As many of you know, learning music creates many educational growth opportunities beyond the scope of learning the notes and the instrument. Some of the benefits of musical instruction are below.
- Develops responsibility and self-discipline.
- Builds self-confidence, self-esteem and a sense of accomplishment.
- Develops a life-long appreciation for music, art and culture.
- Cultivates creativity and independent thinking.
- Develops social skills and the ability to work with others in a team environment.
- Improves communication and interpersonal relationship skills.
- Develops motor-skill and physical-intellectual coordination.
- Studies show that music students consistently rank very high academically.
- Music, like math, is often thought of as a form of "language" - in learning music, the brain uses the same centers as it does in language acquisition. Students definitely benefit from keeping these centers open and actively engaged.
- Music learning is a discipline. According to Bloom's Taxonomy of Scaffolding Learning, the way music is learned provides an ideal pattern for learning any academic subject.
- Colleges are increasingly interested in the well- rounded student. Music is always and everywhere respected as a noteworthy achievement to add to a students' list of academic activities.
- Music is a kinetic activity and permits a form of expression and excellence as discussed in Howard Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences.
- Many students find a talent or form of expression they had not had the opportunity to express in their standard academic areas. This is a tremendous opportunity to build self-esteem, which is transferable both socially and academically.