Music in the Classroom

THE PROPOSAL:  In a 2012 article by the New York Times, author Admish Padnani writes that "those who listened to music completed their tasks more quicly and came up with better ideas than thos who didn't because the music improved their mood." Shouldn't students, then be permitted to listen to music as they work?  

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THE PROBLEM:  First, I have seen a classroom turn into a scene straight out of Fame as all "heck" breaks loose, and yes -- it would be fun, but from a teacher's viewpoint, it wouldn't be very productive.  I have also witnessed WWIII over the type of music played; should it be country, pop, rap, or Heaven-only-knows-what genre.  Let's not even begin to THINK about the downloading of "free music" laden with computer viruses and band width-hogging qualities that come along with thirty different students listening to thirty different stations while they work!  If the ear-buds go in to appease each individual taste, some of these kids would go deaf before they don their graduation garb, and Heaven-only-knows-what lyrics are being ingested during class-time!

THE SOLUTION:  Pandora's free site promises to play "only songs I like."  And yes -- they DO have some advertising from time to time, but overall, it's a great online channel!  If I put it on my computer to play for the kiddos, then it's only one station "hogging band width," and I get to control the genre!



Now that I've found a virus-free solution, how do I address the argument over genre.  It's simple: Hans Zimmer!

Who is he, you ask?  You might not have heard of him, but you HAVE heard his music.  Have you ever watched a movie made in the last thirty years, you've heard his music.  Ever watch Castaway?  The Lion King?  Batman?  Mission Impossible?  Pirates of the Caribbean?  Iron Man?  Sherlock Holmes?  Divergent?  Shall I continue?  Well -- the music behind the movie was created by none-other-than Hans Zimmer.

WHY ZIMMER?  One of the problems I have found with playing music while working in class -- particularly in a Language Arts class -- is the one concept we're trying to teach:  WORDS.  Often, lyrics make up a good portion of the song, and that can be great, but lyrics take the mind to a specific place.  If I have thirty different minds thinking in thirty different directions as students work on different questions on a worksheet, read different pages of a novel at different paces, write different stories or essays, then I need to have music that lacks lyrics.  Face it -- we all, at one time or another, find ourselves singing with the lyrics on the radio as we drive; the same thing happens in the classroom, and when it DOES happen, focus on work is lost -- but not with music from Hans Zimmer.

Additionally, the music has been described as"epic" and "inspirational."  It is the type of music that is classical in nature but modern enough to keep the focus of even the students who have the attention span of a pine cone.

OF COURSE, as with any classroom strategy, we cannot listen to music all of the time; there are times when we must practice having the stamina the work both quietly and independently for standardized testing.  "Whistling while we work" is not always appropriate, but sometimes -- it works like a charm!

AS A SIDE NOTE:  Have you ever taken a group of students to the symphony?  Thanks to the kindness and generosity of our local chamber of commerce, the students at our school are blessed with the opportunity to attend performances by the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra; yes -- this is the same orchestra that has played in the Vatican and is up for yet another Grammy Award!  When the kids attend, it's the "real deal!"

The last time I took the kiddos, a few were veterans, but most had no idea what to expect -- they just knew that it was free and that they needed to look nice and behave.  After it was over, here are a few of their comments:

• "It was so beautiful!"  
• "I can't believe I liked it so much!"
• "I was amazed -- it sounded even better than it does in class!"  (They recognized Hans Zimmer's music and were excited to hear it live!)
• "Will you take us again?"

My answer to that last question:  Of course.  

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