Music Education And Its Effect On Education

Perhaps the most tangible benefit of music education for students is the increase in their performance in the classroom. People often say, “Music makes you smarter,” but where is the evidence? As South Dakota State University’s Professor Kevin Kessler eloquently stated via email, “How were you

Elementary schools and high schools across the U.S. have lately suffered from financial strain. Because of this, budget cuts have to be made and music programs often suffer before sports and academics. Although some people believe that music is not a key component in preparing for employment and higher education, yet several others express otherwise, who say music has been shown to stimulate other parts of a student’s mind that can help them excel. Statistics have shown that the correlation between music class and other academia is not only positive for students, but also can improve future scholastic abilities, and thus should not be cut from schools. Through the evaluation of various sources

* ““95% percent of Americans believe that music is a key-component in a child’s well-rounded education, 80% percent of respondents agreed that music makes the participants smarter; 78% believe that learning a musical instrument helps students perform better in other subject areas; and 88% believe participation in music helps teach children discipline” (Hurley 3),” (par 1).

Silence. This is what many people would hear if they walked into just one of the many music halls in a school whom has cut their music program. Many schools across the nation are suffering from severe budget cuts, and sadly music is far too often the first on the list to go. Music in the American public school system is often a way for students to express themselves and develop a sense of pride and devotion by being a musician. Yet, music education has been proven to improve young students’ cognitive capabilities, music programs are still being cut from the curriculum in schools across the nation. Funding, nation testing standards, availability, and participation are major factors whether a program may or may not stay in American classrooms, which demonstrates America’s destructive need for results from students to be tangible at the expense of the enjoyment of students.

Web. 21 Feb. 2016. This article’s author argues that it is important for music classes to remain available to children in school due to their mental benefits. The author explains that many school boards tirelessly attempt to eliminate music programs, however, there is abundant evidence that supports keeping the programs since learning music can dramatically improve children’s ability to read and comprehend math. The author backs their argument with a plethora of statistics from various sources showing the sharp contrast between the scores of music and non-music students. This article adds to the proof that education can be aided by a student’s understanding of

The Knowledge of reading music, and playing an instrument has proven to be beneficial to the learning curb in students including those of little to no background in a literary education to students in college. However, there are schools in America where music isn’t offered. Having a music program could create improved grades, memory, concentration, and quicken the learning process of literacy, but it is believed that music isn’t for everybody.

Although music education does help increase productivity and overall education in schools, the decline of music can benefit some people. Not everyone in the school likes music. In fact, some people can’t even tolerate the thought of music. Either they don’t find any interest in it or they just are not good at it. People lose interest in things after a while if they don’t

At the same time, a specific report titled “School Art Programs: Should They Be Saved?” by Valeriya Metla, argues that music classes jeopardize students’ futures by distracting them from “important” core classes. However, as other research proves, music generally leaves a positive impact on students’ learning and school experience. First off, recent research shows that music education actually improves test scores. Ellen Judson wrote that according to a 10 year study tracking about 25,000 high school and middle school students, “Students in music programs scored 63 points higher on the verbal and 44 points higher on the math sections of the SATs than students with no music participation.” This shows that music helped these students learn and also helped them display their learning on tests. This, then, raises the question “What is it about music that improves learning?” Significant research has also been completed on the effects of music on children’s brains and neurological development. The National Association for Music Education explained that music helps develop language and reasoning, builds memorization skills, helps develop spatial thinking skills, and helps creative thinking.

Music Education is no doubt a necessity to the students of today. Music plays a major role in everyone’s daily life. Music is listened to while driving in the car, when eating in restaurants, relaxing at home, and even when on hold to a company’s overloaded phone system. Music is everywhere you turn, and it should be one of the main subjects to be studied in our public school systems. Public schools in America need to understand that the funding and continued study of music is just as important as the funding for math or science to produce a well rounded graduate.

Few would argue against the idea that we educate ourselves and our society so that we have adequate means with which to understand and interact with elements of the world around us. Subjects such as mathematics, language, history, and the hard sciences are granted immediate and unquestioned legitimacy in our schools, and with good reason. We encounter each of these elements of our lives on a daily basis. We need to have an understanding of these disciplines in order to interact with them, otherwise they are meaningless to us. I submit that the same can be said for the fundamental concepts of music. Music is something that we encounter in our society every day. It surrounds us. Indeed

“In the U.S., the music industry was estimated to generate about 15.5 billion U.S. dollars in 2016. Forecasts show a slight growth in the coming years; by 2020, it is expected that the revenue from the U.S. music industry will total $18 billion” (“U.S.”). With such a large industry and daily use of something, it makes sense that it would make such a big impact on our lives and health. There are many ways that one can have music in their life commonly. First, “music is the fabric of our society, and music can shape abilities and character. Music can provide more than just enjoyment. For example, students in band or orchestra are less likely to abuse substances over their lifetime. Musical education can greatly contribute to children’s intellectual

Although many, one positive way music education is beneficial to students is that it has a large impact on brain stem growth. With the incorporation of music in a student’s daily life, the brain stem’s responses become more robust (Brown). Therefore, the amount of brain stem growth correlates with recent musical training. As stated by Brown, an adjunct professor at the University of Baltimore, “student’s that are involved with a large amount of music will see more gains in brain stem growth”. Furthermore, the neural changes that occur in students as adolescents stay with them into adulthood (“Music Matters”). This allows students to be more prepared once they go into the workforce as adults. Along with the brain stem’s responses being more robust, it’s sensitivity to sound increases (“The Benefits” 1). This is abundantly evident from early on, as mother’s sing to their infants to facilitate brain stimulation and development. Enrichment through music, starting at a young age, seems to improve individuals speech sound development and use of more advanced vocabulary. Adolescents’ language also improves with the use of music in a student’s academics (Miller 46). Luehrisen

The stigma associated with pursuing an education in the musical arts affects the decision of many musicians nationwide. The appeal of guaranteed financial and career stability of STEM and other paths of high demand jobs is very difficult to pass up, even by the most dedicated musicians. Then, the input and advice of outsiders come into play. These onlookers not only encourage study of the hard sciences and a foolproof path to success via university, but they also totally and blatantly discourage and belittle the intelligence, rationality and integrity of not just the paths of musicians, but all liberal artists. Don’t you want to make money? What do you mean you won’t have internships, don’t you want a job? How are you going to survive? This blitzkrieg of questioning and doubt, though theoretically peripheral to the bigger picture, is reasonably common, however, severely unjustified. Pursuing a formal college education in music is easily one of the best things you could do for yourself, regardless of whether or not this is the career path of your choosing. As a student of formal music education, you are actually being trained in more real world skills than most other majors, which will prepare you for many careers, making you stand-out amongst the masses. Being a music major, you learn more than just music, you learn problem-solving skills, how to communicate and collaborate, and how to overcome failure, which are all essential skills to have as a professional in today’s day

“Education- should enhance understanding of the world, of oneself, and of one’s own experience” (Kelly 2009). What is important about music education? There are many important aspects in music education like pedagogy and performance. For me, music education is about letting the students express themselves. Having the ability to give an idea or to vent is a vital tool in today’s society. This concept influences music because expression is not only in how to connect a phrase, but also how to tell a story. With my time in college, Dr. Joseph Frye will always tell me to tell a story with music. He will also ask me what I want to feel after playing a piece. This is what I believe is important in music education.

Music incorporated into education is very beneficial in numerous ways. Having music apart of your classroom will stimulate a student socially, cognitively, emotionally, and physically. One does not need to have to be knowledgeable about music to incorporate it into your classroom.