Gamification of music theory learning

Žiga Vučko (2018) Gamification of music theory learning. EngD thesis.

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Abstract

The process of teaching and learning music theory in Slovenia is still performed in a very conventional way: through instrument, paper and pencil. Despite the development of information technology in recent decades, this has not changed significantly. In order to address this problem, we focused on the implementation of a mobile interactive personalized educational application for teaching and learning music theory, especially ear-training which is present at all school levels. We enriched the application with gamification elements, such as badges, levels, points and leaderboards. At the same time we implemented a game for learning intervals. In our research we were trying to discover how gamification affects the process of teaching and learning music theory. To that purpose we carried out a couple of testing sessions with the students of the Ljubljana Music and Ballet Conservatory and evaluated the results afterwards. They indicate that gamification is a difficult process, however we managed to engage a certain amount of users with the help of the gamification elements. Moreover, our assumption that students want different approaches to learning music theory, proved to be correct. The application shows great potential as a helper tool for the teaching and learning process of music theory. Its main advantage is that students can practice on their own whenever it is suitable for them and they are not dependent only on classroom work. With further active development, the application could become an important catalyst of interest in the field of music in Slovenia.

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