Other than a great source of entertainment, music is also a powerful tool that can have positive effects on education. Memory Recognition, stress relief, and Physical Education improvement are some of the benefits of the presence of music in education. The impact of music on learning and consolidation of novel words. Dr. Brian Matias and others have stated in their article, “auditory-motor experience can strengthen or enhance recognition memory for sounds”[1].This enhancement in recognition memory, otherwise known as the “Production Effect” can help students quickly recollect important information at any time, thus significantly improved their academic performance. For example, if one were to forget and wishes to know the alphabetical position of the letter K, he or she can merely mentally sing the ABC songs that the individual has previously learned in their childhood to find out the answer. There have been many studies on the use of music to aid in teaching, as well as how an individual who plays music fares in their education. Results show that the usage of songs can facilitate and enhance the literacy learning process in children learn and give long lasting results.[2] For example, songs such as the Solar System Song or ABC songs can help children reinforce the earning material and expand their vocabulary.
Besides the direct impact on the learning process, music is also capable of aiding the studying process of the student indirectly. According to a journal, published by Dr. Mari Tervaniemi of the University of Helsinki, “In toddlers and school-age children, music listening gives joyful moments and can also help them soothe and relax” [3]. Studying can sometimes be extremely challenging and stressful for students of a higher institution (such as four years university) due to the immense amount of materials and assignments that they have to undertake. The presence of music can facilitate the relief of stress and give them a concentration boost to focus on their studying.
Music does not only optimize the learning process of student, it also benefits the students through the education that remarkably enhance the physical and mental quality aspects of their lives: Physical Education (PE). Multiple researches and studies have been conducted on the students of all educational level to verify the credibility of this claim. For example, a research performed by Barney, Gust and liquor discovered that the preferable songs, chosen by the colleges kids increased the frequency, intensity and duration of their work out in the PE.[4] Another study by Dr. Lindsey Brewer and her colleagues of the Brigham Young University concluded in their journal that music brought enjoyment to high school students and stimulated the student’s motivation to increase the intensity of the work out.[5] Similarly to the study done on the elementary students, those listened to music perform significantly better on PACER test than students that did not listen to music .[5] Due to the ability to create moods of music, when a student exercise while listening to motivational music, the student will feel motivated and increase their workload, thus enhancing the physical and mental quality aspects of their lives.
