Experiment Details
Taking advantage of the fact that I am visiting GCE Lab School in Chicago, I decided to do this experiment with my classmates and our teachers. There are a total of nine students in the Senior Year, and all teachers in GCE have at one point or another taught senior year, which sums up to five teachers
I created two surveys, one to be taken by students and one to be taken by teachers. The student’s survey was a series of questions that challenged them to think about what they believed to be the most productive way of listening to music while studying, in different scenarios such as in class or at home. The teacher's survey revolved around the experience they’ve had with the present senior class, with questions that would challenge them to think about the different ways students interact with music and, based on their observance, which way they believed to to be most productive.
RS, Senior GCE class, 2018.
Hypothesis
I believe that even though most students think that they can concentrate better when listening to music with their earphones, the results will show through the teacher’s overall observance that students are most productive when they listen to music with a speaker.
Research
In order to have a bit of context as to what the world already knows about the topic I chose for my experiment, I did some research on how music affects individuals in the workplace in general. Studies show that music can boost your productivity when the type of music is in harmony with the given type of work or scenario. Songs with lyrics, for example, or songs with more complex musical structure tend to reduce productivity when the given task requires critical thinking. However, other studies such as a study from the University of Helsinki note that the simple act of listening to music while in class can help improve students’ memory and learning capacity. There is also evidence that shows that music played at low volumes during class activities can boost creativity and concentration.
I also found some interesting studies about how listening to music with headphones often becomes a social barrier in the workplace. The use of headphones in the workplace was cited as a major office-etiquette problem in a 2010 survey of 1,400 chief information officers by Robert Half Technology. Social dynamics are very important in a classroom; even in individual work some teachers from GCE Chicago expect their students to socialize and compare their coursework to arrive to a richer conclusion. Therefore, it can be inferred that listening to music with earphones in the classroom can sometimes be counterproductive.
Data from experiments
I received a total of seven surveys completed by students, and five surveys completed by teachers. The results were as shown:
Student’s Survey
When I asked students whether they preferred listening to music with earphones, with a general speaker, or not listening to music at all, 62.5% of them preferred earphones, 25% preferred no music at all, and only 12.5% preferred using a speaker.
When the scenario was changed to schoolwork at home though, the response was very different. 50% of the students preferred using a speaker at home, 37.5% preferred no music at all, and only 12.5% preferred using earphones.
The type of music heard while studying was generally varied, and most students heard the same music genres for all types of schoolwork, disregarding what the schoolwork implied you to do.
Teacher’s Survey
Teachers agreed that listening to music with earphones can be distracting, on average, 51% of the time, compared to the average of 11% distraction when a speaker is used in class (with a low volume.)
The most popular music genre played by teachers in class is classical, though many vary depending on the task at hand. When students are doing quiet independent work like writing or drawing, some teachers use mellow rhythms and instrumental music to encourage students to focus. However, when students are working on a project or in groups, teachers often use different genres such as pop and rock. A very small percentage of teachers prefer not using music in class in any way.
Analysis
When comparing the student’s most popular ways of listening to music while working at school and at home, the data suggests that most students use earphones in the classroom to block out noises such as chattering, laughing, etc, though perhaps prefer using a speaker while working alone. This is especially conflicting because even though students use earphones with the intention of isolating themselves and reaching higher levels of concentration, most teachers agree that this is the most distracting music-listening technique. Teacher’s data also generally suggests that listening to genres that go well with the task at hand are most likely to rise productivity levels in students.
Conclusion
A major problem in class is that there are many distracting noises that prevent students from concentrating, especially when the given task involves quiet, independent work. Most students then resort to plugging their earphones in to block out the noise, but the data suggest that this is mostly counterproductive and clearly not a solution. On the other hand, hearing music with a speaker, both in class in at home, especially with a low volume and music that is in harmony with the given type of schoolwork, has been proved to help students concentrate and be generally more productive.
CITATIONS
The Wall Street Journal, “At Work, Do Headphones Really Help?”, June 7, 2012.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702303395604577432341782110010
Inc., “Listening To Music While Doing Homework: Is It A Good Idea?”, December 12, 2017
https://www.inc.com/melissa-chu/research-shows-listening-to-music-increases-produc.html
The University of Scranton, “ Music in the Classroom Proves Beneficial for Learning”, 2017.
https://www.uscranton.com/resources/teaching-tips/music-in-the-classroom-proves-beneficial-for-learning/#.WxBo3EiUu3A
