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By Cameron Stuart
The influence of music on rates of learning has been the
subject of study for many years. Common sense tells us, and research
has confirmed, that loud, cacophonous background noise impedes learning,
concentration, and information acquisition. However, some amount of
background music may in fact be helpful in the learning process, both in
a structured school setting and under self-directed homework
conditions. Several questions arise from this assumption, then. First,
how much music is appropriate? Second, will any music do, or are some
genres (e.g., rock vs. classical) and types (e.g., vocal vs.
instrumental, fast- vs. slow-paced) more helpful and others, in fact,
deleterious? Further, are students at all grade levels affected in the
same way by different types of music, or do the effects of music change
over time, depending on individuals’ exposure to various music types and
other factors?
Research in this field dates back to the 1930s (Fendrick, 1937, as cited
in Koppelman & Imig, 1995), but the emergence of new technologies over
the last two or three decades has brought the need for new studies.
Interactive multimedia (delivered by computer, CD-ROM, or other medium)
and the ubiquitous proliferation of television and audio entertainment
delivery devices into the home have changed the face of classrooms and
bedrooms alike. Today’s schoolchildren have ever-shortening attention
spans, a fact many people would like to blame on some of these very same
technologies. But some modern technological conveniences/annoyances,
properly tamed, could in fact be used to aid academic performance if
beneficial effects were demonstrated in controlled studies.
One interesting study was conducted by Davidson and Powell (1986)* in
the U.S. on a grade 5 classroom. It found that On-Task-Performance
significantly increased while listening to ‘easy listening’ music.
Listening to music as background can help when people when they're
thinking, learning, or working, but the music needs to be implemented
correctly. It can be easily understood that if it's vocal music, it
needs to be somewhat quiet, for if it isn't, it can be very distracting
to the mind. It is logical to conclude then that if it's instrumental,
it can be somewhat louder than vocal music, but not too loud because any
music that is loud enough will make it hard to learn or think. The
listener's preference to music must also be taken into account, because
the primary goal is for the music to affect the person's mood and
attitude positively, and if they are listening to music that they
absolutely deplore, it won't help them think because it will be hard to
shut it out of their mind.
Scientists at Stanford University, in California, recently revealed a
molecular basis for the "Mozart Effect", but not other music.
Dr. Rauscher and her colleague H. Li, a geneticist, have discovered
that rats, like humans, perform better on learning and memory tests
after listening to a specific Mozart's sonata. More of this can be read
in The Mozart Effect by Don Campbell.
The buzzword, "Mozart Effect", has been talked about by popular print
and broadcast media. I have heard it featured in parenting, education,
and music oriented publications, and in the mainstream general press.
While it has renewed interest in classical music education and focused
much deserved attention on the general field of childhood development,
it inspired me to look into both Mozart and other styles of music that
would benefit my children’s learning environment.
Music is an important and extremely useful tool in the way we learn and
to deny its power is a waste of a truly wonderful resource. In recent
years there have been concerns about some types of music such as Gangsta
Rap having very negative effects on people’s minds and moods. This type
of music imprints an extremely violent image into people's minds and
there has been growing concern about it and tying it in with violent
crimes. In cases like this, it only shows how much more we need to
study music to fully understand its full impact on the human mind.
In these days where cutbacks are always eminent in local schools,
families struggle to keep the music and art intact. Music and the arts
are what make life worth living and without them, people lose hold of
their culture and diversity. The ideal way to learn in the future would
be to fully incorporate music into our children’s curriculum. If the
homeschooling family encouraged their children to freely pursue music
with the culture of music in their everyday lives, children would become
much more efficient in their learning and would become much better
learners on the whole. Music is a power too great for man to comprehend
at this point but through further study man can learn how to better
harness its power to use it to its full potential.
A sampling of the pieces that I have gathered appear below. As this is
an on-going project, I would love to hear from others on what
instrumental music they would suggest for our studies.
* Davidson, C.W., & Powell, L.A.
(1986). Effects of easy-listening background music on the
on-task-performance of fifth-grade children. Journal of Educational
Research, 80(1), 29-33.
© 2004
Cameron Stuart
This article may not be reprinted without
the express permission of Homeschooling Horizons Magazine and of
the author. All rights reserved.
The Stuarts live, love and learn in a music-filled home in Stratford,
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