Students’ Motivation in Piano Learning: A Case Study in Australia

Learning the piano is a popular and beneficial activity with many learners across the globe. Many children begin to learn the piano, but few persist. Motivating students to persist, is important for their teachers, their parents, and students themselves. I explored motivational elements that facilitated student piano learning. I interviewed 34 upper primary and secondary-school piano students and three teachers. Students’ emotions are influential in students’ motivations. So, I developed a new theoretical framework of self-determination theory which may be suitable for not only piano context, but also other educational areas.