Exploring the role of technology in instrumental skill development of Australian higher education music students

This paper presents the findings of a survey of Australian higher education music students on the use of technology in their instrumental skill development. Despite widespread use of technology in music classrooms and growth in innovative applications, little is known about the uptake of technology in instrumental learning. The survey focused on demographics, approaches to instrumental learning and evaluation, and ownership of technology. The data from 189 questionnaires were analysed using Chi-square tests. The findings show that higher education music students have embraced technology in their instrumental learning, in particular using YouTube as a basic tool and self-recording. [Author abstract]