Every college student strives to find the best method for them to concentrate and study. Some focus on the location of studying, like a quiet library, or a little private nook. But studies have shown that a major factor in concentration and focus during studying is music.
Music can be a distraction to some, but the right kind of music can help you relax. Music with a high tempo and words often clouds the brain, and makes it hard to retain information being read. Music that has 60 beats-per-minute puts the brain in a “bright and breezy” frame of mind. In this state your thinking and creativity are said to be easier. Classical music ,such as Mozart, are in this category.
The Center for New Discoveries in Learning is an organization that has been researching and performing studies to try to find ways to help kids excel in their schoolwork. They conducted an observational study by having students listen to classical music by Mozart (with 60 beats-per-minute) while doing homework. The students reported feeling calmer while studying, having the ability to study longer, and having a higher retention rate.
But if classical music is not your thing, there are other types of music that can increase your concentration level as well. Low-key sounds from nature (such as waterfalls, rain, ocean waves) also keep your brain engaged at a lower, subconscious level.
So if you want to increase your level of focus and concentration during study sessions, give listening to some classical music a go!
Resources:
http://uncc49er.com/622/music-can-help-you-study/
Trying to figure out which strategies are going to help me study the best, this article was definitely one that caught my eye. I’ve always hear that Mozart helped kids learn better but have never seen the scientific numbers of 60 beats-per-minute freeing up the mind. I was trying to study while listening to Wiz Khalifa the other day and found myself signing along in my head more than studying so I already stopped doing that. Challenging your reports of 60 beats-per-minute freeing up the mind, I tried to find another article where it agreed with that claim. Unfortunately I was unable to find one that matched up with those facts making me wonder if that really is true or not. However, on a lighter note, I did find several articles where experiments were done based on students testing with and without Mozart playing. The ones who were listening did intact do better so if it worked for them, it might be worth a try for me. I posted the link below to one of the articles confirming this with a study.
http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20130107-can-mozart-boost-brainpower
I love listening to music whenever I do homework. However, I’m the type of person who like to kind of “jam out” whenever I listen to music which tends to be a little distracting. I find that in my own personal experience listening to music only helps me whenever I have a project or some sort of creative assignment. Listening to music allows me to sing and be comfortable and allows my creative side to flow. However if I need to study or focus on something particular, music or any background noise tends to distract me. But then again, too much silence seems to be more distracting than music sometimes. I guess it depends on the person and what works best for them.
As studies like show, studying while listening to music has little to no effect on the ability to preform during a test, and that music with lyrics tends to be more distracting than helpful. Classical music, like Mozart, however is less distracting, but does not stimulate better studying/memorizing, although it really depends on the person, and if they can study efficiently while having “background noise”.
That’s interesting– i love listening to music all the time so I struggle to find music that isn’t distracting. I’ve heard about and tried the classical route, but I just never really thought it worked for me–I’ve found that I prefer soundtracks or instrumentals (anything without lyrics) if I’m going to listen to music that i normally don’t listen too. I actually read an article (http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2014/08/28/music-helps-you-focus-on-your-own-thoughts-but-only-if-you-like-it/) few weeks ago that says that it’s not so much the type of music in general, but what you prefer that puts you in the right state of mind, which i think is true for me. You?