Early childhood music training can lead to improvements in both musical skills and language skills, according to Dr Sean Hutchins at the Royal Conservatory of
Category: 1. Priority research
Children who can keep a beat may be better readers and talkers
The ability to synchronise with a beat could indicate how well children of pre-school age will develop their future reading skills.
Music lessons improve children’s cognitive skills and academic performance
The first large-scale, longitudinal study in the Netherlands, finds that structured music lessons significantly enhance children’s cognitive abilities and academic achievement.
Music training can improve decision-making, focus and impulse management
The only way to correctly assess the effects of music training on child development is to study children before they start any music training and to follow them systematically thereafter.
Playing a musical instrument has a positive effect on attainment
The findings of a recent study in England show that young people playing a musical instrument enjoy greater progress and better academic outcomes than those who do not, with the greatest impact for those playing the longest.
A child’s brain develops faster with exposure to music education
A study by researchers at the University of Southern California shows that exposure to music and music instruction accelerates the brain development of young children.
Arts participation helps with social and emotional skills
A review of 18 peer-reviewed studies about arts participation, published between 2000 and 2015, adds to the growing evidence about how arts participation helps young children – in particular those with autism – to develop strong social and emotional skills. The report was published by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) in Washington DC, USA in December 2015.
Music training started in secondary school can have an impact on teenager’s brains
The results of a research project by Northwestern University, published in July 2015, suggest that music training, begun as late as high school, may help improve the teenage brain’s responses to sound and sharpen hearing and language skills.
What if … every child had access to music education
Another powerful presentation from academic Anita Collins, asking what the impact might be if a generation’s cognitive abilities are raised – and she gives evidence that it’s possible – through music education. To view the video, click anywhere on this excerpt …
Music could help close achievement gap between poor and affluent students
A study by Northwestern University researchers looked at the impact of music education on at-risk children’s nervous systems and found that music lessons could help them develop language and reading skills.
The researchers spent two summers with children from poor neighbourhoods in Los Angeles who were receiving music lessons through the Harmony Project, a non-profit organisation providing free music education to low income students. Click anywhere to read more …
