If it were up to the students they would have their headphones in all classes, but are they doing themselves any good? Reporting by Atharv It is widely known that music heightens your mood and is considered a valuable tool by students. But are they slacking off or actually making a smart choice? In this dive into how music can elevate your academic performance, we explore some studies and opinions and give you our honest opinion. It is important to bear in mind, however, that the research is not conclusive and may have different effects on different people. A study conducted in 2017 suggests that background music can enhance our cognitive abilities including learning, memory and concentration. Simply listening to music engages a complex network within the brain. These parts include: the auditory cortex, primary motor cortex and cerebellum. Music, as it seems, has the power to activate different parts of the brain. Mr Allen, secondary music teacher, also seems to be in favor of music, saying that “music is a form of relaxation and being relaxed helps you study.” Or as student Dakshu believes: ”Although distracting at times, the right kind of music can enable new levels of focus”. Music’s effect on the brain has been a topic of fascination upon students for decades, but now thanks to neuroscience we can see in much more nuanced ways how we respond to musical stimulation.
In a 1996 study, it was found that music has a positive effect on recalling verbal material. The rhythm of music, even without any musical accompaniment, can enhance the recall of text. A 2010 study involving college students later found that listening to Mozart’s symphonies increased the speed of spatial processing and accuracy in linguistic processing. Another study carried out in 2015 found that listening to Mozart’s Sonata for 2 pianos in D major increased brain wave activity linked to memory, cognition in healthy adults and elderly. It seems essential to note that choosing the right tune matters significantly. A 2021 article highlights that multiple factors contribute to whether music improves focus while studying. Some of these factors include: genre, tempo, age of person, complexity of task and personal preference. Opting on uplifting music can enhance your brain’s cognitive functioning whilst other tunes may have opposite effects. So, by all means get your headphones in and flow with the tune but take note of whether the music is actually helping you or not. With new developments in neuroscience we will discover more about this topic but for now it’s important to understand what works best for you and not to reject anything outright. All in all, it’s about getting to know your own mind and being honest with yourself about what truly helps you and what doesn’t. In other words, learning to flow with your own music.
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Grade 6 students kicked off their Advisory programme in secondary school this year by researching the people they look up to and how they’ve employed ATL skills to do great things in real life. Reporting by Mr Rui Self-management, thinking, communication, social, and research skills. Lofty targets indeed, but sometimes ones that take a back seat to all the busy subject work students have to do. It’s easy to feel that they are just another thing to add to everyone’s already overflowing plates. So G6 advisors decided to shake things up this year and bring the ATLS to life beyond our everyday academic routines. Each student was asked to nominate a role model; someone who inspires them not just with their achievements, but also with their mentality and approach to life. Miss Cindy and Mr Rui gave the example of the iconic boxer, activist and poet Muhammad Ali and students then came up with their own varied list of role models from Cristiano Ronaldo and Galileo to Coco Chanel and Sachin Tendulkar. Over the course of several Advisory sessions, the learners researched how each of their figures used ATL skills in powerful and sometimes not so obvious ways to achieve success in their fields. Elsa considered, for example, how the writer Barbara Dee needed to have effective communication skills to liaise with editors, publishers and the like, whilst singer Olivia Rodrigo (Gabi’s choice of role model) also needed to communicate with bandmates, managers, sound engineers etc. despite being a solo artist. The next stage was to turn this research into posters to showcase at a G6 poster gallery, an uplifting event that really got everyone thinking about the common ground among all of these diverse people. “The most rewarding aspect of this mini project for me”, said Mr Rui, “was the way we were able to link people that on the face of it might have seemed completely disconnected in terms of what they do. This worked out for us to consider how these are foundational aptitudes and behaviours that can lead to success and wellbeing in life generally.” The short video above gives a short glimpse of what the project was about and includes interviews with students commenting on what they learned. “Steph Curry was my chosen person,” said Gonçalo. “He got rejected by many schools, but now he’s very successful and he still trains a lot.” And the last words go to Ama, who opted for Bethany Hamilton - a surfer who survived a terrible shark attack - and learned that “even though she has great difficulties, she shows us that anything is possible”. |
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