REVIJA ZA ELEMENTARNO IZOBRAŽEVANJE JOURNAL OF ELEMENTARY EDUCATION Vol. 14, No. 3, pp. 317–331, September 2021 THE RELATION BETWEEN INTERCULTURAL SENSITIVITY AND WORLD MUSIC PREFERENCES AMONG GRAMMAR SCHOOL AND VOCATIONAL SCHOOL STUDENTS Potrjeno/Accepted 17. 4. 2021 Objavljeno/Published 30. 9. 2001 DANIELA PETRUŠIĆ & TONKA ŠEŠELJ Univeristiy of Split, Faculty of Philosophy, Split, Croatia KORESPONDENČNI AVTOR/CORRESPONDING AUTHOR dpetrusic@ffst.hr Keywords: music pedagogy, intercultural sensitivity, musical preferences, world music, music education Ključne besede: glasbena pedagogika, medkulturna občutljivost, glasbene preference, svetovna glasba, glasbena vzgoja UDK/UDC 373.5:316.7:78 Abstract/Izvleček The paper explores the influence of the type of secondary education chosen by the participants on the level of intercultural sensitivity and world music preferences, as well as the connection between intercultural sensitivity and world music preferences. The research employed a general data questionnaire, the Intercultural Sensitivity Scale and an assessment scale to examine music fragment preferences in a sample of 124 participants. The results have significant implications for music and pedagogical theory and practice, in terms of increasing intercultural sensitivity and the tolerance of students towards members of other cultures and their music. Povezava med medkulturno občutljivostjo in svetovnimi glasbenimi preferencami med gimnazijami in poklicnimi šolami Prispevek raziskuje vpliv vrste srednješolskega izobraževanja, ki so ga izbrali udeleženci, na raven medkulturne občutljivosti in svetovnih glasbenih preferenc ter povezave med medkulturno občutljivostjo in svetovnimi glasbenimi preferencami. V raziskavi je bil uporabljen splošni podatkovni vprašalnik, Lestvica medkulturne občutljivosti in ocenjevalna lestvica za preučevanje preferenc glasbenih fragmentov na vzorcu 124 udeležencev. Pridobljeni rezultati pomembno vplivajo na glasbeno in pedagoško teorijo in prakso v smislu povečanja medkulturne občutljivosti in strpnosti študentov do glasbe in pripadnikov drugih kultur. DOI https://doi.org/10.18690/rei.14.3.317-331.2021 Besedilo / Text © 2021 Avtor(ji) / The Author(s) To delo je objavljeno pod licenco Creative Commons CC BY Priznanje avtorstva 4.0 Mednarodna. Uporabnikom je dovoljeno tako nekomercialno kot tudi komercialno reproduciranje, distribuiranje, dajanje v najem, javna priobčitev in predelava avtorskega dela, pod pogojem, da navedejo avtorja izvirnega dela. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). 318 REVIJA ZA ELEMENTARNO IZOBRAŽEVANJE JOURNAL OF ELEMENTARY EDUCATION Introduction Music is an integral part of culture, and as an artistic activity, plays a key role in the quality, harmonious and complete development of each individual. Culture as a way of life is learned and acquired and can be defined as a set of human beliefs, custo ms, attitudes and traditions in a particular territory (Mesić, 2007). Music education in school institutions is of great importance and has a multiple role for the social community and culture, in achieving the basic educational values and general educational goals. Through music education, students become competent users of culture who actively participate in the musical life of their environment and thus contribute to the preservation, transmission, renewal, and spread of cultural heritage (Curriculum of Music Education for Primary Schools and for Grammar Schools, 2019). Having a diversity of cultures interact in a particular space is called multiculturalism. In Music education classes, students become familiar with multicultural music content through music of varied origins and different styles and types; they adopt the basic elements of the language of music to acquire knowledge about and competence in cultural differences and in this way contribute to the progress of society. Today's society abounds with differences, and very often there is contact between two or more cultures, mutually different nationalities, religions, and languages. The relationship of these differing cultures, their exchange, and the set of differences in their dynamic flow in society, along with their mutual interaction, lead to the notion of interculturalism (Peko, Mlinarević & Jindra, 2009). In the 21st century, intercultural music education is becoming an increasing challenge for music teachers. The development of digital technology makes music from all parts of the world available and requires teachers to professionally develop intercultural competences. This is extremely important so as to allow quality transmission of intercultural content to students through modern teaching methods, given that traditional classes cannot cover all cultural and technological changes in society. Ways of assessing different types of music are based largely on the music- related values and beliefs of Western art music, which indicates the need to know the contexts in which music originates and occurs in order to correctly interpret and understand the social function of music (Dobrota, 2009). Intercultural education within the subject of Music education is important for the formation of students’ attitudes towards other cultures by exposing students to intercultural content thus avoiding hesitancy and negativity towards the unknown. D. Petrušić & T. Šešelj: The Relation between Intercultural Sensitivity and World Music Preferences among Grammar School and Vocational School Students 319 The positive impact of intercultural education is visible in changes in educational policy and educational practice and in dialogue among different cultures, with the aim of better understanding and acceptance of, and respect for different cultures (Drandić, 2012). In everyday communication, musical preferences provide a large amount of information about an individual and help us shape impressions and make judgments about people with whom we come in contact (Rentfrow & Gosling, 2003). Knowing students’ musical preferences certainly helps to better interpret intercultural music content and to properly develop student’s awareness of the different ways in which we perceive and think about music. Intercultural music education Music education covers the music of all cultures; therefore, in this field of education, the intercultural competences of students should be developed. Intercultural music education is an indispensable part of teaching music, covering the activities of singing, playing, listening to music, and composing, to be carried out during the classes of Music education. In the 1920s, intercultural music education began to develop in American schools, because of changes in demographic structures as a result of a large number of immigrants from southern and eastern Europe. At that time, American schools began to introduce folk songs and dances from almost all northern European and Central European cultures, several AfricanAmerican and Indian songs, some songs from Eastern and Southern Europe, and from East Asia. The inclusion of folk songs in the curriculum was a significant step in affirming intercultural music education. Two symposia were of great importance for the development of intercultural music education. The first symposium of the Yale Seminar was held in 1963, addressing the issue of music education and offering recommendations for solving the problems faced in music education. At the end of the symposium, a conclusion was reached on the need and potential for including the music of all periods from Western art music, authentic non-Western folk music, and jazz in music education at all levels (Palisca, 1964). A few years later, in 1967, at the Tanglewood symposium the role of music in the social education system was evaluated, and a declaration was issued on the importance of education for the development of an individual's creativity and building her/his identity. Here the contribution of musicis significant. As an integral part of education and as a field of art, it has a major influence on a person’s social, psychological, and physiological needs in the lifelong search for one’s identity and self-realization. 320 REVIJA ZA ELEMENTARNO IZOBRAŽEVANJE JOURNAL OF ELEMENTARY EDUCATION The conclusion of this Symposium is extremely important for intercultural music education, as it states that the music of all periods, styles, forms, and cultures belongs in the curriculum and that the music repertoire should be expanded to popular teenage and avant-garde music, American folk music, and music of other cultures (Choate, 1967). The 1990s saw a declinein the quality of education owing to numerous economic restrictions in society, which also affected education. Therefore, in 1994, standards for dance, music, theatre, and visual arts were adopted under the name National Standards for Arts Education (1994). In the nineties, numerous articles were published that presented the music cultures of various nations with instructions to music teachers for their use in teaching. One of the greatest values of these publications was the contribution to raising the awareness of music teachers about the importance of observing music from a global perspective (Kraus, 1966). The goal of intercultural music education is to develop students’ sensitivity, understanding, and respect for cultures that are different from their own (Dobrota, 2012). In order for children to acquire intercultural competence, it is necessary to offer teachers intercultural training and education. Chen & Starosta (1996, 2000) developed a model of intercultural communication competences that encourages interactive opportunities such as respect, acceptance, recognition, tolerance, and integration of cultural differences. This model of intercultural communication competences comprises three inextricably linked dimensions: intercultural efficiency, intercultural awareness, and intercultural sensitivity. All three together contribute significantly to establishing more effective communication, especially in culturally diverse societies (Portalla & Chen, 2010). Chen & Starosta list six key determinants of an interculturally sensitive person: self-esteem, self-monitoring, open-mindedness, empathy, interaction involvement, and non-judgment. These six determinants significantly contributed to the creation of the Intercultural Sensitivity Scale (ISS), developed by Chen & Starosta (2000). The scale consists of twenty-four statements that examine five factors of intercultural sensitivity: respect for cultural differences, interaction involvement, interaction security, interaction enjoyment, and interaction attention. Based on the Intercultural Sensitivity Scale, Portalla & Chen (2010) developed the Intercultural Effectiveness Scale (IES), based on twenty questions and measuring six factors: interaction respect, behavioural flexibility, interaction relaxation, interaction management, messaging skills and identity retention. D. Petrušić & T. Šešelj: The Relation between Intercultural Sensitivity and World Music Preferences among Grammar School and Vocational School Students 321 Given that intercultural efficiency is only one of the three dimensions of intercultural communication competence, there is still much room for future research on the relation between intercultural efficiency, intercultural sensitivity, and intercultural awareness (Portalla & Chen, 2010). Musical preferences The term preferences (Latin praeferre ‒ to lead, give preference, appreciate more, like more) is often used in musical terminology when describing attitudes towards a certain type of music and defining musical taste. The term taste here covers long- term behaviour in the form of aesthetic evaluation as the totality of all preferences of an individual, while individual preferences are seen as an expression of short-term liking (Mirković Radoš, 2010). Factors influencing musical preferences are numerous and can be classified into several groups: cognitive factors, emotional factors, physiological arousal, cultural and social factors, music repetition and familiarity, music characteristics, and listener characteristics. Cognitive factors relate to the instrumental use of music and describe the relation between an individual’s needs, beliefs, personality, and her/his choice of music. According to researchers, the cognitive functions of listening to music are classified into communication (expressing one’s own values, receiving information or contacting others) and self-reflection (Arnett, 1995; Larson, 1995; as cited in Dobrota & Reić Ercegovac, 2016). Emotional factors are extremely important because a person listens to music precisely to revive and awaken her/his own emotions, express them, and maintain good mood (Juslin & Laukka, 2004; Larson, 1995; as cited in Dobrota & Reić Ercegovac, 2016). Physiological arousal is for the most part considered pleasant. While listening to music, physical experiences can be demonstrated by measurable variables such as changes in heart rate or blood pressure, but also by additional subjective experiences (Craig, 2005; Krumhansl, 1997; as cited in Dobrota & Reić Ercegovac, 2016). Cultural and social factors influence the development of musical preferences by allowing an individual to express her/his personality, identity, or culture through music, as well as to understand these in other people (Rentfrow & Gosling, 2003). Repetition and familiarity of music have a positive linear relationship with musical preferences, because getting to know a certain composition affects the formation of a positive attitude towards the piece (Dobrota, 2016). 322 REVIJA ZA ELEMENTARNO IZOBRAŽEVANJE JOURNAL OF ELEMENTARY EDUCATION The characteristics of music are a factor that actually builds musical preferences, and their importance lies in assessing a piece of music through elements of tempo, rhythm, pitch, harmony, and dynamics. In a composition, moderate volume and tempo are preferred, as well as the optimal level of complexity and a medium level of familiarity (Dobrota & Reić Ercegovac, 2016). Listener characteristics are the factor that scholars have most often explored when studying musical preferences. Listener characteristics include age, gender, personality, and musical experience (Dobrota, 2016). A milestone in the research of musical preferences was the study by Rentfrow & Gosling (2003), who explored the influence of personality traits on musical preferences, using a measurement instrument called the Short Test of Music Preferences (STOMP). A factor analysis of the results revealed four factors that coincide with different personality traits: reflexive and complex (jazz, blues, classical and folk music); intense and rebellious (rock, heavy metal and alternative music); upbeat and conventional (religious, pop and film music); and energetic and rhythmic (rap/hip-hop, soul/funk and electronic/dance music). The reflexive and complex style in the preference of introverts, and the personality traits with which it is in a positive relationship include openness to experience, self-perception of intelligence, verbal skills, and political liberalism, while it stands in a negative relationshipwith the orientation of social domination and athleticism. The intense and rebellious style is positively associated with openness to new experiences, athleticism, self-perception of intelligence, and verbal skills. The upbeat and conventional style is in a positive relationship with extraversion, comfort, conscientiousness, self-perception of physical attractiveness and athleticism, while it is negatively correlated with openness to experiences, orientation of social domination, liberalism, and verbal skills. The energetic and rhythmic style is positively correlated with extraversion, comfort, liberalism, self-perception of attractiveness, athleticism and striving for quick and emotional response, while it is negatively correlated with conservatism and orientation of social domination (Dobrota & Reić Ercegovac, 2016). The two best known theoretical models of musical preference show that preferences for a musical genre are strongly determined by an interplay of many factors. The first model is the Interactive Theory of Musical Preferences (LeBlanc, 1981), which presents a hierarchy of variables important for the formation of an individual’s musical preferences. The variables are divided into lower levels (levels 4-8) and higher levels (levels 1-3). Those on the lower levels are called impact variables, while higher-level variables represent the response to impact variables. D. Petrušić & T. Šešelj: The Relation between Intercultural Sensitivity and World Music Preferences among Grammar School and Vocational School Students 323 Lower-level variables include listener characteristics such as auditory sensitivity, musical skill, music instruction, personality, gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, the listener’s affective state, physiological conditions, and cultural factors such as media, peers, family, and education. Variables at higher levels include accepting or rejecting information, exploring stimuli and/or the environment, repeated listening, increased attention and awareness, processing in the listener’s brain, deciding on preferences, etc. (Dobrota & Maslov, 2015). Another model of musical preferences is the Reciprocal Feedback Model of Musical Response (Hargreaves, Miell, & MacDonald, 2005), in which the authors attempted to group different factors (age, gender, personality, music education, musical ability, socioeconomic status, environment, and media) into three groups affecting musical preferences: music, listener, and the situation in which the listener finds herself/himself. The model is called reciprocal because each of the three basic factors can simultaneously affect the other two, and their influences are two-way (North & Hargreaves, 2008). Both models can serve as a starting point in the study of musical preferences. Yet there are drawbacks, as they do not provide an answer to the question why people prefer certain musical styles, or why they listen to music at all (Dobrota & Maslov, 2015). In this paper, we will explore the relation between intercultural sensitivity and world music preferences in grammar and vocational school students, taking into account previous research. The research: The relation between intercultural sensitivity and world music preferences Research objective, problems, and hypotheses The research objective is to explore how the participants’ type of secondary education influences the level of intercultural sensitivity and world music preferences, as well as to analyse the connection between intercultural sensitivity and world music preferences. In accordance with the above objectives, the following research problems were defined: 1. to examine whether the participants’ type of secondary education influences the level of their intercultural sensitivity. 2. to examine whether the participants’ type of secondary education influences the world music preferences. 3. to examine whether there is a connection between intercultural sensitivity and world music preferences. 324 REVIJA ZA ELEMENTARNO IZOBRAŽEVANJE JOURNAL OF ELEMENTARY EDUCATION 4. to examine whether there is a connection between music familiarity and preferences for music fragments. Based on the defined research objectives and problems, the following hypotheses were developed: H1: Students attending the final years of grammar schools show a higher level of intercultural sensitivity compared to their peers in vocational schools. H2: Students attending the final years of grammar schoolsshow greater world music preferences compared to their peers in vocational schools. H3: Participants who show a higher level of intercultural sensitivity also show greater world music preferences. H4: Participants show greater preference for familiar music fragments. Research method Participants The study was conducted in Split on a sample of 124 participants (F = 86, M = 38) including fourth-year students attending the First Grammar School with the Language Program (N = 62) and fourth-year students attending the School of Fine Arts (N = 62) (Table 1). Table 1. The sample structure (N = 124) GENDER N SCHOOL TYPE N M 38 grammar school students 62 F 86 vocationalschool students 62 Total 124 The research instrument and procedure For this study, a three -part questionnaire was constructed. The first part contains questions related to the socio-demographic characteristics of the participants (gender and type of school). The second part of the questionnaire is the Intercultural Sensitivity Scale (Chen & Starosta, 1996; 2000), which contains 24 statements. Each statement is accompanied by a rating scale ranging from 1 to 5 (1 = strongly disagree; 5 = strongly agree). Chen & Starosta (1996; 2000) obtained five factors of intercultural sensitivity: trust (statements 3, 4, 5, 6, 10), enjoyment (statements 9, 12, 15), respect (statements 2, 7, 8, 16, 18, 20), engagement (statements 1, 11, 13, 21, 22, 23, 24) and attention (statements 14, 17, 19). D. Petrušić & T. Šešelj: The Relation between Intercultural Sensitivity and World Music Preferences among Grammar School and Vocational School Students 325 The psychometric characteristics of the scale are shown in Table 2. Since the distribution of the total results does not differ significantly from the normal distribution, the procedures of parametric statistics will be applied in further analyses. Table 2. The psychometric characteristics of the Intercultural Sensitivity Scale Statement no. Statement 1. I enjoy interacting with people from other cultures. 2. I think people from other cultures are narrow-minded. 3. I am quite self-confident when interacting with people from other cultures. 4. I find it very difficult to speak in front of people from other cultures. 5. I always know what to say when interacting with people from other cultures. 6. When interacting with people from other cultures, I can be as friendly as I want to be. 7. I do not like being with people from other cultures. 8. I respect the values of people from other cultures. 9. I get upset easily when interacting with people from other cultures. 10. I feel safe when interacting with people from other cultures. 11. I do not usually form an opinion at first glance about interlocutors from other cultures. 12. I often become discouraged when I am with people from other cultures. 13. I approach people from other cultures without prejudice. 14. I am very considerate in interacting with people from other cultures. 15. I often feel useless when interacting with people from other cultures. 16. I respect the ways people from other cultures behave. 17. I try to get as much information as possible from interaction with people from other cultures. 18. I would not accept the opinion of people from other cultures. 19. I am sensitive to unclear meanings in interaction with a person from another culture. 20. I think my culture is better than other cultures. 21. I often give safe answers in interaction with a person from another culture. 22. I avoid situations where I will have to deal with people from other cultures. 23. I often show my understanding using verbal or non-verbal signs to an interlocutor from another culture. 24. I enjoy the differences between me and my interlocutor from another culture. Cronbach α 0.86 M (sd) 95.05 (11.21) Range 64-116 Average r amongpart icles 0.21 K-S d 0.07, p>0.05 326 REVIJA ZA ELEMENTARNO IZOBRAŽEVANJE JOURNAL OF ELEMENTARY EDUCATION For the purposes of the research, a CD was made consisting of 15 fragments of world music, each lasting 30 seconds. The musical preferences questionnaire, constructed for the purposes of this research, consists of 15 rating scales ranging from 1 to 5 (1 = I do not like it at all, 5 = I really like it), and next to each rating scale there is a number referring to the music fragment. The psychometric characteristics of the scale are shown in Table 3. Since the distribution of the total results does not differ significantly from the normal distribution, the procedures of parametric statistics will be applied in further analyses. Participation in the study was voluntary and anonymous, taking place in groups, during regular classes. Table 3. Psychometric characteristics of the Musical Preferences Questionnaire Music fragment no. Music fragment 1. AyubOgada (Kenya): Kothbiro 2. Ernest Ranglin (Jamaica): Below the Bassline 3. Cafe' Tacuba (Mexico): Esanoche 4. Los tradicionales de Carlos Puebla (Cuba): Dilema 5. Juan Carlos Urena (Costa Rica): Este Son 6. Julian Avalos (Peru): Guajira Bonita 7. Hawaii – Aloha oe 8. Irish tavern music 9. Makedonsko devojče 10. Ricardo Lemvo & Makin Loca (Congo): La Milonga de Ricardo en Cha-cha-cha 11. Claudia Gomez (Colombia): Soltarlo 12. Susana Baca (Peru): Maria Lando 13. Thomas Mapfumo (Zimbabwe): Hanzvadzi 14. Samite (Uganda): Wasuze Otya 15. Zorba – Sirtaki (traditional Greek music) Cronbach α 0.82 M (sd) 51.96 (8.43) range 35-70 average r among particles 0.24 K-S d 0.07, p>0.05 Table 4 shows the average degree of music fragment preferences. The participants rated the composition Zorba ‒ Sirtaki (traditional Greek music) with the highest marks, and the composition Claudia Gomez (Colombia): Soltarlo with the lowest marks. D. Petrušić & T. Šešelj: The Relation between Intercultural Sensitivity and World Music Preferences among Grammar School and Vocational School Students 327 Table 4. The average degree of music fragment preferences Music sample M min. max. SD Ayub Ogada (Kenya): Kothbiro 3.19 1.00 5.00 1.11 Ernest Ranglin (Jamaica): Below the Bassline 3.68 1.00 5.00 1.09 Cafe' Tacuba (Mexico): Esanoche 3.98 1.00 5.00 0.99 Los tradicionales de Carlos Puebla (Cuba): Dilema 3.43 1.00 5.00 1.25 Juan Carlos Urena (Costa Rica): Este Son 3.54 1.00 5.00 1.02 Julian Avalos (Peru): Guajira Bonita 3.60 1.00 5.00 1.09 Hawaii – Aloha oe 3.65 1.00 5.00 1.21 Irish tavern music 3.44 1.00 5.00 1.11 Makedonsko devojče 3.81 1.00 5.00 0.90 Ricardo Lemvo & Makin Loca (Congo): La Milonga de Ricardo en Cha-cha-cha 3.81 2.00 5.00 0.98 Claudia Gomez (Colombia): Soltarlo 2.21 1.00 5.00 1.05 Susana Baca (Peru): Maria Lando 3.22 1.00 5.00 1.13 Thomas Mapfumo (Zimbabwe): Hanzvadzi 2.81 1.00 5.00 1.04 Samite (Uganda): Wasuze Otya 3.21 1.00 5.00 0.97 Zorba – Sirtaki (traditional Greek music) 4.39 1.00 5.00 0.90 Results and discussion H1: Students attending the final year of grammar schools show a higher level of intercultural sensitivity compared to their peers in vocational schools. To analyse the impact of the type of secondary education on the level of intercultural sensitivity of the participants, a t-test was calculated. T h e r e s u l t s c o n f i r m t h e existence of a significant difference in the level of intercultural sensitivity among grammar and vocational school students, with vocational school students showing a higher level of intercultural sensitivity (Table 5). This led us to reject the first hypothesis. From the second year, students attending the School of Fine Arts in Split can choose one of the following professions: graphic design, sculpture design, photo design, painting design, industrial design, or clothing design. It is possible that it was the education factor that influenced the shaping of their intercultural sensitivity. 328 REVIJA ZA ELEMENTARNO IZOBRAŽEVANJE JOURNAL OF ELEMENTARY EDUCATION In addition, the results of numerous studies confirm that openness to new experiences, as one of the personality traits from the Five Factor Model, is a significant predictor of preferences for different types of art, including the fine arts (Feist & Brady, 2004). Table 5. The differences in intercultural sensitivity with regard to school type M Grammar school students M Vocational school students t df p Level of intercultural sensitivity 3.88 4.05 2.04 122 0.04 H2: Students attending the final year of grammar schools show greater world music preferences compared to their peers in vocational schools. To examine the impact of the type of high school education on world music preferences, the t-test was recalculated (Table 6). The results indicate an absence of differences between grammar school students and vocational school students, thus rejecting the set hypothesis. Dobrota & Reić Ercegovac (2014) point out that music education and personality traits are significant predictors of musical preferences. Howard (2018) emphasizes the significant role of well-designed music classes, which can shape children’s understanding of historical, cultural and democratic processes, i.e., the socio-cultural context in which world music is created and performed. Kim & Yoon (2016) also point out that teaching music positively influences student attitudes towards world music. In this study, both grammar school and vocational school students had been attending Music education classes for four or two years. It is possible that those classes had a positive impact on both groups of participants in terms of increasing world musicpreferences. Table 6. The differences in world music preferences with respect to the type of secondary education M Grammar school students M Vocational school students t df P World music preferences 3.39 3.52 1.33 121 0.19 D. Petrušić & T. Šešelj: The Relation between Intercultural Sensitivity and World Music Preferences among Grammar School and Vocational School Students 329 H3: Participants who show a higher level of intercultural sensitivity also show greater world music preferences. To examine the relation between the level of intercultural sensitivity and world music preferences, we calculated a correlation between the overall result for intercultural sensitivity and the overall result of musical preferences. The obtained correlation value is significant and amounts to 0.20 (p <0.05), which confirms the hypothesis. The results are consistent with the research of Dobrota (2016), who examined the relation between students’ intercultural attitudes and their world music preferences. The results confirm the connection between some aspects of intercultural attitudes and world music preferences. Choi (2010) and Fung (1994) also note that world music preferences are positively correlated with participants’ intercultural attitudes. H4: Participants show greater preference for familiar music fragments. Table 7. The relation between music familiarity and world music preferences Music sample Correlation between familiarity with the music sample and world music preferences Ayub Ogada (Kenya): Kothbiro 0.20* Ernest Ranglin (Jamaica): Below the Bassline 0.11 Cafe' Tacuba (Mexico): Esanoche 0.37* Los tradicionales de Carlos Puebla (Cuba): Dilema 0.15 Juan Carlos Urena (Costa Rica): Este Son 0.23* Julian Avalos (Peru): Guajira Bonita 0.24* Hawaii – Aloha oe 0.45* Irish tavern music 0.16 Makedonsko devojče 0.25* Ricardo Lemvo& Makin Loca (Congo): La Milonga de Ricardo en Cha-cha- cha 0.13 Claudia Gomez (Colombia): Soltarlo 0.34* Susana Baca (Peru): Maria Lando 0.25* Thomas Mapfumo (Zimbabwe): Hanzvadzi 0.12 Samite (Uganda): Wasuze Otya 0.13 Zorba – Sirtaki (traditional Greek music) 0.18* *p<0.05 330 REVIJA ZA ELEMENTARNO IZOBRAŽEVANJE JOURNAL OF ELEMENTARY EDUCATION To determine whether being familiar with the pieces of music affects the preference for music fragments, correlations between familiarity and musical preferences were calculated (Table 7). The existence of such correlations was observed for nine music samples, thus confirming the last hypothesis. The results of a number of studies (Carper, 2001; Dobrota & Sabljić, 2018; Getz, 1966; Peery & Peery, 1986) confirm the connection between musical preferences and music familiarity, because repeated exposure to music increases its understanding, and thus increases listeners’ musical preference. On a sample of primary school students attending Grades 3, 4 and 5, Siebenaler (1999) also observed a connection between familiarity with children's songs and liking them. Conclusion The beginning of the 21st century was marked by the development of digital technology, and the increasing availability of music from different parts of the world poses new challenges to music teachers in terms of teaching methods. Music education requires the integration of music belonging to other peoples. Contemporary music pedagogy suggests creating a new, dynamic, intercultural music education for the 21st century, one that expands and deepens our understanding of learning and teaching by reflecting the balance between established traditions and innovation, while listening to the needs of the community and students. Therefore, it is extremely important to start developing good interaction with and a positive attitude towards other cultures in society as early as possible. The teaching process, as well as the competences of students who participate in it, can be improved by introducing intercultural education (Topić, 2010). Accepting and studying the music of other cultures enable us to become aware of the quality of the music of our own culture (Dobrota, 2012). Creating quality communication with students from different cultures requires having a developed awareness of our own culture and being ready to accept, tolerate and respect other cultures (Bedeković, 2015). Intercultural music education enables students to acquire new musical experiences and connect these with previous ones, which is why it is considered a particularly important part of education. It is not necessary to ask students to reject previous knowledge, but to build on the already acquired knowledge a positive attitude towards the music of different cultures and thus become more open to varied experiences and values, and reject stereotypes based on gender, age, religion, politics, nationality, and physical or mental abilities. D. Petrušić & T. Šešelj: The Relation between Intercultural Sensitivity and World Music Preferences among Grammar School and Vocational School Students 331 Through cultural interaction and the diversity of musical experiences, people become richer, better educated, and more satisfied. It is music education that leads to the full realization of a person, which makes it invaluable for the musical development of an individual (Dobrota, 2012). 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Vinka Žganca u Zagrebu. D. Petrušić & T. Šešelj: The Relation between Intercultural Sensitivity and World Music Preferences among Grammar School and Vocational School Students 331 Authors Daniela Petrušić, prof. Assistant, University of Split, Faculty of Philosophy, Department of Early and Preschool Education, Poljička cesta 35, 21000 Split, Croatia; e-mail: dpetrusic@ffst.hr. Asistentka, Univerza v Splitu, Filozofska fakulteta, Oddelek za zgodnje in predšolsko vzgojo, Poljička cesta 35, 21000 Split, Hrvaška, e-pošta: dpetrusic@ffst.hr. Tonka Šešelj, Master of Primar Education University of Split, Faculty of Philosophy, Department of Early and Preschool Education, Poljička cesta 35, 21000 Split, Croatia; e-mail: tseselj@ffst.hr. Univerza v Splitu, Filozofska fakulteta, Oddelek za zgodnje in predšolsko vzgojo, Poljička cesta 35, 21000 Split, Hrvaška, e-pošta: tseselj@ffst.hr.