New Study Shows That A Child's Brain Develops Faster With Exposure to Music Education

Every day, scientists work toward drawing the distinct lines of connection between cognitive functioning and psychological attachments to music. The relationship between creativity and music as an art form are obvious, but there is scientific evidence that also suggests that exposure to music education accelerates the brain development of young children, specifically in the areas responsible for language development, sound, reading skills, and speech perception.

In 2012, researchers at the Brain and Creativity Institute (BCI) at the University of Southern California conducted a study to prove just that. 37 children from underprivileged neighborhoods between the ages of 6-7 years-old were separated into three groups: thirteen of them received up to seven hours per week of music instruction, eleven children were enrolled in a community-based soccer program, and thirteen were not involved in any program at all. At the end of the two-year research period, the groups of children received drastically different results.

Comparisons were made by tracking the electrical activity in the brains, conducting behavioral testing, and monitoring changes in brain scans. As the study concluded, “The results showed that the auditory systems of the children in the music programme had accelerated faster than the other children not engaged in music. Dr. Assal Habibi, the lead author of the study and a senior research associate at the BCI, explained that the auditory system is stimulated by music and the system is also engaged in general sound processing. This is essential to reading skills, language development and successful communication.”

If exposure to music education accelerates the brain development of these areas, perhaps we should make such programs mandatory in our national education systems instead of just calling them “extra-curricular.” Reading skills, language development, and successful communication are keys to the maintenance of our society and we should make sure that all growing minds are fully equipped with these foundational skills.