A Study To Measure And Develop The Skill To Diagnose And Correct Common Problems In Violin Bowing (string, Videotape, Test).

The hypothesis of the study was that materials could be produced to measure and develop the skill of diagnosing and correcting common problems in violin bowing. The major problems of the study were to (1) construct a valid and reliable diagnostic test of violin bowing and (2) produce training materials to develop violin bowing diagnostic skills. Ancillary problems of the study were to (1) identify common problems and appropriate remedies for simple detache violin bowing and (2) identify exemplary performance behavior criteria for simple detache violin bowing. Beginning violin students were observed, experts were interviewed, and pedagogical material was studied to identify common performance problems and their remedies in simple detache violin bowing. Elementary and junior high school students were videotaped demonstrating selected performance problems and these videotaped examples provided test items for the Violin Bowing Diagnostic Skills Test. Content validity of the test was determined by a panel of experts. High agreement among the experts suggested that the problems selected were common to beginning violin students, that they were accurately represented, and that the remedies were appropriate. The test-retest procedure was used to determine the reliability of the test. The reliability for graduate students and certified teachers was .86. The reliability for undergraduate students was .83. Construct validity of the test was examined by determining the effects of practice and training on test scores. The Violin Bowing Diagnostic Skills Training Program was constructed and validated. It consisted of descriptions and videotaped examples of exemplary simple detache violin bowing. A group of graduate students and certified teachers and a group of undergraduate students received instruction with the training program. The subjects received a pretest and posttest administration of the test. The mean difference was significant (0.002) for a sample of graduate students and teachers, and for a sample of undergraduate students (0.0001). Findings of the study suggest support for the hypothesis: Statistical evidence indicated that (1) the test is a valid and reliable instrument for measuring the skill to diagnose and correct common problems in violin bowing and (2) the training program is valid and effective for developing diagnostic skills.