by Yeon Ji Oh, Y11
As exams round the corner, many students may search for alternative ways to study efficiently. Listening to music is one of them. The beneficial effects of music range from soothing the broken-hearted to motivating runners. Additionally, music has been known to improve our well-being. Yet do these positive consequences extend to studying?
First of all, it depends on the subject. Lyrics make it difficult to focus on words you read, since you are listening and reading different language inputs. This essentially leads to multi-tasking, which sadly remains a neuromyth – a commonly held false belief about how the mind and brain function. The brain cannot perform two tasks simultaneously as we would like to believe. It simply switches between tasks quickly such as from listening to music to reading. This requires time for your brain to stop and reprocess, reducing your performance.
On the other hand, this conflict between different language inputs doesn’t occur when studying subjects such as maths, which makes listening to music lyrics more feasible.
Secondly, it depends on what type of music you listen to. It is well known that complete silence is the best environment for concentration. Yet many studies have shown that pure instrumental music, especially classical music, can be equally beneficial. Not all classical music is created equal, however; the instruments used and the time period of the piece can have varying effects.
Thirdly, your personality plays an important role in determining your benefits from music. Relatively agitated people might need more soothing or relaxing music to calm down whereas typically relaxed people might need something
more upbeat.
Listening to music while you work doesn’t always make you less productive or efficient. However, remember these few tips to groove thoughtfully and create the most productive atmosphere:
– Choose slow, instrumental music.
– Keep the volume low: studying music works best in the background, where it doesn’t disrupt your thoughts.
– Choose songs you don’t feel strongly about – a song you love or hate might distract you.
Finally, there are several alternatives to conventional music for those that prefer an environment between total silence and distracting noise:
– Nature sounds: waterfalls, seashores, birdsongs can help you mask outside noise and optimize concentration.
– White noise: white noise consists of every audible frequency, much like how white light represents all frequencies of light. By muffling sounds, it can help you focus.
– Binaural beats: binaural beats are tones created by the brain when it’s presented two tones with slightly different frequencies. They have several health benefits such as reducing anxiety, increasing relaxation and fostering
positive moods.
