Content area
The major purpose of this study was to identify and classify objectives for teaching college music in the United States during the period from 1914 to 1989 as reflected by objective statements in articles from selected professional periodicals.
The 1914 to 1989 period was divided into seven subperiods. An historical research approach was utilized to identify and classify stated aims, objectives, and goals for college music teaching. All issues of the selected professional periodicals were examined for college music teaching content. Those containing relevant information were then re-examined by applying the article/objective selection criteria. Statements found were catalogued into Knowledge, Process, Attitude and Interest, or Cultural Awareness categories. The statements were then catalogued into one or more of 12 objective types. Resulting data were recorded within and across subperiods according to frequency of occurrence, category, authorship, and year.
The major findings of this investigation included the following: The objective categories identified by Ogden (1972), Ogden and Jackson (1974), Roy (1979), Woodard (1982), Rand (1984), and McConnell (1986), were found in this study. Educational writers in the university/4-year college category were the most active publishers of articles across all subperiods. Educational authors in the community/junior college category were the least active writers. In each consecutive subperiod, an increase in the number of articles was noted.
The most important objectives for the period 1914 through 1989 were Processes, Skills and Techniques; Major Facts, Principles, or Fundamentals; and Applications of Music to Daily Life.
Based upon the findings of this investigation, the following conclusions were made: The most important objectives for teaching college music were Processes, Skills and Techniques (from the Process category), Major Facts, Principles, or Fundamentals (from the Knowledge category), and Applications of Music to Daily Life (also from the Knowledge category). Consistent agreement was not found among authorships related to objectives of college music teaching. A consistent increase in writings was noted with each succeeding subperiod.