Undergraduate and Graduate String Instrumentalists’ Approaches to Learning New Solo Repertoire: Descriptive Case Studies of Deliberate Practice Using the Fitts and Posner Model of Skill Learning

Abstract

Practice, defined as working at something repeatedly to achieve proficiency (Merriam-Webster, n.d.), is widely recognized as a necessary component of skill acquisition. Past research has recognized the need to develop systematic teaching of practice skills (Pitts et al., 2000; Prichard, 2017; Prichard, 2021). An effective method for teaching practice skills must be tailored to its target population, making it necessary to learn more about the practice habits of various student populations. In this collective descriptive case study, I examined how freshman, senior, and graduate level string performance majors (N = 7) learned solo repertoire from sightreading to performance by observing practice videos and interviewing participants about their learning process. I recruited participants from a diverse list of institutions that varied in size and setting, control, and admission stringency. My purpose was to examine how participants (a) learned a new solo at different phases of learning, (b) measured progress, (c) handled errors during practice, (d) used and justified practice strategies, and (e) determined if a change of practice approach was necessary. In addition, I investigated the extent to which students at different stages of university enrollment varied in their approach and their perceptions of applied music professors’ approach to teaching. I used the skill acquisition approach advocated by Lehmann and Davidson (2002) and Scripps et al. (2013), the skill learning model by Fitts and Posner (1967), and the theory of deliberate practice by Ericsson et al. (1993) as my theoretical framework. The skill acquisition approach emphasizes that everyone can develop skills. The theory of deliberate practice specifies conditions that lead to expertise. The phases of skill learning encouraged more accurate recall of the learning process at different points in time. Keywords: skill learning, skill acquisition, deliberate practice, Fitts and Posner