Music Students are Scoring
Music students are outperforming non-music students on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT). College-bound seniors with coursework or experience in music performance scored 52 points higher on the verbal portion and 37 points higher on the math portion of the SAT than students with no coursework or experience in the arts. (The College Board, September 1997)
Music is Beating Computers at Enhancing Early Childhood Development.
Music training, specially piano instruction, is far superior to computer instruction in dramatically enhancing children’s abstract reasoning skills necessary for learning math and science. Learning music at an early age causes long-term enhancement of spatial-temporal reasoning. (Frances Rauscher, Ph.D., Gordon Shaw, Ph.D., University of California, Irvine, 1997)
Piano study nurtures valuable qualities such as concentration, coordination, and confidence. A child must learn complete concentration as he reads two lines of music and practices notes, rhythm, and tone using ears, arms, legs, feet, and all ten fingers. Coordination of the mind and muscles is naturally cultivated, transferring into improved hand-eye coordination, greater sports enjoyment, and fuller use of both sides of the brain. The child then gains confidence as he begins to experience the rewards of his discipline, and develops style and musicality of his own. (Adapted from David and Carrie Brett, Piano Lessons: Investing in Your Children)