Date

5-22-2024

Department

School of Music

Degree

Doctor of Music Education (DME)

Chair

Rebecca L. Watson

Keywords

military child, intervention, music education, Suzuki Triangle, violin

Disciplines

Music

Abstract

This qualitative descriptive case study followed four volunteer families over four weeks of private Suzuki violin lessons, highlighting the Suzuki Triangle as an intervention for the military child. Participants enrolled in private weekly music lessons and learned to play the violin through the relational triangle of teacher-parent-student working together for the child's well-being. The study particularly emphasized the active role of the service member parents, who attended weekly lessons with their children and worked with them daily at home during practice sessions. The researcher photographed lessons and interviewed and observed participants who completed a preliminary, practice, and exit survey. This study explored how learning the violin through the Suzuki Triangle approach could benefit the military child as an intervention through its focus on parental engagement of the service member parent. Results indicated that participation in this study encouraged military children toward positive self-esteem, self-expression, and coping skills, offering a hopeful outlook for the potential of the Suzuki Triangle as a helpful intervention. The service member and military child's perceived level of connectedness from participating in this research ranged from connected, very connected, to highly connected, and participation in this research provided an opportunity for quality, one-on-one time between service member and military child. These findings may suggest that learning the violin through the Suzuki Triangle approach can offer a viable intervention for the at-risk military child.

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