The Role of Parents, Teachers and Peers on Students' Motivation in Elementary Piano Teaching in Conservatoires: A Multicase Study

This paper examines the role of parents, teachers and peers on the motivation towards the studies of elementary piano in conservatoires in three specific students who attend the third year of these studies. The study has consisted of case studies developed as a process of Action-Research. The action plan consisted of the design of a set of specific and cross-sectional activities which were implemented in individual and collective subjects, in parallel and consistently to the contents of each subject. The beginning and the end of the implementation coincided with the beginning and the end of the academic year. Interviews, video recording and teacher's diary have been used to collect data. To enable a triangulation of the data, students, parents and the teacher of music theory were interviewed. Instrumental individual lessons and ensemble lessons were recorded once a month. The results for these three specific cases show that affective relationship between students and their parents, teachers and peers that promote self-esteem and self-confidence, have a positive impact on students' motivation. The role of the teacher and of emotional education in this process is discussed