Academic and experimental research results for a long time indicate that the rapidest development is built in childhood among other growth periods in man. Children in this period form their concrete and logical thinking ability, showing cognitively di...
Academic and experimental research results for a long time indicate that the rapidest development is built in childhood among other growth periods in man. Children in this period form their concrete and logical thinking ability, showing cognitively distinct development. As this thinking ability greatly affects emotional aspects, childhood may be said to be the most important period that can effectively cultivate musical abilities. Therefore, the need to provide children in childhood with more efficient music education can be said to be a general propensity that most parents have in mind, and education for the piano is recognized as one of the most generalized music education methods for this purpose.
The piano is capable of providing a variety of musical expressions of great compass and voluminous volume, being considered the most appropriate musical instrument for fundamental music education. Learning for the piano not merely helps children express their feelings freely, advance their individual potential musical talents and aptitudes but also contributes to developing their intelligence, along with the formation of the living habit with which they enjoy music so that their emotion could be greatly cultivated soundly. Moreover, education for the piano may serve as a basic stepstone for the ultimate educational goals in building a total man personality by building a basis of the development of sensitivity by which children can love and feel music for life. However, currently teaching methods for the piano for the most part depend very largely upon technique- centered ones merely for extending technical and functional abilities. These methods are seen as not consistent with musical development in childhood as well as with their parents' ultimate educational goals for piano education.
With this in view, this study puts its principal objectives on groping for such teaching methods as can lead piano education in childhood to an effective and recommendable direction.
The present study approached to the acknowledgment of the impotance of piano education in childhood, thus built a theoretical basis for effective piano education in childhood, on the basis of the music teaching methods and philosophy of Dalcroze, Orff, Kodaly and the Cognition Development Stages of Swiss psychologist Piaget.
Furthermore, this study suggested elements that affect effective piano learning in childhood: teachers' quality, educational environments, and other elements. And then it proposed practical lesson models in three time series for rhythm learning, listening and sight reading learning, composition and impromptu performance and appreciation learning. Finally, this study tried to grope for effective orientations and methods for childhood by accepting children's opinions, the subjects of piano education, including piano teaching realities, piano teaching effects, their and their parents' interest in and preference for piano teaching directions, opinions of children, parents, and teachers on improvements in teachers' instruction.