Determination of pre-service primary school teachers' attitudes towards music software and music teaching

This study aims to determine the attitudes of prospective primary school teachers studying at Manisa Celal Bayar University and Uşak University Faculties of Education towards music software and music teaching and to examine how these attitudes differ according to various demographic variables. In today's education system, technology is increasingly involved in teaching processes and is used as a complementary element to traditional teaching methods. In the context of music education, the integration of digital technologies is considered as an important tool in increasing the pedagogical competences of pre-service teachers and improving the effectiveness of music teaching. In this context, determining attitudes towards music software is seen as an important step that can contribute to making music education more efficient and effective. In this study, quantitative research method was adopted and 'Attitude Scale towards Music Software' (MYYTÖ) and 'Attitude Scale towards Music Teaching' (MÖİTÖ) were used as data collection tools. The sample of the study consisted of prospective primary school teachers studying at Manisa Celal Bayar University and Uşak University Faculty of Education. Within the scope of the research, reliability analyses of the scales were performed and it was determined that both scales showed high internal consistency. As a result of the statistical analyses, it was seen that there was no significant difference between the universities in terms of the positive emotion component of pre-service teachers' positive emotions towards music software. However, in terms of the negative emotion component, it was found that Manisa Celal Bayar University students had higher negative perceptions than Uşak University students. It was determined that this may be due to the differences in education programmes, music education practices or individual experiences between universities. Analyses conducted in terms of gender variable show that female pre-service teachers' attitudes towards music software and music teaching are more positive than male pre-service teachers' attitudes. It was determined that female pre-service teachers both adopted music software more and developed a more positive attitude towards music teaching. This finding suggests that female pre-service teachers are more sensitive to music education processes and their interaction with music is stronger. In the analyses conducted in terms of age variable, it was determined that pre-service teachers' attitudes towards music software and music teaching did not show a significant difference depending on age. This situation suggests that attitudes towards the use of technology in music education show similar tendencies regardless of age factor. The findings revealed that the integration of technology into music education processes has the potential to improve pre-service teachers' pedagogical and emotional competences. It is thought that music software can positively change pre-service teachers' attitudes towards music teaching, its effective use in in-class applications can increase students' interest in music education and contribute to the educational process. In this direction, it is recommended that technology should be used more widely in the field of music education and pre-service teachers should be trained more on this issue.