The Effect of Classical Music on Exam Scores

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Taking tests in the academic environment has been the mainstay for evaluating student’s comprehension and mastery of concepts learned. Although this can reflect an accurate depiction of their retained knowledge, many factors may affect the recollection of tested material. Students of all ages can experience a certain level of stress when entering the testing environment, which may have a negative impact on their ability to recall information. This stress may reflect an inaccuracy of what they recalled. Countless factors have been shown to impact test taking ability including environmental noise or lack thereof, anxiety, and self-confidence. These factors affect the students’ ability to concentrate and recall learned information leading to poor test scores. This often results in the necessity to repeat courses, grade levels, decreasing further self-confidence, and social stigma.

Utilizing background music has long been studied as a factor to calm the mind and improve performance within the testing environment. Yahaya (2008) proposed the existence of a link between a students’ improvement in reasoning and visualization in the presence of background music. He stated the brain develops from stimulation of their senses by music. It has been suggested that classical music, due to its soothing tones and slow-tempo, results in relaxation and increased ability to focus on a given task. Utilizing music in the testing environment may result in a more accurate reflection of cognitive ability and enhanced performance on testing results (Saunderson, 2013). This study will focus on the potential benefit of classical background music upon a students’ ability to perform multidisciplinary reasoning.

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Science and technology knowledge quiz results. (2013, April 22). Retrieved from http://www.pewresearch.org/quiz/science-knowledge/

Test anxiety. 2014. In Free Dictionary.com Retrieved March 8, 2014, from http://encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/Test+Anxiety

Thompson, W. F., Schellenberg, E. G., & Letnic, A. K. (2011). Fast and loud background music disrupts reading comprehension. Psychology of Music, 1-9. doi: 10.1177/0305735611400173

White Noise/ 2014. In Oxford-Dictionaries.com. Retrieved March 8, 2014, from http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/classical-music.

Yahaya, A. (2008). The role of music and young children: The brain development. Retrieved from http://eprints.utm.my/6133/1/Aziziyah_music_.pdf

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