Enhancing the Music Studio Community and Self-Regulated Learning Through the Use of Electronic Portfolios

The body of research examining deliberate practice and self-regulation in musical instruction has grown extensively over the last several years and has indicated that students with higher levels of self-regulation develop superior performance skills. Recommendations from this literature have emphasized that skilled and expressive musical performances require the supportive development of self-regulatory behaviours. Developing these behaviours involves the incorporation of strategies that presuppose a certain level of discipline and organization on the part of the student. This study examines the implementation of an electronic portfolio, ePEARL, that was used in two studio settings to help students take more control over their learning and creative processes. ePEARL embeds self-regulation processes within an electronic portfolio, allowing students to document their work while at the same time developing planning, doing, and reflecting skills. This portfolio also builds community by allowing peers, parents and teachers to access each other’s work. ePEARL has been successfully used in classrooms in Canada, the United States, and parts of Europe to increase levels of self-regulation and achievement. Recently, this technology has been implemented in the music studio context. Using case-study methodology, we examined six students’ use of ePEARL over the course of four months. Using interview data from teachers and students as well as the observations of the portfolio use, we examined how students and teachers use ePEARL to plan, execute, and reflect on their music-making. ePEARL was an effective way to articulate musical goals and archive musical accomplishments. Students were able to solicit and incorporate feedback from their teachers, peers, and parents regarding their musical activities outside of their lesson time, which supported their learning. Overall, students enjoyed using the tool, and ePEARL was effective in helping set and achieve goals in the context of learning to play an instrument