, assessment for and as learning; the role of formative assessment and feedback in the process of v learning music; self-assessment and peer assessment; assessment of abilities; prediction of success based on initial or previous achievements and external factors, such as evaluation of teaching, i.e., teachers and attitudes of respondents towards assessment within the teaching process. In an effort to contribute towards solving the problem of general objectivity regarding the grades awarded, a large number of papers are dedicated to developing, testing, and verifying the validity and reliability of measuring instruments for evaluating musical performance. There are two primary forms of such instruments – criterion assessment scales and rubrics. Their most common elements describe technical performance (quality of tone, intonation, rhythm, articulation, diction, breathing, body position), musicality (expressiveness, interpretation, creativity, originality) and presentation (accuracy of performance, balance, choice of repertoire, communication with the audience). In the case of criterion scales, the assessors use the Likerttype scale to determine the level of agreement with the proposed statements or criteria or the level of its achievement by numerical or some other designation. In the case of rubrics, they determine which proposed statements can describe the evaluated musical performance according to individual elements or in its entirety. The authors of the analysed papers emphasise the instrument's reliability on the examined sample within the same object of assessment. However, their validity in broader applications is rightly questioned. Namely, the question arises of whether the assessors genuinely come to a decision on the musical performance by using these instruments or whether they limit them or even direct them to the wrong judgments. Whether the assessments were created using assessment scales or rubrics or were made holistically, they have a satisfactory internal consistency if the criteria for which the musical performance is assessed are clear. In doing so, previous experience in assessment and knowledge of the repertoire contributes to the accuracy of assessments, and assessors who are experts in a close field can assess as competently as those who are more specialised. If it is a matter of ranking, that is, a relative relationship of performance ratings, the reliability of the estimates is higher. We can conclude that the use of criterion scales for assessment and rubrics, to a certain extent, contributes to a more objective assessment of musical performance. However, in every evaluation, whether criterion or holistic, the subjective factor of the evaluator is also crucial. Relying on their knowledge and aesthetic experience and intuitive or emotional response to the performance, they form their assessment and often justify their decision after the first judgment, i.e., identify the performance characteristics that support their initial assessment. External circumstances affect the assessments of more experienced evaluators or vi experts to a lesser extent, but even there, for example – fatigue and saturation can affect the assessment. The number of studies devoted to the role of assessment in music teaching that are not directly related to the assessment of musical performance has been significantly higher in the last decade of the observed period. The researchers examined the effectiveness of individual assessment tools such as portfolios, rubrics, criterion scales, and online tools. Although the results of action led research, which bring new, innovative practices that support the paradigm of 'assessment as learning' and 'assessment for learning' were presented, their application in practice is scarce. In practice, summative assessment methods prevail. In general education, apart from music elements, attendance and commitment in class, are often the only other elements on which the students are marked. Teachers with less experience rarely decide to apply formative assessment forms and stick more strictly to predetermined assessment procedures. The potential of feedback is emphasised where the summative assessment results according to criterion scales or rubrics are available to students and their teachers as a starting point for further teaching, learning and practice. Feedback in the form of discussion, dialogue, demonstration, or video could be important for advancing the progress of music students. The combination contributes to developing critical thinking and self-regulation of learning. There is a positive correlation between grades from previous education, results of the entrance exam and grades during studies, including the final exam, especially in music subjects. The results of the entrance exams primarily have a normative and diagnostic role and serve to select candidates with appropriate competencies for the study of music. There was an increased interest in exploring the roles of self-assessment and peer assessment in music learning. While earlier studies testified to respondents' reluctance and distrust towards peer and self-assessment, newer studies notice their greater readiness for inclusion and a more active role in assessment processes as learning. It was found that interventions aimed at increasing the ability to think critically and assess his own or the work of their peers were successful, and the respondents observed significant progress. The main disadvantages of this form of assessment are the lack of experience, ignorance of the criteria, and uncertainty of the respondents regarding their assessments. The objectivity of the assessment increases with the age and education of the respondents. The second stage of the research determines the trends in assessment in primary and secondary music schools in Croatia from 1989 to 2016. It was conducted on a sample of four vii music schools in northern Croatia, which represent about 10 % of the population of primary and 26 % of secondary music schools students. Final grades in the following subjects were analysed: Main subject (music instrument), Solfeggio, Group performing (Choir/Orchestra), Chamber music, Piano obligatory (Compulsory instrument), and Elective subject – for 2184 primary music school students. For 802 secondary music school students in the sample, the final grades (at the end of each school year) were analysed in the following subjects: Main subject (instrument/singing), Solfeggio, Harmony, Polyphony, History of Music, Piano obligatory (Compulsory instrument), Group performing (Choir/Orchestra/Ensemble), Chamber Music, Musical Forms, Conducting, Reading and Playing Scores and Teaching Methodology. The final grades are numerical with the descriptions: ‘excellent’ (5), ‘very good’ (4), ‘good’ (3), ‘pass’ (2) and ‘fail’ (1). It should be stressed that 57.5 % of the pupils in the sample did not complete primary music education. They mostly gave up on attending music school in the first and second years. The share of students who dropped out and did not complete secondary music education is almost 30 %. Most of them dropped out in or after the first year. If we observe trends of grades according to the grades in primary music school, we can see that grades, as expected, seem to be the highest in the first year Main subject (4.51), Solfeggio (4.36), decline by the fifth year (3.82; 3.85) and have a slight increase in the last year of music school (3.88; 3.36). On average, grades in Group performance are significantly higher and only slightly fall throughout the four years of studies (4.71 – 4.64). Average grades have steadily increased over the observed period, although there are slight variations in individual generations. When considering the connection between grades in the Main subject (Instrument) and Solfeggio, as well as age, gender, the instrument that is the student majors in and the school they attend, it was found that some independent variables affect grades to a certain extent. The student's age affects the grade in the Main subject in the first, second and sixth year, and in Solfeggio from the third year onwards. The correlation between grades and gender is shown only in the fifth and sixth years in the Main subject, while there are no such correlations in Solfeggio. The instrument chosen by the student as the major subject is not a variable that affects the grades in the Main subject and Solfeggio. The differences in average final grades between individual schools in the sample are insignificant. Slightly lower grades in the first four years in one of the music schools in the sample can be attributed to the fact that the school viii curriculum prescribes that grades are not communicated to students until the end of primary education (year six). The development of students is continuously monitored through descriptive marks and numerical grades in pedagogical documentation. Students and parents can view them only after the student finishes elementary music school. In the case of this school, the final grades are not decisive, and the examination juries and teachers are not under pressure or influence of the outside forces when assessing students.