Charles Anzalone, "Study Finds Link Between Music and Preschoolers' Reading Readiness

Photo courtesy cambodia4kids.org

Anzalone's article reports on a two-year University of Buffalo Graduate School of Education study examining the effect of impact of "musically trained" early childhood teachers on the music and emergent reading and writing achievements of preschool children.  165 preschoolers participated in music activities taught by 11 teachers--generalists, as opposed to musical specialists--who had received intensive training in musicianship skill and teaching strategies for guiding young children's music development. Results showed that music instruction significantly increased children's oral vocabulary and grammatic understanding, after controlling for students’ age and prior knowledge, and was especially effective for children who began with lower literacy skills. Researchers also found statistically significant links with two tests of early literacy development: oral vocabulary and grammatical understanding.”  Results, however, were mixed for music achievement, however.   Students’ median scores were similar for the experimental and control groups on use of singing voice, and while students' tonal pattern achievement in the experimental group was significantly higher, no significant differences were found in children's rhythm-pattern achievement.