The Development of Giftedness within the Three-level System of Music Education in Poland and Serbia; Outcomes at Different Stages

Abstract

The character of this article is theoretical and practice oriented, therefore offering educational implications for music educators and music psychologists. Its main objective is to give an overview of the most important musical and developmental changes of musically talented children and youth, at different stages of the three-level specialized music education. The theoretical background of the article refers to stage theories of development of gifted with the intention to point out correspondence between stages of development and the specificity of music education stages. Theoretical conceptions are used as a framework to synthesize and to interpret empirical data and practice-related professional experiences of psychologists in music schools in Poland and Serbia. Both countries, though culturally distinct in nature and in the character of traditional music, are characterized by a very similar system of specialized/professional music education. Further on, the article presents a review of the wide range of benefits/outcomes experienced by music school students, as a result of the highly simulative, systematic and supportive environment of music learning. The article begins with an introduction to the context of the specialized music education system in Poland and Serbia and then presents how a particular system of education for the gifted contributes to the development in the field of acquiring musical knowledge and skills, as well as to benefits/outcomes of the education system for the personal, social and professional development of the musically gifted, indicating a wide range of positive experiences.