The Effects of Background Music on Off-task Behavior of Elementary Students with Special Needs

The Effects of Background Music on Off-task Behavior of Elementary Students with Special Needs
Author: Crystel N. Naja
Publisher:
Total Pages: 246
Release: 2011
Genre: Music, Influence of
ISBN:
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The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of using background music on the concentration and on-task behavior of students with special needs during independent class assignments. A multiple case study approach is used to gather the data for 8 participants having different cases yet all diagnosed having problems with their concentration and attention span. Four instruments are used to collect data from different resources which are student's files and documents, parent questionnaire, student observation checklist, and student interview. Baseline data is collected for 3 consecutive weeks without music followed by an intervention period of another 3 consecutive weeks where music is played in the background. During the time students are working independently, the researcher filled the behavior charts for every student examining the amount of off-task behavior per minute and the behavior manifested when the student stops working. Results demonstrate that the introduction of music in the background has different effects on the off-task behavior of students. Six out of the eight students have a decrease in their off-task behavior during the administration of music, and two students have a negligible to minor increase in their off-task behavior during the administration of music. In general, the intervention shows that the use of music has positive implications for assignment completion rate.

The Effects of Mozart's Background Classical Music on Fourth Grade Students' Mathematics Achievement Scores, Concentration, Mood, and On-task Performance

The Effects of Mozart's Background Classical Music on Fourth Grade Students' Mathematics Achievement Scores, Concentration, Mood, and On-task Performance
Author: Julia Walker Haley
Publisher:
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2012
Genre: Mathematics
ISBN:
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ABSTRACT: The purpose of this quantitative research was to determine whether Mozart's "Sonata for Two Pianos in D Major K.448" (hereafter referred to as "Sonata K.448") had a significant impact on student math achievement scores by comparing the results of the total population of 24 control students who had no music being played in the background and the total population of 38 students who had music played in the background. The findings of the study showed that listening to Mozart was not related to math lab performance, standardized test score performance, or the amount of daily misconduct. In addition, the 6 math lab outcome measures were not related to gains in standardized test score performance. The small sample size of 62 could have led to problems with design, resulting in no effect results.

The Comparison of Three Selected Music/reading Activities on Second-grade Students' Story Comprehension, On-task/off-task Behaviors, and Preferences for the Three Selected Activities

The Comparison of Three Selected Music/reading Activities on Second-grade Students' Story Comprehension, On-task/off-task Behaviors, and Preferences for the Three Selected Activities
Author: Amanda Marie Azan
Publisher:
Total Pages: 100
Release: 2010
Genre:
ISBN:
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ABSTRACT: Research suggests that music is beneficial in teaching both academic and social skills to young children. The purpose of this study was to compare three selected music/reading activities on second-grade students' story comprehension scores, on-task/off-task behaviors, and preferences for the three selected activities. The control condition was reading story with no music (SNM). The two experimental music conditions were: (1) reading story with choral refrain throughout (SCR) and (2) reading story with instrumental accompaniment throughout (SIA). Participants in the study were children (N=38) ages 7-8 years old, enrolled in one of three second-grade classes at a public elementary school in Northern Florida. The order of conditions was counterbalanced among the classes to control for order effects. Each class received one reading activity per week for a total of three consecutive weeks. Following each reading activity, participants were given a 10-question story comprehension test and a preference assessment. Classes were also videotaped for later analyses of on-task and off-task behaviors during each reading activity. Results indicated a significant difference in story comprehension scores among the conditions for Classes B and C. Results indicated no significant difference in story comprehension scores among the conditions for Class A. Further analyses revealed that students in two of the three classes made significantly higher comprehension scores when story reading was paired with the music conditions than the no music condition. Analysis of participants' on-task behaviors revealed the highest percentage of on-task behaviors was during music condition two (story with instrumental accompaniment), followed by music condition one (story with choral refrain). The lowest percentage of on-task behaviors was during the control condition (story with no music). Results also revealed that participants had no significant preferences for the three conditions. These findings suggest that pairing stories with music can be an effective tool in promoting second-grade students' on-task behaviors, and enhancing their story comprehension scores and their preferences for reading activities.