| The purpose of this study was to ascertain the impact of No Child Left Behind on music education in the State of Ohio. To accomplish this goal, the researcher sought to determine the attitude toward music education among Ohio's public school principals and the relative status of the music programs in their schools since the passing of this federal legislation. Survey research methods were employed to obtain the necessary data. A 25-item questionnaire was created by the researcher, validated by experts, and pilot tested with a small group of Ohio principals. Ten Likert-type items were utilized to measure principals' attitudes while the remaining items helped the researcher determine the relative status of music programs with regard to staffing, student access, instructional time, and course offerings. The questionnaire was sent to a random sample of 246 public school principals in Ohio. Usable returns were received from 179 principals, resulting in a response rate of 73%.; The overall attitude toward music education among Ohio principals was favorable. On a scale ranging from 6 to 36, the mean attitudinal score among principals was 25.1 with a standard deviation of 3.1. Significant differences between the attitudes of principals serving in "excellent" or "effective" schools and the principals of "academic watch" or "academic emergency" schools were revealed. When considering the expectation of principals that music teachers devote some of their instructional time to other subjects, 43% of Ohio's music programs record a weaker status since the passage of No Child Left Behind. Finally, testimonials provided by several principals confirm that No Child Left Behind remains a contributing factor in principals' policy decisions that affect music education. |
