Music Education is important for children

The Benefits of Music Education

Children start learning music when they are born. They listen, they watch, they experiment with sounds and movement, and eventually, they sing and move rhythmically. The more music they hear and the richer the musical sounds they experience, the sooner and better they develop their own musical skills. This process mirrors the way in which children learn language and many benefits.
Most of people love to listen to any kind of music. I believe that people who love music cannot stop listening to it and living it all the time.

Do you remember Do re mi song from the Sound of the Music? When I was young, I learned the song in elementary school. I had sung the song a lot of times anywhere. So, I remember until now.

Mary Luehrisen who is executive director of the National Association of Music Merchants Foundation claimed that “A music-rich experience for children of singing, listening and moving is really bringing a very serious benefit to children as they progress into more formal learning." Also, Guilmartin stated that “Music learning supports all learning. Not that Mozart makes you smarter, but it’s a very integrating, stimulating pastime or activity”.
I also agree with them. Music education is very important for learning. Children can develop language skill, increasing IQ, spatial-temporal skills, improving test score, and being musical from music.

At first, Luehrisen said that “When you look at children age two to nine, one of the breakthroughs in that area is music’s benefit for language development, which is so important at that stage”. According to the Children’s Music Workshop, the effect of music education on language development can be seen in the brain. “Recent studies have clearly indicated that musical training physically develops the part of the left side of the brain known to be involved with processing language, and can actually wire the brain’s circuits in specific ways. Linking familiar songs to new information can also help imprint information on young minds,” the group claims.

Second, music education develops increasing IQ. A study by E. Glenn Schellenberg at the University of Toronto at Mississauga, as published in a 2004 issue of Psychological Science, found a small increase in the IQs of six-year-olds who were given weekly voice and piano lessons. Also, children who were given music lessons over the school year tested on average three IQ points higher than the other groups.

Third, Pruett who helped found the Performing Arts Medicine Association explained that “We have some pretty good data that music instruction does reliably improve spatial-temporal skills in children over time,” These skills come into play in solving multistep problems one would encounter in architecture, engineering, math, art, gaming, and especially working with computers.

Finally, a study published in 2007 by Christopher Johnson who is a professor of music education and music therapy at the University of Kansas, revealed that students in elementary schools with superior music education programs scored around 22 percent higher in English and 20 percent higher in math scores on standardized tests, compared to schools with low-quality music programs, regardless of socioeconomic disparities among the schools or school districts. Johnson compares the concentration that music training requires to the focus needed to perform well on a standardized test. The result from test score, Johnson’s study highlights the positive effects that a quality music education can have on a young child’s success.

Works Cited

"Eat Smart for a Great Start Newsletter." PBS. PBS, n.d. Web. 13 Aug. 2013.

"Music Together - The Importance of Music in Early Childhood." Music Together - The Importance of Music in Early Childhood. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Aug. 2013.