Development of the Piano Course Based on Gordon's Music Teaching Theory Combined with Competency-Based Education to Enhance Music Teaching Competency of Student Teachers in Guangdong Baiyun University

Background and Aim: Based on relevant policies and literature, such as higher education planning at home and abroad, policies of the Chinese Ministry of Education, educational concepts, Competency-Based Education, Gordon's Music Teaching Theory methods, teaching strategies, and teaching evaluations, researchers interviewed teachers and students on the current Piano Course. This research and development aimed to 1) study background information of the Piano Course based on Gordon's Music Teaching Theory combined with Competency-Based Education, 2) develop the Piano Course based on Gordon's Music Teaching Theory combined with Competency-Based Education, and 3) determine the effectiveness of implementing the Piano Course based on Gordon's Music Teaching Theory combined with Competency-Based Education. Materials and Methods: The sample was 20 first-year student teachers (1 class) majoring in preschool education in Guangdong Baiyun University, People’s Republic of China, derived by cluster random sampling. The study consisted of 3 phases: Phase 1: Study the background information, focusing on course components and existing problems of the Piano Course. Phase 2: Develop a Piano Course based on Gordon's Music Teaching Theory combined with Competency-Based Education. Phase 3: The implementation of the Piano Course based on Gordon's Music Teaching Theory combined with Competency-Based Education. The research instruments were 1) eight lesson plans with a very high level of appropriateness (M=4.80, SD = 0.43), 2) A Learning Achievement Test with a reliability of 0.72. 3) An Evaluation form of Music Teaching Competency with the reliability of 0.74, 4) and A Satisfaction Questionnaire about Piano Course with the reliability of 0.72. The data were analyzed by using mean, standard deviation, and the one-sample t-test. Results: The findings of this study were as follows: 1) The results from the review literature and interviews with participants found that the main problem of the current teaching strategy was effective to a certain extent, lacked enough innovation and flexibility to fully promote the active learning and personalized development of student teachers. It was necessary to constantly explore and try new teaching strategies, and flexibly adjust and optimize them according to the actual situation and the needs of student teachers. 2) The Piano Course, based on Gordon's Music Teaching Theory, combined with Competency-Based Education, consisted of 6 components: principle, objective, content, instructional strategy, media and resource, and evaluation method. 3) After implementation through the course, the student teachers’ music teaching competency (Music knowledge) post-test score was higher than the criterion of 70% at the .01 level of statistical significance (t = 9.042, p =0.000). The student teachers’ music teaching competency (Basic piano playing skills, Improvisational accompaniment, Teaching skills) post-test score was higher than the criterion of 70% at the .01 level of statistical significance (t=29.287, p=0.000). The student teachers' satisfaction was statistically higher than the criterion of 70% at the .01 level of statistical significance (t = 46.078, p =0.000). Conclusion: The innovation of this research was: 1) The Piano Course based on Gordon's Music Teaching Theory combined with Competency-Based Education. 2) Instructional strategy, there were 3 steps: step 1: Learn as a whole, and teaching preparation. Step 2: Partial study and optimize the curriculum system, and Step 3: Holistic learning and evaluation, which can enhance the Music Teaching Competency of student teachers. This research confirms the effectiveness of the teaching model based on Gordon's music teaching theory combined with Competency-Based Education to enhance the music teaching competency of student teachers.