Michelle Sayre

Hello! My name is Michelle Sayre and I am from North Canton, Ohio which is about 50 minutes west of Wooster. I’m a Neuropsych/Psych major and a music minor. I’ve been involved with many things on campus, such as athletics, the music department and various clubs. I’m interested in Edu. Psych. because I’m curious to learn how humans learning changes as they mature.

 

Research Proposals:

  1. Students studying with the effects of varying style of background music.
    1. Studying College Students
    2. Studying with background music and learning capacity with different music playing.
    3. Why? Music is a huge part of my life and would like to spend my IS learning about how music helps/hinders peoples learning.
  2. The effect of extracurricular activities during younger (teen) years on students study habits and/or grades and/or leadership and/or … .
    1. Studying high school and college students who have and have no done extracurriculars
    2. Studying students who have and have not had a past of extracurriculars and how that impacts them now.
    3. I’ve done many extracurricular and I believe they have changed me in many ways and want to see if others feel/ show equal changes.

Research statement: I am looking for the relationship between listening to different genres of music while reading and being able to retain information. Participants will be asked to complete a posttest to calculate their ability to remember information from the reading. Scores will be compared with each other to determine if a specific genre produces the best scores.

 

Annotated Bib.

Anderson, S. A., & Fuller, G. B. (2010). Effect of music on reading comprehension of junior high school students. School Psychology Quarterly, 25(3), 178–187. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0021213

– This study investigates the effect of music with lyrics against the reading comprehension of adolescents. The goal was to determine whether this type of music was detrimental or helpful to the understanding of the text by adolescents. The study was conducted on 334 7th& 8thgraders with the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Tests, 4thedition. There were two conditions in which the students took the test, a non-environment and one which singles from the Billboard 2006 Magazine played. Following the test, the student would rank which environment they preferred. The results from the study concluded that listening to music causes harm to the reading comprehension of the students. This is vital to my research because the study I want to run will show, if a child does study with music, which type of music produces the best result and how you can compare data from this study to mine.

 

Bridgett, D. J., & Cuevas, J. (n.d.). Effects of Listening to Mozart and Bach on the Performance of a Mathematical Test, 5.

– This study investigates the effect of listening to Mozart and Bach for 10 minutes before taking a math test on undergraduate students. This study was administered on 61 students who were split randomly to three different groups. Mozart, Bach and a control group. Each group was asked to take a pre-test, upon completion they listened to their designated groups music for 10 minutes and was then re-tested. Data from this study indicates that there was no significant effect of the math post-test when listening to either Mozart of Bach. This is important to y research because I am testing to see if music increases reading comprehension rate and the ability to remember more when listening to music. I can use this data to counter that listening to music before gives no advantage but listening during might.

 

Cheek, J. M., & Smith, L. R. (1999). Music training and mathematics achievement. Adolescence, 34, 759–761.

– This study investigates the effect of students having private music lessons increases scores on math tests compared to students who do not receive private lessons. It was also recorded if students who had private lessons on keyboard versus other musical instruments had an increase in difference scores. The study compared Iowa Tests of Basic Skills scores of eighth graders in their respective groups. The results showed that students that had been taught in a private music lesson for more than two years had “significantly better” scores than those who did not have private lessons. It was also found that students who received keyboard training scored higher than those who had other music training. This slightly relates to my study because students who are trained in music arts may score better on reading comprehension tests than those who have little or no musical training.

 

Davidson, J., Faulkner, R., & McPherson, G. (2009). Motivating musical learning. The Psychologist, 22(12), 1026–1029.

– This study used 160 children from different areas to study if musical study relates to an increased sense of personal and psychological needs. This is tested through a longitudinal study over 12 years to assess whether musical training leads to improved lifestyles. This is important to my study because as parents push their children to practice, this might affect how students view their studies and could affect my data in various ways.

 

Furnham, A., & Bradley, A. (1997). Music while you work: The differential distraction of background music on the cognitive test performance of introverts and extroverts. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 11(5), 445–455. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199710)11:5<445::AID-ACP472>3.0.CO;2-R

– This study focuses on the effects of “pop music” on introverts and extraverts’ performance while doing various cognitive tasks. 20 participants, 10 introverts and 10 extraverts were given two different tests. A memory test with immediate and delayed recall and a reading comprehension test which were completed by the groups with either music playing or done in silence. The data showed decreased scores on the immediate recall of the memory test for both groups. This is important to my study because of the factors that could skew my study, as introverts and extraverts learn at different rates.

 

Hallam, S. (2010). The power of music: Its impact on the intellectual, social and personal development of children and young people.International Journal of Music Education, 28(3), 269–289. https://doi.org/10.1177/0255761410370658

– This study finds the effects of active engagement with music on the intellectual, social and personal development of children and young people. It draws on research using the most advanced technologies to study the brain, in addition to quantitative and qualitative psychological and educational studies. It explains how musical skills may transfer to other activities if the processes involved are similar. It explores the evidence relating to the impact of musical skills on language development, literacy, numeracy, measures of intelligence, general attainment, creativity, fine motor co-ordination, concentration, self-confidence, emotional sensitivity, social skills, team work, self-discipline, and relaxation. The study says that positive effects of engagement with music on personal and social development occur if it is an good and rewarding experience.

 

Kouri, T., & Telander, K. (2008). Children’s reading comprehension and narrative recall in sung and spoken story contexts. Child Language Teaching and Therapy, 24(3), 329–349. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265659008096296

– This study focuses on whether or not students retain info more when words are spoken or sung. This study used 30 kindergarten and 1stgrade students. They were told stories in either a sung or spoken fashion then asked to recall the stories and answer questions about them. The results show that neither group produced higher scores than each other. This relates to my study because if they student learns better in a musical fashion, they might score higher.

 

North, A. C., Hargreaves, D. J., & O’Neill, S. A. (2000). The importance of music to adolescents. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 70, 255–272.

– The study was to find the importance music plays on adolescents and why they listen to and make music. This study used a survey of 2465 adolescents from the North Staffordshire region of England between the ages of 13 and 14. They asked their musical involvement and to rate the importance music plays in their lives. The results show that more than half of respondents make or listen to music because it allows them to express their emotional needs and portray an image of themselves to the outside world.

 

Paquette, K. R., & Rieg, S. A. (2008). Using music to support the literacy development of young English language learners. Early Childhood Education Journal, 36(3), 227–232. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-008-0277-9

– This study looks at experiences with music in early childhood classrooms with the development of English language. The study finds the benefits of having musical experiences during school and how that can advance reading, writing, language development, and reading fluency. It is found that providing children with musical experiences can heighten their learning ability and that directly ties into the study I want to conduct. I want to find ways to increase reading comprehnsion and how much they can retain while listening to music.

 

Perham, N., & Currie, H. (2014). Does listening to preferred music improve reading comprehension performance? Applied Cognitive Psychology, 28(2), 279–284. https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.2994

– This study investigates the effect of music with lyrics against the reading comprehension of adolescents. The goal was to determine whether this type of music was detrimental or helpful to the understanding of the text by adolescents. They also look at the phenomenon with the Mozart effect which syas to increase IQ. Following the test, the student would rank which environment they preferred. The results from the study concluded that listening to music causes harm to the reading comprehension of the students. This is vital to my research because the study I want to run will show, if a child does study with music, which type of music produces the best result and how you can compare data from this study to mine.

 

Portowitz, A., Lichtenstein, O., Egorova, L., & Brand, E. (2009). Underlying mechanisms linking music education and cognitive modifiability. Research Studies in Music Education, 31(2), 107–128. https://doi.org/10.1177/1321103X09344378

– This study evaluated the impact of a music program designed to foster cognitive development and social esteem among high-risk elementary school children. The central question of howmusic education may help children develop general learning skills, the research design interconnected between three components. 81 children took part of this study. This study helps my research because during my testing, students with previous music experience my skew my data as they could score higher.

 

Register, D., Darrow, A.-A., Standley, J., & Swedberg, O. (2007). The use of music to enhance reading skills in second grade students and students with reading disabilities. Journal of Music Therapy, 44(1), 23–37. https://doi.org/10.1093/jmt/44.1.23

– The purpose of the present study was to determine the usefullness of using music as a remedial strategy to enhance the reading skills of second-grade students and students who have been identified as having a specific learning disability (SLD) in reading. The use of music did not improve the scores versus non music listeners. My study builds on this study as I am looking at very smiliar data.

 

Su, Y.-N., Kao, C.-C., Hsu, C.-C., Pan, L.-C., Cheng, S.-C., & Huang, Y.-M. (2017). How does Mozart’s music affect children’s reading? The evidence from learning anxiety and reading rates with e-books. Journal of Educational Technology & Society, 20(2), 101–112.

– This study investigates the effect of listening to Mozart to improve children’s reading. This study was administered on 62 students who were asked to take read in different settings to find the rate of learning anxiety and reading rates. Data from this study indicates that there was significant effect on reducing learning anxiety when listening to Mozart. This is important to my research because I am testing to see if music increases reading comprehension rate. I can use this data to back up my data that music helps students learn.

 

Vitale, J. L. (2011). Music makes you smarter: A new paradigm for music education? Perceptions and perspectives from four groups of elementary education stakeholders. Canadian Journal of Education, 34(3), 317–343.

– This study look at the theory that music makes you a smarter student and person. This study used four different groups: music teachers, students, parents, and non-music teachers. Data concludes that music should be used in education to further improve achievement of students. This helps my research because that is exactly what I am trying to prove with my data.

 

Bilhartz, T. D., Bruhn, R. A., & Olson, J. E. (1999). The Effect of Early Music Training on Child Cognitive Development. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 20(4), 615-636. doi:10.1016/s0193-3973(99)00033-7

– The study looked at the relationship between participation in a structured music curriculum and cognitive development was studied with 71 4- through 6-year olds. Children were pre- and posttested with six subtests of the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale, fourth edition and the Young Child Music Skills Assessment. One half of the sample participated in a 30-week, 75-minute weekly, parent-involved music curriculum. Data shows significant gains for participants receiving music instruction on the MSA and on the SB Bead Memory subtest. This study suggests a significant relationship between early music instruction and reasoning abilities.

 

Literature Review

Introduction Paragraphs

  • What music is and how it is perceived biologically. (Kouri, T., & Telander, K.)
  • How music affects mood and focus. (Davidson, J., Faulkner, R., & McPherson, G.), (Furnham, A., & Bradley, A.)
  • Existing factors that may influence the study
  • Increase and help in development of children. (Hallam, S.), (Bilhartz, T. D., Bruhn, R. A., & Olson, J. E.), Paquette, K. R., & Rieg, S. A.)
  • This study will look at how elementary and middle school student’s ability to retain information while reading is affected by listening to different types of music. Are they better with no music, or a specific type of music?
  • I am looking for the relationship between listening to different genres of music while reading and being able to retain information. Participants will be asked to complete a posttest to calculate their ability to remember information from the reading. Scores will be compared with each other to determine if a specific genre produces the best scores.

1st Heading= What is the difference between genres?

  • What is the main difference that humans perceive music differently? Is it tempo, pitch, aggression, etc.? (Su, Y.-N., Kao, C.-C., Hsu, C.-C., Pan, L.-C., Cheng, S.-C., & Huang, Y.-M.), (Perham, N., & Currie, H.)
  • What is the reason that some people like certain genres and not others? Prior musical training, growing up, etc.…

2nd Heading= How is the children’s reading comprehension before the study?

  • Trained in reading/ reads a lot at home, parents push them to read more
  • Innate ability to read at a better level?
  • Motivation to read better/older siblings?

3rd Heading= How is the children’s music experience prior to the study?

  • Have they taken lessons? (Cheek, J. M., & Smith, L. R.)
  • Parents play music around house often?
  • Innate ability?

 

4th Heading = My Study

  • Do the students read with music on regularly?
  • Do they have a personally preference with the choices of music playing? (Anderson, S. A., & Fuller, G. B.), (Bridgett, D. J., & Cuevas, J. )
  • Do they have any limitations on reading comprehension?

 

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