"I do not want to study piano": early predictors of student dropout behavior

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to identify early predictors of drop out behavior in children engaged in piano instruction. Fourth-grade children (33 boys, 34 girls) were provided, at no cost to their families, with three years of weekly private piano lessons and an acoustic piano. Twenty-four children dropped out of the lessons during the first two years of the project. Prior to the start of the lessons, children completed tests and questionnaires and, throughout the project, piano teachers completed weekly progress reports about the attendance, piano homework, and practice routines of the children. There were no differences in cognitive abilities, musical abilities, motor proficiency, self-esteem and demographic factors (i.e., sex, family income, parental employment, parental education, and family structure) between the children who dropped out and those who completed three years of lessons. Dropouts were less likely to have siblings, missed more lessons, practiced less, and completed less piano homework than did their peers. Piano teachers reported that the dropouts had achieved less in the first six weeks of lessons than had the other children. These findings suggest that the clearest indications that a student is likely to dropout of piano lessons are lowered motivation and diminished achievement.

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