Abstract
Growth mindset is an important aspect of children’s socioemotional development and is subject to change due to environmental influence. Orchestral music education may function as a fertile context in which to promote growth mindset; however, this education is not widely available to children facing economic hardship. This study examined whether participation in a program of orchestral music education was associated with higher levels of overall growth mindset and greater change in levels of musical growth mindset among children placed at risk by poverty. After at least 2 years of orchestral participation, students reported significantly higher levels of overall growth mindset than their peers; participating students also reported statistically significant increases in musical growth mindset regardless of the number of years that they were enrolled in orchestral music education. These findings have implications for future research into specific pedagogical practices that may promote growth mindset in the context of orchestral music education and more generally for future studies of the extra-musical benefits of high-quality music education.
Highlights
Poverty and racism create gaps in opportunities for children to acquire the skills they need for success in school (Duncan and Brooks-Gunn, 2000)
While gender was not related to post-program overall (p = 0.643) or musical growth mindset scores (p = 0.790), ethnicity was related to overall growth mindset scores [F(6, 434) = 5.88, p < 0.001]
Gender, ethnicity, and age were included as covariates in models estimating overall growth mindset, given that the distribution of enrolled and unenrolled students differed by gender, ethnicity, and age and that ethnicity was related to overall growth mindset scores
Summary
Poverty and racism create gaps in opportunities for children to acquire the skills they need for success in school (Duncan and Brooks-Gunn, 2000). Students with a growth mindset tend to exhibit higher levels of school achievement over time, even after accounting for initial ability levels (Blackwell et al, 2007). This may be attributable, in part, to the fact that children with a growth mindset are more likely to respond to challenge with persistence and strategy shifting rather than giving up (Hong et al, 1999). Persistence may be important for children placed at risk by poverty and racism, given that these children are more likely to face challenges over the course of their development (Yoshikawa et al, 2012; Claro et al, 2016). The risks associated with poverty and racism threaten opportunities for children to learn specific academic concepts
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