Results of a Voice-Related Survey of Physical Education Student Teachers

The current study investigated physical education (PE) student teachers’ understanding of the vocal demands of their future profession, interest in participating in a voice-training program, and the current impact of the voice on quality-of-life by the Voice Handicap Index (VHI). Seventy-four PE student teachers completed a voice-related survey and the VHI. Forty-three percent of participants indicated that teaching will negatively affect the voice and 29% of participants reported that they may develop a voice problem because of teaching; however, only 17% of participants indicated that a voice-training program was needed to learn healthy and effective voice use for teaching. Based on the results, participants knew that teaching may negatively impact the voice, but they were not convinced that a voice-training program was necessary. In addition, the student teachers’ voices were not negatively impacting quality-of-life, as determined by the VHI.