Ear Training Made Easy: Using IOS Based Applications to Assist Ear Training in Children

Abstract

It is an inevitable reality that in all developed countries and in most developing countries, smart phones and tablets are an indispensable part of most children’s lives. There are many discussions and heated arguments on the negative and positive effects of digital technology on the development of children. In this paper, accepting the fact that this technology is a part of most children’s daily lives, it will be questioned whether this technology may be used to reinforce certain components of music education in general classroom and especially in private music studios. In conservatories and music schools, a considerable amount of time is dedicated to aural training of younger students. However, during music lessons in the classroom and during the instrumental lessons in private studios, lesson time is mostly dedicated to other components such as improvement of technique, musicality and sight reading. Thus, a crucial part of music education “ear training” is neglected to some extent. In this paper, several IOS based ear training applications will be evaluated considering the target group, children between ages 6-11. The possible effects and incorporation of these applications into the classroom and private studios will be discussed. Each application will be evaluated on several components; the ear training modules, user-friendliness, possibility of the evaluation of students’ progress by the teacher and probable reaction of the children to these applications.