Abstract
Given that the relationship between music education and mathematics education has been speculated for a long time, the study seeks to investigate whether music education has effect on mathematics education or not. It is perceived that children who learn mathematics through music and dance tend to be more active, and would retain the same information well even by verbal instructions. Using a controlled randomized experiment, the study will involve 6th grade school going children from one city. Before the tests are administered in the factors, as music and mathematics, letters seeking permissions from parents will be sent. The letters will have information that discloses procedures, potential risks and benefits that will be derived from the experiment. Data on percentage marks scored in the two subjects will be analyzed using the 2 x 2 factorial ANOVA. If the results indicate that music education has effect on mathematics education, there will be implications for educational stakeholders to take appropriate steps in setting up the new curriculum or improving the existing curriculum.
Over the last centuries, most creative people have been noted as avid lovers of music. It has thus come to the attention of many education psychology researchers to study the relationship between active music engagements and physical, social, personal and cognitive developments in children and young people (Gupta, 2009). Popular scientists and eminent members of mathematics and scientific societies have been noted to have music or art and craft as their private hobbies. The first Nobel Prize winner in chemistry, J.H. van Hoft, blatantly claimed that various creative activities are actually driven by imaginations that arise from activities outside science and mathematics (Andrius, 2013). In the field of science, especially that that involves Mathematics for Physics, many people are aware that Albert Einstein used to play the violin proficiently, though he could play a piano as well. If Einstein could not become a scientist, he would be a musician. Richard Feynman is another scientist that loved music even in his old age: He grew up painting and loving how to play bongo drums. Not forgetting Hedy Lamarr, she was a great engineer and an inventor who loved music too. With her love for music and mathematical talent, Lamarr invented a technique that became important in spectrum communication and frequency hopping (Andrius, 2013). Particular attention turns to how music education relates to mathematics learning because the two academic areas have been interestingly overlapping in most of their learning and teaching. For instance basic music theory and notation would often employ mathematics in teaching time signatures, chords and dotted half-notes (Gupta, 2009). Music has also been used in teaching mathematics topics such as set theory, algebra and number theory. Currently, even popular music has to be mathematical; a song has to have certain mathematical structures for it to become popular. For instance, in hip-hop, mathematics enables the rhythmic beats and looping breaks to be realized (Gupta, 2009). Psychologists in the field of cognitive research are therefore challenged to study the mind-body connections between mathematics and music. This is not a new phenomenon, but it has always been speculated from the days of Mozart (Gupta, 2009). This study therefore investigates the fact that a strong math-music connection exists and music education has an effect on math education. It is perceived that children who learn mathematics through music and dance tend to be more active, and would retain the same information well even by verbal instructions.
Literature Review:
Music education helps learners with listening and learning difficulties by developing their learning and listening skills in main stream classes. The listening and learning skills are likely to be enhanced more when the music is sung in the language that a student likes and understands best (Hallam, 2010; Kung, 2013; Schellenberg, 2011). When learners involve in learning music, their brain capacities of encoding and decoding sounds and general language is usually enhanced. This implies that the music would have developed the students’ consciousness in learning mathematics (An & Tillman, 2015; Schellenberg, 2011; Volk & Honingh, 2012). Early music instructions are usually designed to develop one’s visual and auditory skills. Auditory and visual skills are required in seeing and memorizing mathematical concepts acquired (An, Ma & Capraro, 2011; Hallam, 2010; Volk & Honingh, 2012). Music skills also will improve one’s phonological awareness, which are needed in developing oral mathematical fluency. Musical training impacts on the cortical processing of learners’ pitch pattern (An, Ma & Capraro, 2011; Volk & Honingh, 2012). By the improvement in the cortical processing, there is a high likelihood that the students will improve in brain programming and control (An & Tillman, 2015). This can be illustrated outwardly by the way children involved in music classes perform in phonemics and musical pitch awareness (Kung, 2013; Volk & Honingh, 2012). Despite development in oral language, music classes usually facilitate language reading skills. Vukovic and Lesaux (2013) found that phonological skills, symbolic number skills and the general verbal abilities developed by music were important in the learning and teaching of mathematics (An & Tillman, 2015; Schellenberg, 2011). Despite understanding the word problems, the student will also be much competent in forming logics (Dieudonné, 2013; Kung, 2013; Volk & Honingh, 2012). They have added that whilst verbal language was important for the children to develop numeracy skills, phonological skills were pertinent in the actual executions of mathematical problems (An & Tillman, 2015; Vukovic & Lesaux, 2013).
The other advantage of music in teaching math has been the development of numeracy skills in learners. Music has often involved quasi-mathematical methods in teaching topics such as notations, sub-dividing beats and converting rhythmic notations into sounds (An & Tillman, 2015; Kung, 2013; Schellenberg, 2011). However, it has been noted in some studies that not all cases of music learning are advantageous to the teaching and learning of mathematics, but it is the proximity of music learning and teaching itself that matters a lot (An & Tillman, 2015; Volk & Honingh, 2012). In some studies, students that tended to be involved more in rhythmic instructions tended to score more in operations that involved part-whole mathematics problems compared to those that used a lot of time in musical instrument playing (Hallam, 2010; Kung, 2013; Volk & Honingh, 2012).
Music has also been noted to improve one’s creativity. Controlled experiments have largely found that music learning for 3-4 years has tended to improve one’s perceptual motor skills and general creativity. The students with prior music learning showed higher levels of abstractions and demonstrated more improvised ways of puppet plays than those that did not participate in music classes (Geist, K., Geist, E. A. & Kuznik, 2012). In fact, there was a stronger correlation between the units of classes that one took in music and mathematical creativity (Hallam, 2010; Kung, 2013; Volk & Honingh, 2012). Creativity in music is enhanced by the fact that music emphasizes on flexibility, extensiveness, syntax and originality. However, some studies have indicated that for the music learning to foster creativity in mathematics, the music classes themselves have to involve creative activities (An & Tillman, 2015; Schellenberg, 2011). Creativity is important in mathematics for learners to be able to solve very complex problems. Derivations of seemingly complex solutions require student creativity. When students are always placed in problem-solving environment of music, they always learn to be creative (An & Tillman, 2015; Kung, 2013; Schellenberg, 2011).
Music also enables personal and social development. Some studies have indicated that achievement in mathematics and other areas of learning tend to depend much on one’s personal and social development. Students who involve more in music tended to talk more freely with their teachers and parents (Kung, 2013; Schellenberg, 2011). Music also tended to foster student’s positive self perception. Positive self perception usually improves one’s self-esteem and interest in all school activities (An & Tillman, 2015; Volk & Honingh, 2012). The created positive attitudes were key motivators for high cognitive scores in mathematics. Studies have found that academic learning alone cannot boost learning mathematics in school. Students improve grades in mathematics when they become self-ware that indeed they can (Kung, 2013; Schellenberg, 2011). Interpersonal relationship is vital for the students to cooperate with teachers and their peers in solving their own problems (Hallam, 2010; Volk & Honingh, 2012). Music has also been key in physical, health and general wellbeing of a person. Rhythmic music education that is accompanied with physical activities generally tends to promote physical development and the general wellbeing of a person (Kung, 2013; Pramling & Samuelsson, 2011). Such physical activities are needed in the general improvements of music performances. Motor performances are important in enabling the students to be engaged in actual doing of mathematics. Despite the actual improved mathematics performances, motor skills are important in enabling the student to engage in exploration tendencies, which are precursors for mathematical discovery (Hallam, 2010; Schellenberg, 2011).
Hnull1. Music is not an effector of Mathematics
2. There is no interaction between Music and Mathematics
Halternative 1. Music is an effector of Mathematics
2. There is interaction between Music and Mathematics
Research questions:
Does Music have effect on Mathematics?
Is there interaction between Music and Mathematics?
Rationale of this Study:
If the null hypotheses are disapproved, the results of this study will be important in providing implications for education stakeholders, especially those that draft the curriculum, to re-consider how music education can be implemented in formal education to foster teaching and learning of mathematics and other fields that require creativity like sciences. Some studies such as Elliot (1986) had indicated that the future of music is increasingly becoming threatened. In other words, music is increasingly being de-schooled to pave way for “excellent programs”. Although there have been a wide discussions concerning the effects of music creativity in mathematics class, there have been a wide gap between rhetoric and actual societal commitment and implementation of music education. If music education improves the learning of mathematics, it will have to be included in the curriculum and considered on equal status with other subjects as important.
Methodology:
Design and Method
Quantitative research approach will be used to evaluate if music education has an effect on the performance of mathematics in school. Quantitative data obtained will be in numerical form; in this case, the data will be percentages of score that students obtain in each subject. Particularly, the study will be a factorial experiment. Such an experiment has been chosen because it allows the researcher to evaluate if one independent variable (factor) has an effect on the other independent variable (factor). The researcher has chosen a 2 x 2 factorial design with four cells. Therefore, the analysis will have two between group factors (independent variables) as music and mathematics. Learners will be tested in both subjects by considering two different conditions as determined by test difficulty: there will be both easy and hard tests in both subjects.
Participants
Participants will be 6th grade school going children. The participants will both female and male students that have been learning music from the 1st grade to the 6th grade in same schools. They will be got from 10 private schools that are predominantly known to teach music in one particular city. Preliminarily, about 20 participants will be sought from each school; the researcher will have to obtain a randomized sample of 60 students from the preliminary 200 participants. Any learners with cases of learning and physical disabilities will have to be noted so that they can be excluded. The final randomized sample will have 40 participants, with equal proportions of male and female participants.
Ethical Considerations
Since the research will be administered on children, letters of seeking permissions from parents will be sent. The letters will have information that discloses procedures, potential risks and benefits that will emanate from the experiment. The benefits will not only be based on individual learners only but to the whole society, for the improvement of the education system to become possible. Thus, parents will have to be assured of free consent in participation throughout the experiment: individual will be free to withdraw from any time of the experiments. There will be an assurance of confidentiality for all participants in the experiment.
Material
There will be two tests to be done in each subject; the two tests will be differentiated by levels of complexity. Thus, both easy and hard math will be done; they will involve skills and knowledge in numeracy, algebra and spatial aspects. Likewise, both easy and hard music tests will involve the learners taking tests in notation, rhythm and performance.
Procedures
Having obtained the permission from the parents and other likely authorities such as the University Research Ethics Committee, the study will now undertake experimentation phase. Administrations of the four tests will take place within four weeks. Schools will be notified to keep the students in schools from the first week of August. The first and the second weeks will involve administrations of easy and hard music tests respectively. The third and the fourth week will involve testing easy and hard mathematics respectively. In music, students will be tested on knowledge and skills in notation, rhythm and performance. Mathematical tests will involve students being tested on concepts such as algebra, numeracy and spatial abilities. In each subject, percentages of marks will be found by dividing total marks got by total possible marks, and multiplying the quotient by 100%. Percentage marks got by each student will represent one of the cases that will be entered in the respective music or mathematics column and “easy” or “hard” row. Using SPSS 16, a 2 x 2 factorial ANOVA will be run to obtain the report on the effects of music on mathematics. Marginal means regarding difficult and easy tests in the two subjects will be calculated and plotted against test scores to find out interactions between music and mathematics. Moreover p values and F-critical values will have to be read in the report to find out the significance of music education effect on mathematics education.
Results:
The other important analysis will be that of the p-values and F-factors. When p-values are read, they will be important for the researcher to realize the significance of the effect of music to mathematics. Incase the p-value is less than 0.05; it will indicate that the effect of music on mathematics is indeed significant. Conversely, when the p-values are greater than 0.05, it will indicate that there is no significant effect of music on mathematics. When the calculated F-values are greater than the critical values, the null hypotheses that music is not an effector of mathematics, and that there is no interaction between the two factors will be rejected.
Discussion:
The study will move ahead to discuss the findings of the study and how they connect with findings from other studies. In this regard, there will be discussion about the effect of music on mathematics. There will also be discussion on interactions between music and mathematics. This will be in relationship with other studies whose findings connect with those of the current study. Studies that would have been done on how music affect and interact with mathematics through improvement of perceptual and language skills, literacy, numeracy, intellectual development, creativity, social and personal development, physical development and the general wellbeing will be selected. If the null hypotheses are rejected, so that music education can be shown to affect teaching mathematics education, there will be advocacy messages for the people in the education sector to plan how they can implement the teaching of music in school. Currently, music teaching and learning is being de-schooled in many schools around the world.
Scope, Limitations and Benefits:
The present study will be carried out to determine if music has an effect on children’s performance of mathematics. However, it will be done in kindergarten schools that are located in one city, only involving students of the 6th grade. Due to certain limitations, it may not be generally accepted. Despite employing a small sample, participants will be those that belong to one city, and probably to the same social cultural orientations. Using participants from one grade may also reduce the generazability of the study. However, the results are expected to help educational stakeholders to take appropriate steps in setting up the new curriculum or improving the existing curriculum. Generally, the results will be important in helping people to understand and appreciate the importance of music education in mathematics education and the whole learning approach to the child.
Conclusion:
There will be a conclusion for the study to wrap up the major themes of the discussion. This will involve briefly highlighting on the effects of music on mathematics, and if the education stakeholders should adopt it. With regard to the improvement of perceptual and language skills, literacy, numeracy, intellectual development, creativity, social and personal development, physical development and the general wellbeing of the child, there will be discussion on whether the stakeholders should consider availing more opportunities for children to learn music in bids to improve in mathematics or not.
Recommendations:
There will be specific recommendations for future research:
The yielded data would be used as a basis for setting up new and effective educational/training programs and curriculum
The data related to research will open up new horizons for upcoming researchers. It can be used as a basis of future research
Demographics such as socio economic status, gender and birth order etc. should also be considered in the studies about if music education has effect on math education
Other variables which could affect cognitive abilities, like self-efficacy and motivation have to be considered in the next studies about if music education has effect on math education
Data should be collected from other areas of whole country to generalize the results
References
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