This research sought to identify institutional expectations for piano proficiency, students' perceived needs for proficiency, how these needs parallel or contradict institutional expectations, and how the researcher's teaching is re-shaped through critical reflection on her practice. The researcher's views were kept in field notes and a research journal, students participated in group piano workshops, interviews, and focus groups, and several faculty members were observed and interviewed. Because the researcher immersed herself directly in the secondary piano department through an active role as both observer and participant, and transformed assumptions about secondary piano teaching and learning through critical reflection on her practice, the research was identified as a phenomenological case study.

Secondary piano study has long been a critical component of undergraduate music degree programs. All music majors are required to study the piano in order to develop the keyboard skills necessary for careers as musicians and music educators. Most often course sequences culminate in a piano proficiency examination. This study examines a phenomenon particular to these curricula: the requirement that students of varied skill levels and career goals master a similar outcome. In this study, the problem is explored by gathering perspectives of researcher, students, and colleagues, all of whom actively participate in secondary piano teaching and learning. Parallels or contradictions between these views are identified through a framework of critical reflection (Brookfield, 1995), which reviews assumptions about teaching through four lenses – students, self, colleagues, and related literature.

Recurring themes of the study include balancing individual consultation and group activities in the piano class, the central role of music-making in secondary piano study, the importance of students' responsibility for their learning, curricular concerns, particularly connecting piano and music theory studies, the dominant role of the piano proficiency exam, and the need for clearer definitions of piano proficiency. Pedagogical implications for secondary piano teaching and suggestions for future research based on these themes are offered. The aim of this research is not to advocate a specific means of teaching group piano, but to explore various perspectives in an effort to gather solutions for addressing learners' needs in the secondary piano class.