Chris Buchwald
English 201
Article Summary
The Benefits of Music Education to Children
By Edward Droscher
This article was written about the profound effects of music on our society, the extraordinary effects of music education in the development of the brain, and why music should be a part of every child’s education. Droscher tells us that while music can create deep emotions, it has also been shown to improve the functions and development of the brain. The study of music can improve skills like creative thinking, problem solving, team work, processing language, reasoning skills, and discipline. By requiring students to perform many constant simultaneous activities, music helps develop the brain to function both mentally and physically.
“We believe the skills the arts teach -creative thinking, problem-solving, risk-taking, teamwork and communications - are precisely the tools the workforce of tomorrow will need. If we don't encourage students to master these skills through quality arts instruction today, how can we ever expect them to succeed in their highly competitive business careers tomorrow?" -Richard Gurin, Chief Executive Officer, Binney and Smith, maker of Crayola crayons
Students that have been put through music education have shown notably higher S.A.T. scores than those without it. Students have also shown to be more disciplined, both mentally and physically, and more creative. Students in music programs have also been proven to develop better reasoning and problem solving skills, and even better social skills.
Droscher ‘s article is trying to enlighten us all as to the nearly endless amount of reasons that education in the Arts in general, and to encourage all students to be put into areas of art, particularly music, to help prepare them for a brighter future.