Transcript Slide 1

Using Music to Benefit
Learning and the Classroom
TED 387 Music Methods
Dr. Steve Broskoske
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Outline
1. How music can be used in the classroom.
2. How can I practically use music to set
tone/atmosphere?
How Music Can Be
Used in the Classroom
Some Benefits of Music
in the Classroom
• Establish a positive
learning atmosphere.
• Build a sense of learner
anticipation.
• Energize learning
activities.
• Change learner brain
wave state.
• Help focus concentration.
• Help increase attention.
From Music and Learning by Chris
Brewer, 1995.
• Improve memory.
• Facilitate a multisensory
learning experience.
• Help students release
tension.
• Enhance imagination.
• Provide inspiration and
motivation.
• Add fun.
• Provide content
information.
How Music Can Be
Used in the Classroom
• Music can be incorporated in the
classroom at 3 levels:
High
Teach educational content (content songs).
Enhance educational content. (Use music to
help students understand, feel, and appreciate
educational content.)
Set tone/atmosphere. (Create an atmosphere
conducive to effective teaching/learning: music to
prepare, music to focus & concentrate.)
Low
Using Music to Set
Tone/Atmosphere
The “Mozart Effect”
• Refers to the transformational powers of
music in health, education, and well-being.
– Reduce stress, depression, or anxiety.
– Induce relaxation or sleep.
– Improve memory or awareness.
– Treat dyslexia, attention deficit disorder,
autism, and other mental and physical
disorders and injuries.
Mozart Effect.com
The “Mozart Effect”
• Maybe: While some people claim that
listening to Mozart (and similar) music can
increase student academic achievement
directly, this remains to be shown
conclusively.
• Definitely: Focus, attention, and
concentration, as well as brain and heart
rhythms, have been found to be affected
by exposure to different types of music.
Improve Concentration and Focus
• Music stabilizes mental, physical, and
emotional rhythms.
• Music helps learners attain a state of deep
concentration and focus in which large
amounts of content information can be
processed and learned.
Improve Concentration and Focus
• Especially effective:
– Baroque music (Bach, Handel, Telemann,
Vivaldi) that is 50 to 80 beats per minute
creates an atmosphere of focus that leads
students into deep concentration in the alpha
brain wave state.
Why?
Improve Concentration and Focus
The heart usually beats at a rate of 60-80
beats per minute. Baroque music enhances
a natural body rhythm.
Discovery of Brain Waves
• Hans Berger, an Austrian doctor, first
discovered alpha waves while researching
brain activity in 1908.
• Used an early EEG to monitor electrical
activity in the brain.
• He discovered brain waves.
Discovery of Brain Waves
• Alpha waves:
– Under calm conditions, when a person is
relaxed, the brain produces alpha waves
(8 - 12 Hz).
• Beta waves:
– When in a state of heightened watchfulness
and reactivity, the brain produces beta waves
(12 - 25 Hz).
– Berger also noted that aggressive behavior
may erupt when people are in beta.
Alpha vs. Beta
• Beta:
– Beta waves sharpen our responses and
keeps us alert. Beta-driven responses are
immediate to what we interpret as life and
death situations.
– Decisions made in beta can be reactive and
defensive, rather than collaborative and
constructive.
Alpha vs. Beta
• Alpha:
– In alpha we naturally have a better command
of life, our health, our moods. We are able to
think more clearly, consider responses and
perhaps make more creative decisions, with
better long-term results
Shifting of Brain Wave Activity
• Typical day:
– Delta wave activity during sleep.
– Beta wave activity as we head into our day,
supported by sugar and caffeine.
– After a busy day, we return to delta wave
activity during sleep.
• In alpha we are at our most productive
because we are fully awake, yet relaxed.
Alpha Music
• Alpha-music encourages the brain to
produce alpha waves.
• Benefits:
– Reduces stress and anxiety.
– Settles down hyperactive behavior.
– Feelings of panic or overwhelm subside.
– Ideal for children with autism, people with
dyslexia.
– Great study aid for students of all ages:
improves focus and recall.
Alpha Music
Hear a brief explanation of Alpha Music,
and listen to an example.
If any of the embedded videos do not function properly,
copy and paste the link in the speaker’s notes into a
Web browser.
Read More About Alpha Music
• Silence of Peace CD
• Composer: John B. Levine
Home Page
Read about
Silence of Peace
Research on Alpha Music
• Can Music Promote a Conducive
Educational Atmosphere ?
– Two and a half week study.
– Focused on a group of ten school boys aged
12-13, all identified as having behavioral and
attention deficit problems.
Research on Alpha Music
• Four different classrooms where seating
arrangements were different.
• A digital camcorder was used to record
behavior.
• 5 lessons were observed without music. 5
lessons had Silence of Peace CD playing
in the background.
• Students were also given tests and
questionnaires with and without music.
Research on Alpha Music
• Lessons accompanied by Silence of
Peace showed significantly fewer
instances of off-task activity.
– Off-task activity: Fell by an average of 664
instances, a decrease of 20.5%.
– Impulsiveness (average): Without music was
244.4, with music 69.4.
– Hyperactivity (average): Without music 177.6,
with music 95.8.
– Talking (average): Without music 460, with
music 58.6.
Research on Alpha Music
• Study conclusions:
– Alpha-music helped reduce boredom and
helped keep students engaged.
– Positive change in the behavior of students.
– Students seemed calmer and more focused,
which created an atmosphere more conducive
to academic work.
Student Attitude and Motivation
• With music, a teacher can influence
students attitudes and motivation to learn.
• Carefully selected music can:
– Create a positive learning atmosphere where
students to feel welcome to participate in the
learning experience.
– Settle students down into a state where
effective teaching/learning can take place.
– Encourage a mental state where students are
focused and ready to engage in learning.
How Can I Practically Use
Music to Set
Tone/Atmosphere?
Music for Welcoming Students
• Play as background for entries, exits, and
other transitions. Use to:
– Greet your students.
– Create a welcoming
atmosphere.
– Set a learning rhythm.
Example: Four Seasons (Vivaldi)
Music for Welcoming Students
• You could also choose music that will introduce
the concept (or that is related to the content) of
the lesson.
• In this way, you mentally set the tone for the
content of the lesson.
Examples:
I’ve Been Working on the Railroad [history lesson]
For the Love of Money (Apprentice Theme) [money
counting lesson]
Native American song [Native American lesson]
Song about recycling [science lesson on recycling]
Music for Focus and Concentration
• Play as background music while students
study, read, or write to:
– Increase attention levels.
– Improve retention and
memory.
– Extend focused learning
time.
– Expand thinking skills.
Example: Canon in D (Pachelbel)
Music for Creativity and Reflection
• Play as background for activities such as:
– Journaling or writing.
– Problem-solving.
– Background for project
work.
– Brainstorming.
Example: Eine Kleine Nachtmusik by Mozart
Music for a Break
• Use for a sound break or movement
activities to:
– Increase productivity.
– Energize students during daily energy lulls.
– Provide a stimulating sound break to increase
attention.
– Encourage exercise/movement.
Examples: Fun songs like…
Wooly Booly, YMCA, The Twist
Music for a Break
• Let’s take a break!
• What are good times to take a break in the
classroom?
They even take a break in baseball
(the seventh inning stretch).
Improve Memory of Facts and
Details
• Improve memory of facts and details
through songs, chants, poems, and raps
through rhyme, rhythm, and melody.
– Either teach this music to students OR have
them write their own music.
We’ll consider this use of music
at a future class meeting.
Review
• Music can be incorporated in the
classroom at 3 levels:
– Teach educational content.
– Enhance educational content.
– Set tone/atmosphere.
• Music can affect heart rhythm and brain
wave activity.
• Today we examined ways to set
tone/atmosphere.