Learning to play an instrument encompasses both cognitive and creative pursuits
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Engaging in music training seems to enhance reading comprehension among young children by boosting their ability to discern and manipulate the sounds that constitute words.
Research has long suggested a connection between learning to play musical instruments and improved early reading skills, as shown in studies like Improved early reading ability and Mathematics. However, the mechanics behind this connection were previously unclear, as mastering an instrument requires a plethora of skills.
“Beyond reading musical notes—which necessitates learning a new form of written language—you must also perceive the sounds and adjust your physical movements accordingly,” highlighted Maria Garcia de Soria from the University of Aberdeen, UK. This process indicates that music education can enrich our cognitive abilities, enhance memory, and improve sound perception.
To further investigate the relationship between music training and reading abilities, Garcia de Soria and her team assessed 57 children aged 5 to 9. Approximately half of these children had engaged in instrumental study for at least one month with a practice schedule of a minimum of 30 minutes per week, while the others participated in non-musical extracurricular activities.
The researchers discovered that the children involved in music lessons outperformed their peers on phonological awareness tests. This skill relates directly to the capacity to recognize and manipulate the individual sounds—or phonemes—that constitute words, such as the three phonemes found in “dog.” Additionally, they demonstrated enhanced reading proficiency.
The research team accounted for various factors that could influence literacy levels, including socioeconomic status and overall cognitive capability.
In a separate component of the study, researchers utilized EEG to monitor and analyze the brain activity of the children while they were exposed to the Gingerbread Man fairy tale.
They observed that heightened neural activity in the language-related regions of the left hemisphere of the brain correlated with better reading performance across all participants. Notably, the music group recorded higher reading scores despite lower levels of this neural activity, suggesting a more developed capacity for adult-like language processing.
“Adults typically engage music and speech processing across both hemispheres, occasionally favoring the right side. It appears that children receiving music training develop more adult-like capabilities in this area,” noted Garcia de Soria.
This finding connects to the way individuals adapt their reading strategies as they mature, moving from sounding out phonemes to recognizing words and their meanings without mental rehearsal, explained team member Anastasia Klimovich-Gray at the University of Aberdeen.
Phonological recognition is a crucial precursor to learning how to read, which supports the idea that music education can enhance literacy by fostering increased sensitivity to phonological structures, according to Klimovich-Gray. However, it’s not necessarily a one-sided relationship; Garcia de Soria added, “Music fosters reading skills, but reading may also bolster future music performance.”
Demonstrating that these skills can mutually enhance one another may assist children who struggle with reading, Klimovich-Gray explained. “For those facing phonological challenges early on, potentially before a dyslexia diagnosis, music training could provide supplementary support alongside phonics instruction.”
“The revelation that music training refines the phonological encoding processes in the left hemisphere aligns with broader academic findings,” stated Alice Mado Proverbio at the University of Bicocca in Milan, Italy. Furthermore, music education may also cultivate specialization in the right hemisphere of the brain, which promotes faster reading development, she concluded.
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Source: www.newscientist.com
