by LIZ MARCHESE Staff Writer
When students are listening to music while working or studying, whether it is at school or at home, it could have a positive and/or negative effect on them. The Center for New Discoveries in Learning confirms that music does have an effect on learning. They say that listening to music can activate the brain, causing it to be more capable of processing information. A study by the University of Illinois showed that listening to music activates both sides of the brain. It improves listening skills through music education. In a study of 10 people, six of those people listened to music or needed some kind of background noise while working or studying. Statistics also show that students who do listen to music while studying seem to have a higher intelligence than kids who do not listen to music. Researchers say that listening to classical or instrumental music is best while studying. It calms the brain down, but also gets it flowing. Mozart is very popular to listen to while studying. Schooldestroyer.com says, “Mozart keeps the brain alert, focused, and exercised. The music’s frequencies of various dynamics keep the brain working.” However, music could also work against someone while studying. According to Oxford Learning, it is harder for people to memorize a list while listening to music than it is when they are not listening to music. Researchers at the University of Wales Institute in Cardiff, United Kingdom conducted a study to see if people were able to memorize a list while music was playing. The study included 25 participants who had to memorize a list of letters. The participants were tested with a quiet environment, music that they liked, music they did not like, and a voice repeating the number three. The results of the study showed that people did worse while listening to music, and best while it was quiet or when the number three was being repeated. Researchers said that the reason participants did so poorly while listening to music was because the changing words and notes in the song could have thrown them off track from memorizing. Freshman Kirsten Pasewaldt says, “I can’t concentrate if I listen to music while I study because I get too distracted and I end up not doing the work that I should be doing.” For some people, it depends on what they are studying. For example, if students are studying for a math test then they might be able to have music playing. On the other hand, if they have to study for a physics exam, then it might be harder to concentrate while listening to music. Freshman Olivia Fasano says, “I prefer to listen to music while working because I can never work in silence. I always need something going on around me.”
Comments