ISSN: 2226-6348
Open access
Musical games are an important part of kindergarten music education. This study aims to explore the current use of gamification in kindergarten music education in terms of both the frequency of gamification use and the factors that influence teachers’ use of gamification in music teaching and obtain suggestions to enhance teachers’ use of gamification in teaching. This is a qualitative study involving the research participants of 28 children and 3 teachers from the middle class (4–5 years old) of the Blue Sky Haiyue Bilingual Kindergarten in Beijing. A total of four music lessons were observed where three were singing and one was rhythmic, with two of the lessons used gamification. Interviews were conducted with the three teachers individually followed by a focus group discussion with them. Data analysis showed that gamification was not frequently used in the teaching of music. Factors that influence the use of gamification in teaching include the level of musical literacy among the teachers, the teachers’ attitude towards music, and the extent of attention towards music activities in the kindergarten. Recommendations for enhancing teachers’ gamification teaching include improving the teachers’ music literacy, encouraging children to participate in music games, and enriching the types of music lessons.
Barrett, M. S., Flynn, L. M., Brown, J. E., & Welch, G. F. (2019). Beliefs and values about music in early childhood education and care: Perspectives from practitioners. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00724
Bautista, A., Yeung, J., Mclaren, M. L., & Ilari, B. (2022). Music in early childhood teacher education: Raising awareness of a worrisome reality and proposing strategies to move forward. Arts Education Policy Review, 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1080/10632913.2022.2043969
Cheng, Y. (2012). A review and reflection on the gamification of kindergarten music education. Journal of Inner Mongolian Normal University, Education Science Edition, 12, 141–142. https://doi.org/CNKI:SUN:NMJX.0.2012-12-040
Deng, A. J. (2018). A study on the integration of “game elements” in early childhood music teaching. Compilation of Scientific Research Results of the 13th Five-Year Plan, Volume III, 374–377. https://chn.oversea.cnki.net/KCMS/detail/detail.aspx?dbcode=CPFD&dbname=CPFDLAST2018&filename=GHKY201803001073&uniplatform=OVERSEA&v=eLwW8ywak09Z3AMVeNLWDX2EB2cEhDLf7SXN2ZJvepK7WNZs5ct47cJNP-tu5T1rspbCLEUtFvE%3d
Deng, P. (2022). A study on the current situation of early childhood teachers’ music literacy and strategies to improve It. Qinghai Education, 6, 40–41. https://doi.org/CNKI:SUN:QHJY.0.2022-06-025.
Huang, T. T. (2022). A practical exploration of kindergarten music activities in the context of curriculum gamification. Teachers, 10, 75-77. https://doi.org/CNKI:SUN:JAOS.0.2022-10-025.
Jin, L. (2019). Thoughts on the international mainstream music teaching methods used in the game-based activities of children’s music education. In 3rd International Conference on Culture, Education and Economic Development of Modern Society, ICCESE 2019, 1062–1064. https://doi.org/10.2991/iccese-19.2019.232
Jin, S. H. (2022). An analysis of the practical methods of kindergarten music activities in the context of curriculum gamification. Everyday Science (Frontiers of Education), 12, 22-24. https://doi.org/CNKI:SUN:TTQQ.0.2022-12-008.
Kim, H. K., & Kemple, K. M. (2011). Is music an active developmental tool or simply a supplement? Early childhood preservice teachers’ beliefs about Music. Early Childhood Teach, 32(2), 135–147. https://doi.org/10.1080/10901027.2011.572228
Krteziu, D. (2021). Preschool teachers’ view on the effect of musical games on musical talent and their development. Rast Müzikoloji Dergisi, 9(1), 2573–2582. https://doi.org/10.12975/rastmd.2021917
Liu, A. P. (2022). Reconceptualising the playfulness of kindergarten music activities. Educationalists, 30, 122-124. https://doi.org/CNKI:SUN:JYJT.0.2022-30-041.
Liu, H. X. (2021). Exploring the qualities of early childhood teachers’ musical literacy and the paths to cultivate it. The Big View, 5, 46–52. https://doi.org/CNKI:SUN:DSYE.0.2021-05-013.
Luo, T. (2021). A study on the current situation and improvement strategies for the implementation of gamification teaching in kindergarten music activities. Master’s thesis, Qinghai Normal University. https://doi.org/10.27778/d.cnki.gqhzy.2021.000313
Merkow, C. (2012). Philosophy of early childhood music education. Connections, 27(1), 5–10. https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/philosophy-early-childhood-music-education/docview/1540218298/se-2
Niland, A. (2009). The power of musical play: The value of play-based, child-centered curriculum in early childhood music education. General Music Today, 23(1), 17–21. https://doi.org/10.1177/1048371309335625
Tang, G. C. (2020). An analysis of the problems and strategies for improving the professional quality of early childhood music teachers. Artistic Research, 2, 136–139. https://doi.org/10.13944/j.cnki.ysyj.2020.0132.
Tian, X. (2020). Strategies for the implementation of gamification in early childhood music education. Parents, 20, 143–145. https://doi.org/CNKI:SUN:JIAZ.0.2020-20-093.
Wan, L. Y. (2019). Exploring the impact of teachers’ music literacy on young children’s music initiation. Art Criticism, 18, 119–121. https://doi.org/CNKI:SUN:YSPN.0.2019-18-054.
Wang, Q. (2020). Experimenting with strategies for the gamification of early childhood music teaching. Chinese Literary Artists, 2, 215–216. https://doi.org/CNKI:SUN:ZWNJ.0.2020-02-199.
Xu, S. Y. (2019). Strategies for implementing curriculum gamification in early childhood music teaching. Science Fairy Tale, 17, 90–91. https://doi.org/CNKI:SUN:THKT.0.2019-17-085.
Zhang, Y. M., & Xu, Z. Y. (2013). The application of the high structure low control concept in kindergarten teaching and its requirements. Preschool Education Research, 2, 57–60. https://doi.org/CNKI:SUN:XQJY.0.2013-02-013
Zhou, Y. (2021). Talking about the design and use of games in music teaching activities for young children. Test Questions and Studies, 15, 193–194. https://doi.org/CNKI:SUN:STYJ.0.2021-15-097.
Zhou, Y. L. (2018). Exploring the implementation strategies for the gamification of early childhood music teaching. Path to Success, 2, 67–68. https://doi.org/CNKI:SUN:CCZL.0.2018-02-065.
Zhu, Y. M. (2021). Analysis of the current situation and countermeasures of the gamification of kindergarten music activities. Master’s thesis, Xinyang Normal University. https://doi.org/10.27435/d.cnki.gxsfc.2021.000140
(Fang et al., 2023)
Fang, W., Chieng, J., & Chiat, L. F. (2023). Gamification of Music Lessons And Factors Affecting Its Use in Private Kindergartens in Beijing. International Journal of Academic Research in Progressive Education and Development, 12(3), 1215-1230.
Copyright: © 2023 The Author(s)
Published by HRMARS (www.hrmars.com)
This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) license. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this license may be seen at: http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode