Agentic education · Learning science

Actionable companion · Motivation & engagement

Learning with agency: Music Learning Self-Efficacy and Deliberate Music Practice: The Mediating Role of Achievement Goal Orientation and the Moderating Role of AI Literacy

AI-assisted editorial implementation guide, separate from the original research. Proposed actions are not claims or recommendations attributed to the source authors. No independent peer review of this guide is asserted.

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Evidence and context

Title and abstract screening; stage labels describe reported settings, not verified numerical ages. Design labels require full-text appraisal. Reported stage(s): Higher education. Verify the participant population and task before transferring the findings.

Original authors’ abstract, reproduced under the linked source license:

Abstract Deliberate practice plays a central role in high-quality music learning, yet the motivational and technology-related factors associated with sustained deliberate music practice remain insufficiently understood. Drawing on social cognitive theory, achievement goal theory, and the literature on artificial intelligence (AI) literacy, this study examined the relationships among music learning self-efficacy, achievement goal orientation, AI literacy, and deliberate music practice. A total of 458 music students from a teacher-training university in Liaoning Province, China, completed measures of the four constructs. Music learning self-efficacy was positively associated with deliberate music practice. Achievement goal orientation also showed a significant indirect association between music learning self-efficacy and deliberate music practice, such that students with higher self-efficacy reported stronger achievement goal orientations, which in turn were associated with greater engagement in deliberate music practice. AI literacy further moderated the association between achievement goal orientation and deliberate music practice, with this positive relationship being stronger among students reporting higher levels of AI literacy. These findings suggest that deliberate music practice is associated with both learners’ motivational beliefs and their self-reported AI literacy. Keywords: music learning self-efficacy, deliberate music practice, achievement goal orientation, AI literacy, moderated mediation

What kind of evidence is this?

Supporting AI learning science · Design requires full-text appraisal

Stage: Higher education. Screening labels describe reported context and study-design language. They are not a risk-of-bias rating or proof of effectiveness for an age band.

Study methods · source passage

Participants were students from the School of Music at a normal university in Liaoning Province, China. The questionnaire was created using Wenjuanxing, an online survey platform, and was distributed in offline classroom settings via a QR code or survey link. Participants were recruited through convenience sampling. Formal data collection was conducted on 4 June 2026. The study was reviewed and approved by the Science and Technology Ethics Committee of Northeast Normal University (approval code: 202602039; approval date: 2 June 2026). Before completing the questionnaire, all participants read an informed consent statement on the first page of the survey. The statement explained the purpose of the study, the voluntary nature of participation, the anonymity of responses, and the confidential use of the data for academic research purposes only. Only participants who provided informed consent were allowed to proceed to the formal questionnaire.

Limitations and uncertainty · source passage

Several limitations should be noted. First, the present study used a cross-sectional questionnaire design. Although the results supported the proposed mediation and moderated mediation model, causal relationships among music learning self-efficacy, achievement goal orientation, AI literacy, and deliberate music practice cannot be inferred. Future research could use longitudinal designs to examine whether changes in music learning self-efficacy predict later changes in achievement goal orientation and deliberate music practice. Experimental or intervention studies could also be conducted to test whether improving learners’ self-efficacy or AI literacy can lead to higher-quality practice behaviors.

Design the system before the pilot

Use this study to inform a learning mechanism or implementation question. It is not direct evidence that autonomous agents improve learning. Keep the proposed agent behavior separate from what the source actually tested.

  • Measure engagement separately from achievement. Check whether novelty-driven participation persists and whether it translates to independent performance.

A 90-day district pilot

  1. Days 1–15 · Appraise. Have the curriculum lead and a teacher read the methods and limitations. Record the study design, sample, comparator, outcomes and evidence gaps. Define a local question that the study can help inform.
  2. Days 16–30 · Design. Choose one disciplinary task. Require a first attempt, a documented AI consultation, a critique of the output and an independent explanation. Align the comparison group and scoring rubric with the same objective. Name an accountable owner and set the baseline, success threshold and budget before implementation.
  3. Days 31–60 · Test. Start with a small voluntary cohort, preserve an accessible non-AI route and require teacher review. Use synthetic or de-identified examples; approve data handling and tool terms through district processes.
  4. Days 61–90 · Decide. Blind-score reasoning and accuracy on a new task without AI. Distinguish model examination scores, student perceptions and actual learner gains; only the last directly tests educational benefit. Compare with baseline, document uncertainty and stop or revise if learning worsens, access is unequal or critical errors persist.

The board decision brief

Report the learning problem, evidence quality, participating population, total cost including review time, measured benefit, errors, access differences and remaining uncertainties. Make a dated recommendation to stop, revise or expand. A positive perception survey alone does not establish learning improvement.

Attribution and reuse

Shihan Wang; Ziqiao Wang; Baoqian Yang; Lifang Tang. Music Learning Self-Efficacy and Deliberate Music Practice: The Mediating Role of Achievement Goal Orientation and the Moderating Role of AI Literacy. Behavioral Sciences (2026-08-21). https://doi.org/10.3390/bs16081456

Companion prepared 2026-10-30. Original authorship and DOI are preserved. The abstract is an attributed source extract; the implementation plan is new AI-assisted editorial material, offered under the same CC BY 4.0 license. This guide has not undergone independent peer review.