Tips: Using Music as a Teaching Tool
Have you ever noticed how your students seem to have a hard time remembering Newton’s laws of motion but seem to have no difficulty memorizing the lyrics of the latest pop songs (even when they are in Chinese)?
Instead of giving them extra assignments and punishing them for this, why not use your students’ propensity for music to improve how they learn? Here are some tips you can use to incorporate music in the classroom:
- Play a song before the start of a class.1
Playing music before the start of a class eases the mood, encourages the students to interact with one another and consequently, aid in the development of a “social learning environment.” Also, playing music at the start of the class helps set the tone for the lessons (tip: upbeat music for a lively discussion and more somber songs when dealing with a more serious topic.)
- Use a song to introduce a new topic.2
According to experts, using a song to introduce a new exercise or topic is a great way to steer your students to think in the right direction as it would surely pique your students’ attention better than an ordinary and wordy lecture.
- Music should not be a distraction.3
While an effective teaching aid, music can also be a distraction and deter your students from learning if not chosen properly. For example, experts point out that when doing a grammar exercise, it is best that teachers avoid playing “abrasive and disharmonic music” in the background as this will distract students and steer their focus away from the lessons. Instead, experts suggest using music with repeated patterns and phrases (such as Hayden or Bach) to “underline the repetitive nature of grammar.” They also suggested:
- Playing Ravel, Debussy or Satie to enhance “imagination exercises” like descriptive-writing and speech making
- Using rap music to underline current events and the news (in particular, urban problems)
- Playing ethnic music from a particular place to introduce lessons on geography or history. Studies have shown that people easily associate a type of music with a part of the world.
- Repetition helps.4
One reason why your students are easily able to memorize a song’s lyrics is that a popular song is played repeatedly on the radio or on television, thus exposing your students extensively to them. By playing a song that teaches the elements of the multiplication table repeatedly, the more familiar the students become with the material. Experts also suggest giving the students a copy of the CD/tape they can play in their homes to give them more opportunities to listen to it.
- Consult your students.5
Before deciding on what music to play for your exercises, ask your students first what songs are currently popular or what they might want to hear. From the information they give, choose which songs are appropriate for your class. This will give your students the sense that they are contributing something in the classroom and will encourage further inputs. Also, this will ensure that you will not turn off your students by your choice of songs. The last thing you want to do is bore your teenage students and make them disinterested in your lessons by playing them a Liza Minnelli record.
Happy listening!
Sources:
1 Allen, Richard. “Music as on of your classroom strategies,” Impact Teaching. http://66.218.69.11/
search/cache?p=%22+Music+as+One+of+Your+Classroom+Strategies%22+Rich+Allen&ei=UTF-
8&fr=slv8-msgr&x=wrt&u=www.songsforteaching.com/richallen/strategies.htm&w=%22music+as+
one+of+your+classroom+strategies%22+rich+allen&d=OfTiUiQ8NRIz&icp=1&.intl=us
2, 3 Music in the Classroom, http://esl.about.com/library/lessons/blbrainmusic.htm
4 “What Good is Using Music,”http://www.multiplication.com/music.htm
5 Allen, Richard. “A Cornucopia of Useful Points Regarding Music,” Impact Teaching. http://66.218.
69.11/search/cache?p=%22+Music+as+One+of+Your+Classroom+Strategies%22+Rich+Allen&ei=
UTF-8&fr=slv8-msgr&x=wrt&u=www.songsforteaching.com/richallen/strategies.htm&w=%22music+
as+one+of+your+classroom+strategies%22+rich+allen&d=OfTiUiQ8NRIz&icp=1&.intl=us
