Guided exploration and musical application in a five-stage MELM : a mixed-methods case study of student engagement and learning achievement in music theory

  • Irdhan Epria Darma Putra 
    Universitas Negeri Padang
    Indonesia
  • Robby Ferdian
    Universitas Negeri Padang
    Indonesia
  • Alrizka Hairi Dilfa
    Universitas Negeri Padang
    Indonesia

Abstract

Music Theory instruction in higher education is still often delivered as the transmission of terms, symbols, and rules that are detached from musical experience, and Kolb's four-stage cycle does not specify how musical experience should be sequenced into theoretical concepts. To address this gap, this study modified the Musical Experiential Learning Model (MELM) into a five-stage instructional syntax Musical Experience, Musical Exploration, Musical Conceptualization, Musical Application, and Reflection and Musical Interpretation in which guided exploration and musical application are made explicit stages between experience and reflection. A convergent mixed-methods single-case study with an embedded non-equivalent control group pretest–posttest comparison was conducted with 50 Music Education students enrolled in a Music Theory course at a public university in Indonesia (two intact classes; MELM n = 25, control n = 25). Data were collected through expert validation, classroom observation, task assessment, practicality questionnaires, and pre- and post-tests, and were analysed with descriptive statistics, independent-samples t-tests, Cohen's d, and normalized gain (N-gain). Implementation of the five stages ranged from 92.50% to 96.25%, and student engagement/creativity ranged from 90.60% to 95.75%. Mean achievement in the MELM group rose from 64.92 to 90.72 (N-gain = 0.74), compared with 66.60 to 80.84 in the control group (N-gain = 0.43). The findings indicate that making exploration and application explicit stages helps students connect sound, concept, and practice, and shifts the lecturer's role from information provider to facilitator. Because the classes were not randomly assigned, group differences are interpreted as supporting evidence of association rather than definitive proof of causal effectiveness.

Keywords
  • Musical experiential learning, MELM, Music theory, Experiential learning, Music education, Music pedagogy
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