THE EFFECTS OF AN EXTRACURRICULAR MUSIC EDUCATION PROGRAM UTILIZING MUSIC GENRES ON THE MUSIC TEACHING EFFICACY AND PROFESSIONAL COMPETENCE OF PRE-SERVICE EARLY CHILDHOOD TEACHERS

Abstract

This study aimed to examine the effects of an extracurricular music education program utilizing various music genres on the music teaching efficacy and professional competence of prospective early childhood teachers. The participants were 80 pre-service early childhood teachers enrolled at University A in Gyeonggi Province. The program incorporated classical music, children’s songs, popular music, and Korean traditional music, and was conducted over a total of 15 sessions. The results revealed that the extracurricular program using diverse music genres significantly improved the participants’ music teaching efficacy—except in the subdomain of interpersonal relations—as well as all subdomains of their professional competence as music teachers. These findings highlight the necessity of integrating diverse musical genres and instructional approaches into early childhood teacher preparation programs.