Music is a moral law. It gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, and life to everything... Without music, life would be an error.
(Nietzsche)
Most children have their first experience of music at school. Primary schools play an important role in fostering pupils’ interest in music, and this is why high quality music education, as part of the school curriculum, is so vital. However, in order to make room for other subjects, it seems that music education is offered less and less in many school systems.
Students experience a wide range of benefits by music education; apart from learning how to play a music instrument or how to sing, music, amongst others, helps bind pupils into the wider life of the school, increase their confidence, develop critical thinking, and lower their stress levels. Here are out top reasons why music education is so important: 1. Music teaches discipline. Music will teach children to develop time management skills and discipline. If students are expected to learn their instruments and practice outside of school, then they will develop the ability to create a practice schedule and balance every other activity they have going on in their lives. Learning discipline and time management from a young age will have countless benefits on a child’s future. For example, if a child develops discipline in elementary school, they will be much more able to balance the workload they’ll receive in high school and excel in their classes. 2. Music can lead to an improvement in brain development. In a Northwestern University study designed to test whether the level of engagement matters, researchers found that children who regularly attended music classes and actively participated showed larger improvements in how the brain processes speech and reading scores than their less-involved peers after two years. The research, also showed that the neural benefits stemming from participation occurred in the same areas of the brain that are traditionally weak in children from disadvantaged backgrounds. (Read more about the study here: https://news.northwestern.edu/stories/2014/12/how-music-class-can-spark- brain-development/) 3. Music integrates different subjects included in the curriculum. There are lots of ways you can use music to teach other subjects. Have you ever noticed students sometimes can't memorize vocabulary words, but know the lyrics to hundreds of popular songs by heart? Using songs as a memory aid can be a valuable teaching asset. Math teachers can use music to teach fractions, by having the students tap to the beat - four quarter-notes add up to one, so the student would tap four times. Additionally, having discussions about how instruments work will involve information on the physics of sound, and learning about music’s place in society will shine a light on important historical events. 4. Music connects Music helps bind pupils into the wider life of the school. School band, music chorus, group class tuition are all creative, yet educational and useful ways to connect students. Children are naturally very social, and it’s important to encourage them to build relationships by providing them experiences to share with each other. 5. Music relives stress. As music can absorb our attention, it acts as a distraction at the same time it helps to explore emotions. This means it can be a great aid to meditation, helping to prevent the mind wandering, but also can have a tremendously relaxing effect on our minds. Why not choose music as the way to relieve stress, which is significant for students who may feel overwhelmed by schoolwork and try to balance extracurricular activities. Let’s just says YES to music then! Marlen Vasilopoulou, Director of Music
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