The Effect of Sight-Reading Instruction on Performance Achievement of Wind Players in a High School Band By

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of sight-reading instruction on the performance achievement of instrumentalists. Participants (N = 30) were high school band students divided into treatment (n = 16) and control (n = 14) groups. Participants engaged in pretest and posttest assessments for sight-reading accuracy using the Watkins-Farnum Performance Scale and for performance achievement using the Winds Brass Percussion Solo Evaluation Form. The treatment group members received instruction in sight-reading using The Sight-Reading Book for Band, Volume 4 for a portion of 20 consecutive band rehearsals before posttest assessments. Performance achievement of participants in the treatment group declined, while performance of the control group members improved. I found statistical significance in the between subjects effects for performance and grade level (F = 7.38, df = 3, p < .001). Ninthgrade students made significant gains in performance scores, consistent with previous researchers who found greatest gains in performance in younger grades. While there was modest improvement in the sight-reading scores of the participants in both groups, the control group members scored higher than the treatment group members, although the gains were not statistically significant.