Difficulties in Vocal Sight-Reading among Students and Proposed Solutions from the Perspectives of Specialists

Volume 3 ,Issue 1 ,September 2026 ,Pages 451-499

Authors

Asst. L. Tolla Omid Mahmoud

DOI logo 10.17656/jzsb.12584

Keywords

Abstract

The present study aimed to: (1) identify the difficulties encountered by students in vocal music sight-reading, and (2) explore appropriate strategies for overcoming these difficulties from the perspectives of music specialists. To achieve these objectives, the descriptive research method was employed.The study sample consisted of third-year morning-program students from the Department of Art Education, in addition to a group of music specialists in Sulaymaniyah City. To identify the difficulties and propose appropriate solutions, the researcher developed a questionnaire following established scientific procedures. The instrument comprised eight domains and twenty items designed to identify the major difficulties and elicit specialists' recommendations for addressing them.The instrument's face validity and reliability were established through test–retest reliability and the split-half method. Reliability was assessed using Pearson's correlation coefficient, with coefficients ranging from 0.20 to 0.50. Following the administration of the instrument to the study sample and the statistical analysis of the collected data, the findings revealed that the overall weighted mean of the instrument was 1.90, indicating a moderate level. The results also demonstrated that students encounter difficulties in vocal music sight-reading. Based on the specialists' responses, several practical solutions were proposed to address these difficulties. The study concluded with a number of recommendations and suggestions for improving students' vocal music sight-reading skills.

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  • First online30 September 2026
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