Integration of aspiring artists: Japanese music students in Germany

2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 358-380
Author(s):  
Takuma Fujii
Keyword(s):  
Transnational Networks ◽  
Music Students ◽  
Future Perspectives ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Institutional Conditions ◽  
Japanese Students ◽  
Art Worlds ◽  
Art Practices ◽  
Japanese Music

The article examines how students from Japan who attend German music colleges become integrated into Germany’s art worlds while also maintaining connections to transnational art worlds. Although Japan is one of the major countries that sends young music talents to Germany, only a few studies have examined this migration. Drawing on semi-structured interviews with Japanese music students in Germany that were conducted as part of the Asian Educational Mobilities Project, the article shows that the reasons for such migration, as well as its effects on music practices, and that future perspectives need a theoretical reorientation toward a transnational perspective. The results indicate that the art practices of aspiring Japanese students depend not only on institutional conditions in Germany but also on students´ transnational networks.

Reasons, motives and motivations for completing a PhD: a typology of doctoral studies as a quest

2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 197-212 ◽  
Author(s):  
Isabelle Skakni
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Doctoral Studies ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Academic Context ◽  
Instrumental Case Study ◽  
Institutional Conditions ◽  
Theory Of Structuration

Purpose This study aims to examine how PhD students with diverse profiles, intentions and expectations manage to navigate their doctoral paths within the same academic context under similar institutional conditions. Drawing on Giddens’ theory of structuration, this study explores how their primary reasons, motives and motivations for engaging in doctoral studies influence what they perceive as facilitating or constraining to progress, their strategies to face the challenges they encounter and their expectations regarding supervision. Design/methodology/approach Using a qualitative design, the analysis was conducted on a data subset from an instrumental case study (Stake, 2013) about PhD students’ persistence and progression. The focus is placed on semi-structured interviews carried out with 36 PhD students from six faculties in humanities and social sciences fields at a large Canadian university. Findings The analysis reveals three distinct scenarios regarding how these PhD students navigate their doctoral paths: the quest for the self; the intellectual quest; and the professional quest. Depending on their quest type, the nature and intensity of PhD students’ concerns and challenges, as well as their strategies and the support they expected, differed. Originality/value This study contributes to the discussion about PhD students’ challenges and persistence by offering a unique portrait of how diverse students’ profiles, intentions and expectations can concretely shape a doctoral experience.

Absolute Pitch and Relative Pitch in Music Students in the East and the West

2018 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 135-155 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ken'ichi Miyazaki ◽  
Andrzej Rakowski ◽  
Sylwia Makomaska ◽  
Cong Jiang ◽  
Minoru Tsuzaki ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Music Education ◽  
East Asian ◽  
Absolute Pitch ◽  
Music Students ◽  
Asian Countries ◽  
Japanese Students ◽  
Relative Pitch ◽  
Cultural Conditions ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Musical Context

Absolute pitch (AP)—an ability to identify an isolated pitch without musical context—is commonly believed to be a valuable ability for musicians. However, relative pitch (RP)—an ability to perceive pitch relations—is more important in most musical contexts. In this study, music students in East Asian and Western countries (Japan, China, Poland, Germany, and USA) were tested on AP and RP abilities. In the AP test, 60 single tones were presented in a quasirandom order over a five-octave range. In the RP test, ascending musical intervals from 1 to 11 semitones were presented in four different keys. Participants wrote down note names in the AP test and scale-degree names or musical interval names in the RP test. The conservatory-level Japanese students showed the highest AP performance and more than half of them were classified as accurate AP possessors, but only 10% were classified as accurate RP possessors. In contrast, only a small percentage of participants from Poland, Germany, and the USA were identified as accurate AP possessors, whereas many more were accurate RP possessors. Participants from China were typically intermediate on both measures. These noticeable contrasts between AP and RP performance in different countries suggest influences of the underlying socio-cultural conditions, presumably relating to music education. Given the importance of RP in music, the results suggest that more emphasis should be place on RP training, particularly in East Asian countries.

scholarly journals Institutional conditions for preparing critically reflective TEFL teachers in the PGDT Program of three Ethiopian universities

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. 321-343
Author(s):  
Roba Danbi ◽  
Dereje Tadesse
Keyword(s):  
Student Teachers ◽  
Reflective Practice ◽  
Teacher Educators ◽  
Practical Knowledge ◽  
Education Institution ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Institutional Conditions ◽  
Quantitative And Qualitative Research ◽  
Teacher Education Institution ◽  
The Government

This paper assesses the role played by the institutional context in the preparation of critically reflective TEFL teachers in the Postgraduate Diploma in Teaching (PGDT) program of Dilla, Haramaya, and Hawasa Universities, Ethiopia. It examines the extent to which structured opportunities for reflection are used in the three institutions. A combination of quantitative and qualitative research methodologies was employed for collecting information regarding reflective practice in the PGDT program of the three universities. Multilevel mixed-method sampling techniques were utilized to select participants. Data were collected using questionnaires, semi-structured interviews and observation, and interpreted using simple statistical analysis and descriptive narrative approach. The study shows that most of the participants lack sufficient theoretical and practical knowledge of reflective practice. It shows that structured opportunities for reflection were not created for student teachers to practice reflection. The researchers, therefore, recommend that the government, curriculum designers, teacher education institution, and teacher educators create a common understanding about the goal of the program, and deliberately setup some structured opportunities to promote reflection in the institutions.

Cultural policy and participatory art practices in Flanders

2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 266-281 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kris Rutten ◽  
Helena Calleeuw ◽  
Griet Roets ◽  
Angelo Van Gorp
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Policy ◽  
Cultural Practices ◽  
Policy Framework ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Participatory Art ◽  
The Arts ◽  
Art Practices ◽  
Politics Of Resistance ◽  
Art Organizations

Purpose In Flanders, the subventions in the cultural sector are mainly divided and decided upon within the framework of the Arts Decree. Within this policy framework, art organizations may choose in their funding applications for “participation” as one of the five possible functions to describe their artistic and cultural practices. However, questions need to be raised about the different interpretations of the notion of participation within this policy framework. The growing trend of evidence-based policy-making implies that participation risks to become a “target” that needs to be achieved instrumentally, which paradoxically ignores the fact that participatory practices within culture and the arts are very often diverse, multi-layered and context-specific practices. Starting from this paradox, the purpose of this paper is to explore how the current policy framework is translated into different “participatory” art practices by art organizations and specifically how cultural practitioners themselves conceptualize it. Design/methodology/approach In this paper, the authors discuss the results of a qualitative research based on semi-structured interviews with cultural practitioners about how they grapple with the notion of participation within their organizations and practices. Findings The results clearly show that practitioners use micro-politics of resistance to deal with different, and often conflicting, conceptualizations of participation in relation to this cultural policy framework. Research limitations/implications The implications of the findings are vital for the discussion about cultural policy. These micro-politics of resistance do not only have an impact on the development of individual participatory art practices but also on the broader participatory arts landscape and on how the function of participation is perceived within the renewed policy framework. Originality/value The original contribution of this paper is to explore the perspective of practitioners in cultural organizations about the function of participation in the Arts Decree in Flanders and specifically how the notion of participation is operationalized in their practices in relation to this cultural policy framework.

scholarly journals Chasing a moving target: perceptions of work readiness and graduate capabilities in music higher research degree students

2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 205-218 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott Harrison ◽  
Catherine Grant
Keyword(s):  
Career Paths ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Music Students ◽  
Work Readiness ◽  
Moving Target ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Research Education ◽  
Qualitative And Quantitative ◽  
Workplace Readiness ◽  
Career Opportunities

Recent efforts to increase workplace readiness in university students have largely centred on undergraduates, with comparatively few strategies or studies focusing on higher research degree candidates. In the discipline of music, a wide diversity of possible career paths combined with rapidly changing career opportunities makes workplace readiness a moving target. Drawing on qualitative and quantitative data from semi-structured interviews, dialogue forums, an online survey and pre-existing literature, this paper explores perceptions of higher degree research (HDR) music students about their work readiness, and critically examines these perceptions against graduate capabilities frameworks. It recommends ways to better prepare HDR music students for life beyond their studies, advocating in particular a more collaborative model of research education than is currently the norm. The findings may help improve the student experience and graduate outcomes among HDR students, both in music and more broadly.

scholarly journals The establishment of large private nature reserves by conservation NGOs: key factors for successful implementation

Oryx ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 45 (3) ◽  
pp. 373-380 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lorena Pasquini ◽  
James A. Fitzsimons ◽  
Stuart Cowell ◽  
Katrina Brandon ◽  
Geoff Wescott
Keyword(s):  
Global Scale ◽  
Nature Reserves ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Institutional Conditions ◽  
Governmental Organizations ◽  
Non Governmental Organizations ◽  
Strategic Acquisition ◽  
Conservation Organizations ◽  
Legal Frameworks

AbstractPrivate nature reserves created by non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are increasing, and their growing number and extent means that they can potentially contribute to biodiversity goals at a global scale. However, the success of these reserves depends on the legal, economic and institutional conditions framing their creation and management. We explored these conditions, and the opportunities and challenges facing conservation organizations in managing private nature reserves, across several countries, with an emphasis on Australia. Results from 17 semi-structured interviews with representatives of private conservation organizations indicated that while private reserves may enhance the conservation estate, challenges remain. Legal frameworks, especially tenure and economic laws, vary across and within countries, presenting conservation organizations with significant opportunities or constraints to owning and/or managing private nature reserves. Many acquired land without strategic acquisition procedures and secured funding for property acquisition but not management, affecting the long-term maintenance of properties. Other typical problems were tied to the institutional capacity of the organizations. Greater planning within organizations, especially financial planning, is required and NGOs must understand opportunities and constraints present in legislative frameworks at the outset. Organizations must establish their expertise gaps and address them. To this end, partnerships between organizations and/or with government can prove critical.

Listening to the Music: Compositional Processes of High School Composers

2002 ◽  
Vol 50 (2) ◽  
pp. 94-110 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary A. Kennedy
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
Music Programs ◽  
Music Students ◽  
Compositional Process ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Effective Strategies ◽  
Field Note ◽  
School Music ◽  
The Common ◽  
High School Music

The purpose of the study was to investigate the compositional processes of adolescents to clarify effective strategies for implementing composition activities in high school music programs. The study charted the progress of four high school music students as they completed two separate composition tasks. Data collection techniques consisted of semi-structured interviews, observation, and document analysis. Analysis consisted of studying the field note and interview texts, making marginal notes, sorting, and coding. A model was constructed that reflected the common processes of composition used by the four student participants. Important features of the model are the role played by listening, the necessity of individual thinking time, and the improvisatory character of the final products. Findings from the study suggest that although there may be common elements in student compositional processes, the nature of the compositional process is idiosyncratic.

The Effects of Distracted Inner Hearing on Sight-Reading

2003 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 377-389 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clemens Wöllner ◽  
Emma Halfpenny ◽  
Stella Ho ◽  
Kaori Kurosawa
Keyword(s):  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Reading Ability ◽  
Music Students ◽  
Sight Reading ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Repeated Measures Design ◽  
Highly Correlated ◽  
Experienced Difficulty

The importance of inner hearing in musical sight-reading was investigated with an interference paradigm. In a repeated measures design, 20 music students sight-sang two melodies, one of those while listening to distracting music. Participants answered aspects of sight-reading ability and strategy in questionnaires and in semi-structured interviews. The number of mistakes in the sung melodies was calculated; in addition, expert listeners rated continuity/fluency and overall quality. Distracted inner hearing only led to significantly worse rating results for overall quality. Nevertheless, participants found inner hearing to be significantly more difficult with distracting music, and the number of mistakes is highly correlated with the experienced difficulty of inner hearing. Possible explanations and implications for further research are discussed.

Challenges for study abroad in contemporary Japan

2017 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 147-174
Author(s):  
Dawn Grimes-MacLellan
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Study Abroad ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Student Mobility ◽  
Social Discourse ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Japanese Students ◽  
Studying Abroad ◽  
Japanese Student ◽  
The Social

Abstract As the number of university students studying abroad has skyrocketed globally, waning Japanese participation stands in sharp contrast. What accounts for this decline? Drawing on ethnographic research, including surveys and semi-structured interviews, conducted in fall 2016 with 14 Japanese undergraduate students majoring in the social sciences, this article discusses current challenges influencing outbound Japanese student mobility. In contrast to contemporary social discourse in Japan that has criticized young Japanese as ‘inward-looking’ and unwilling to take on new challenges, including studying abroad, my results reveal that students continue to aspire to overseas study but are also concerned about costs and other challenges. The article closes with a discussion of how a small but growing number of Japanese students are addressing impediments by taking matters into their own hands, and how this emerging trend may require a reinterpretation of statistics suggesting a decline in Japanese participation in study abroad.

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