International Journal of Arts & Sciences,

CD-ROM. ISSN: 1944-6934 :: 09(01):297–312 (2016)

THE INFLUENCE OF CLASSICAL MUSIC ON THE CONCENTRATION

AND PERFORMANCE LEVELS OF STUDENTS WITH MILD INTELLECTUEL DISABILITY

Badrie  Mohammad Nour ElDaou  and Mira Hassaniyyeh

Lebanese University, Lebanon 

This study aimed at examining the effectiveness of listening to classical music on the performance and concentration level of students with mild intellectual disability. Two  groups (experimental and control) were composed of four students aged between 8 and 12 years of individuals with mild intellectual disability, were  selected for this study from a nonprofit Lebanese organization for mild intellectual disability. The experimental group listened half an hour per day for 54 days (a total of 27 hours) to a Mozart classical music with a regular rhythm and a control group did not listen to music. Pre-post concentration levels were measured for both groups using   Connor's Teachers’ Rating sub-scale.  Also, patterns completion tasks were used to measure pre/ post students’ activities performance level. Findings showed that there were statistically significant differences between the 2 measurement pre and post in terms of lack of concentration rate by 3 Connors' Teachers Rating sub scale on the benefit of the experimental group.  In fact, statistical results revealed that the concentration   was improved in 15% (23.75) and the performance levels of the experimental group are better than the control group (32). Also, findings revealed that the Errors rate patterns in the activities of the control group (5.4950) did not show an improvement in performance during classroom activities (only 0.75%) as compared to a decrease in Error rate patterns in the experimental group (1.8325). Future research and recommendations were discussed.

Keywords: Classical music, Concentration, Intellectual disability.

Introduction

Many people with intellectual disability have problems in concentration and academic performance. Music Therapy is one of many therapies that have been introduced to deal with academic and concentration needs. Aldridge (1996; as cited by Coyle, 2011) says that music engages the central coordination of body movement by mimicking its dynamics. Intellectual Disability will be described and classified. The term intellectual disability refers to individuals who are diagnosed as having impairments in intellectual functioning (World Health Organization 2001; as cited by Coyle, 2011). Such people often need extra care and support from a wide range of health care services. Intellectual Disability can be related with a number of genetic or inherited conditions. Such conditions include Autism, Down syndrome and Prader Willi syndrome. All people with intellectual disability can learn and develop. There are many services available to support and help people with disabilities and their family (Coyle, 2001).

Coyle (2001) stated that music therapy for persons with intellectual disability improves social and emotional behavior, facilitates acquisition of motor skills, improves speech and language development,

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increases attention span, and offers an appropriate leisure activity. For children especially, music therapy can be a fun way to promote pre-academic and academic skills.  In addition, music therapy interventions include rhythmic auditory stimulation, therapeutic instrumental musical performance and patterned sensory enhancement for the acquisition of motor skills, improvisation (vocal and instrumental) to improve emotional and social behavior, melodic intonation therapy, oral-motor respiratory exercises, developmental speech and language training through music, rhythmic speech cuing and musical stimulation of speech to improve language development, musical attention control training to increase attention, and songs and musical activities to assist children in meeting pre-academic and academic goals. Coyle (2001) pointed that Music Therapy With Melody is happy to coordinate with and participate in individualized Family Service Plans (IFSP’s) and Individualized Educational Plans (IEP’s) for clients and will formulate goals according to the Special Education Administrators of County Offices (SEACO, California only) if appropriate.

Recent advances in the study of the brain have enabled us to enhance our understanding of the way that active engagement with music influences other development. Although our knowledge of the way the brain works is still in its infancy some of the fundamental processes involved in learning have been established. The human brain contains approximately 100 billion neurons a considerable proportion of which are active simultaneously. Information processing is undertaken largely through interactions between them, each having approximately a thousand connections with other neurons. According to Fields (2005), when we learn there are changes in the growth of axons and dendrites and the number of synapses connecting neurons, a process known as synaptogenesis. When an event is important enough or is repeated sufficiently often synapses and neurons fire repeatedly indicating that this event is worth remembering. In this way changes in the efficacy of existing connections are made. Pantev et al (2003) stated that as learning continues and particular activities are engaged with over time myelination takes place. This involves an increase in the coating of the axon of each neuron which improves insulation and makes the established connections more efficient. Pruning also occurs, a process which reduces the number of synaptic connections, enabling fine-tuning of functioning. Through combinations of these processes, which occur over different time scales, the cerebral cortex self-organizes in response to external stimuli and the individual’s learning activities. 

Schlaug et al. (1995) assured that extensive active engagement with music induces cortical reorganization producing functional changes in how the brain processes information. If this occurs early in development the alterations may become hard-wired and produce permanent changes in the way information is processed. Permanent and substantial reorganization of brain functioning takes considerable time. Long years of active engagement with particular musical activities in Western classical musicians are associated with an increase in neuronal representation specific for the processing of the tones of the musical scale, the largest cortical representations being found in musicians playing instruments for the longest periods of time (Pantev et al., 2003).  In addition, (Munte et al., 2003) stated that changes are also specific to the particular musical learning undertaken. Also, he said that processing of pitch in string players is characterized by longer surveillance and more frontally distributed eventrelated brain potentials attention. Drummers generate more complex memory traces of the temporal organization of musical sequences and conductors demonstrate greater surveillance of auditory space. Compared with non-musicians, string players have greater somatosensory representations of finger activity, the amount of increase depending on the age of starting to play (Pantev et al., 2003).  According to Altenmuller et al. (1997), the brain develops in very specific ways in response to particular learning activities and the extent of change depends on the length of time engaged with learning. The extent of musical engagement and its nature will be important factors in the extent to which transfer can occur to non-musical activities. 

Altenmuller et al. (1997) reported that the ways that we learn are also reflected in specific brain activity. When students (aged 13-15) were taught to judge symmetrically structured musical phrases as balanced or unbalanced using traditional instructions about the differences (including verbal explanations, visual aids, notation, verbal rules, playing of musical examples), or participating in musical experiences (singing, playing, improvising or performing examples from the musical literature), activity in different brain areas was observed . The tools and practices utilized to support the acquisition of particular musical skills have a direct influence on brain development and preferred approaches to undertaking musical tasks, also influencing approaches to tasks outside music. Musicians with similar observable skills may have developed different approaches to developing them which may or may not facilitate transfer to other tasks.  In fact, each individual has a specific ‘learning biography’ which is reflected in the way the brain processes information (Altenmuller, 2003:349). As individuals engage with different musical activities over long periods of time permanent changes occur in the brain. These changes reflect what has been learned and how it has been learned. They will also influence the extent to which developed skills are able to transfer to other activities.

The transfer of learning from one domain to another depends on the similarities between the processes involved. Transfer between tasks is a function of the degree to which the tasks share cognitive processes. Transfer can be near or far and is stronger and more likely to occur if it is near. Salomon and Perkins (1989) refer to low and high road transfer. Schellenberg, 2003; Norton et al.( 2005) mentioned that low road transfer depends on automated skills and is relatively spontaneous and automatic, for instance, processing of music and language, using the same skills to read different pieces of music or text. High road transfer requires reflection and conscious processing, for instance, adopting similar skills in solving very different kinds of problems. Some musical skills are more likely to transfer than others.  They added that the musical skills more likely to transfer are those concerned with perceptual processing of sound (temporal, pitch, and rule governed grouping information), fine motor skills, emotional sensitivity, conceptions of relationships between written materials and sound (reading music and text), and memorization of extended information (music and text) (Schellenberg, 2003; Norton et al., 2005). 

The aim of this paper is to examine the the transfer can occur in relation to the skills developed through listening to classical music and how they may impact on the performance of activities pattern, and concentration level of students with mild intellectual disability. The paper synthesizes indicative research findings and considers the implications for education.

Literature Review

Music therapy is considered a related service modality in special education (IDEA, 1997).   According to Sze and Yu (2004), music therapy can play an important role in special education because many students with disabilities need special instructional treatment. As stated by Sze and Yu (2004), music is an ancient method for healing since it neutralizes negative feelings, increases stress tolerance level and harmonizes inner peace. The use of music therapy can help people who are crippled by varies cognitive and biopsychosocial problems. It can also help to improve the quality of life for people with disabilities of various kinds. The IDEA (Individual with Disabilities Act) requires schools to provide related services and equipment for a student with a disability to ensure a “free and appropriate” public education. The reauthorization of IDEA (1997) mandates related services to be included into the Individual Education Program (IEP). In 2001, with passage of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), the U.S. Department of Education is embracing evidence based research in order to improve the effectiveness of educational intervention and in turn, academic achievement. Regular education and special education teachers are given increased responsibilities for students with disabilities in their classrooms. Recent research indicates that music therapy has a positive impact on students’ cognitive development (Sze and Yu, 2004).

During the past decade, there has been a steady growth in the research base on the impact of music to children with disabilities. A vast majority of the research has mainly focused on music and medicine (Pratt, 1991; Chaquico, 1995; & Weinberger, 2000), music therapy (Pelliten, 2000), music as the basis for learning (Collett, 1992), usefulness of expressive arts (Dixon & Chalmers, 1990), usefulness of music to treat students with emotional and behavioral disorders (Houchens, 1983; Shennum, 1987; Gfeller, 1989, & King, 1994). Staum, n.d.; & Stambough (1996) reported that very few studies provided a comprehensive view of some disability categories such as autism, intellectual disability, attention deficit disorders (ADHD), learning disabilities (LD) and physical and other health impairments (POHI). The current review builds on previous efforts to examine the role of music in children’s intellectual development and general achievement. Also, to consider important studies related to Mozart effect, mainly, the effects of music on spatial reasoning. 

Enhancement of Cognitive Task Performance

There is a number of studies that looked into the effect of specific forms of music on aspects of intelligence, in particular spatial reasoning. This has become well known as the so called Mozart effect. The Mozart effect refers to the phenomenon that people’s spatial reasoning enhances after listening to music of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

Rauscher, Shaw & Ky documented the Mozart effect in 1993. They conducted an experiment with 36 college students whereby a possible causality between music cognition and spatial reasoning performance was investigated. Students were assigned to 3 music conditions: 1) listening to a Sonata for 2 pianos in D major of W.A. Mozart (KV 448); 2) listening to relax instructions; and 3) silence. Each of the listening conditions lasted for 10 minutes. All students took part in each condition. The students were tested after each condition with a Stanford-Binet- Intelligence scale. Translated to spatial IQ, the results after listening to the piano Sonata were 119, 111 after relaxation and 110 after silence. Rauscher et al. (1993) found a remarkable and significant difference between the music condition and the other 2 conditions.

Furthermore, McKelvie and Low (2002) investigated the Mozart effect as documented by Rauscher, Shaw en Ky (1993) with 55 school-aged children between 11 and 13 years. Because music that sounds like the piano sonata of Mozart tended to reproduce the Mozart-effect. McKelvie and Low chose to use a completely different kind of music as a stimulus next to the music of W.A. Mozart, namely dance music of the band Aqua. The participating children were directed to 4 groups that were tested in 4 sessions. The groups were exposed to Mozart’s music, or the music of Aqua as a music condition. There was no significant main effect of music and no significant difference between the pretest and post-test scores for both groups. Owing to the non-significant findings, a second experiment was carried out. The researchers used a methodology that had previously replicated the Mozart effect. Again, the second experiment did not support the claim that Mozart’s music can enhance spatial performance. Groups performed similarly on the control test and the experimental test, irrespective of whether they listened to Mozart or to popular dance music. Although the two different designs produced similar findings, the data suggest that the Mozart effect is so ephemeral that McKelvie and Low (2002) question whether any practical application will come from it. Also Ivanov and Geake (2003) tried to reproduce the Mozart-effect. Except for the reproduction of the effect, the researchers wanted to know if the Mozart effect could only be produced if children listened to music of W.A. Mozart. The 76 participants cooperating in this study were assigned to 3 conditions. In the first condition the participants listened to the Sonata in D, KV448 of W.A. Mozart. The second condition consisted of listening to a piano version of the Toccata in G major, BWV 916 of J.S. Bach. The third condition implied listening to background noise. This latter was the control group. Both the participating children from the first and the second condition performed significantly better than the children in the control group. The researchers believed that this study is the first study to find a Mozart effect for school children in a natural setting, in contrast to the original study of Rauscher, Shaw and Ky (1993) who examined the effects of listening to W.A. Mozart on the spatial task performance of university students in a laboratory setting. They also concluded that the Mozart effect is not only provoked by music of Mozart, but also by music of other composers.

Another study was reported by Schellenberg, Nakata, Hunter & Tomoto (2007).  They conducted two experiments with regard to the Mozart effect on cognitive abilities. The first of the two studies was conducted with subjects between 18 and 23 years old and thus is beyond the scope of this review. The second experiment was conducted with 39 Japanese children at the age of 5 years old. They were tested on their creative abilities after exposure to music of Mozart, Albinoni or well-known children’s music

(listening or singing). Schellenberg et al. (2007) concluded from their study that the children exposed to well-known children’s songs showed a longer enhancement compared with T0 than children who had been children drawing after listening to music of Mozart or Albinoni. Their drawings were also considered more creative, energetic and technically driven, by adults, after listening or singing. The results didn’t show significant differences between listening to well-known children’s songs and the singing of these songs. Both ways were effective in enhancing the creativity of young children. Schellenberg et al. (2007) concluded that the results indicated that 1) exposure to different types of music can enhance performance on a variety of cognitive tests; 2) these effects were mediated by changes in emotional state, and 3) the effects generalize across cultures and age groups.

The above cited studies studied the enhancement of cognitive task performance, specifically related to the so called Mozart effect. The next four studies also investigated the enhancement of cognitive task performance, however regardless of the Mozart effect (Costa-Giomi 1999; Eastlund Gromko & Smith Poorman, 1998; Koutsoupidou & Hargreaves, 2009; Schellenberg, 2004). 

Eastlund Gromko & Smith Poorman (1998; as cited by   Michel, Bert van, & René, 2014). investigated the effect of music training on preschoolers’ performance IQ. The experimental group received weekly music training during 6 months time. The children, all preschoolers from a private Montessori school that were in the experimental group received a 20-note set of songbells to keep at home for practice. Each week, children took a practice plan home, so parents could guide their children’s practice. Every child received a tape of songs, to be played and sung between the music sessions. A new song was presented in each session. The sessions were designed to involve the children’s motor system in response to musical sound, to draw their attention to pitch and rhythmic aspects of songs, and to increase their memory for musical sound. Therefore, children sang the new song several times; accompanied their singing with body percussion; took turns playing a simplified version of the song on songbells or hand chimes; made a picture of the song using round stickers on a paper; and followed a tactile touch chart that outlined the contour of the song. In addition two familiar songs were danced and sung. Regression of IQ gain scores on age showed significantly less gain for older children in the control group. A regression analysis showed that the relationship of Performance IQ to age was not significant for the experimental group. Slopes intersected at age 3. For 3-year-olds in this study, an intellectually stimulating environment, per se, results in a gain in ability to perform spatial-temporal tasks.

Costa-Giomi (1999; as cited by   Michel, Bert van, & René, 2014) studied the relationship between music and cognitive abilities by observing the cognitive development of children provided, and not provided individual piano lessons. Each child in the experimental group received, at no cost, three years of piano instruction. The lessons were 30 minutes long during the first two years, and 45 minutes during the third year. It was found that the treatment affected children’s general and spatial cognitive development. The magnitude of such effects (omega squared) was small. Additional analysis showed that although the experimental group obtained higher spatial abilities scores in the Developing Cognitive Abilities Test after one and two years of instruction than did the control group. However, the groups did not differ in general or specific cognitive abilities after three years of instruction. The treatment did not affect the development of quantitative and verbal cognitive abilities.

Schellenberg (2004) conducted a study to test the hypothesis that music makes smarter. A large sample of children was randomly assigned to two types of music lessons (keyboard or voice) or to control groups that received drama lessons or no lessons. The lessons were taught for 36 weeks at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto. Qualified instructors, in groups of six children, gave the lessons. IQ was measured before and after the series of lessons. Compared with children in the control groups, children in the music groups exhibited greater increases in full-scale IQ. The effect was relatively small, but it generalized across IQ subtests, index scores, and a standardized measure of academic achievement. Unexpectedly, children in the drama group exhibited substantial pre- to post - test improvements in adaptive social behavior that were not evident in the music groups.

Michel, Bert van, & René (2014) mentioned a study conducted by Koutsoupidou & Hargreaves (2009) with regard to the enhancement of cognitive task performance. Koutsoupidou & Hargreaves (2009) investigated the effects of improvisation on the development of children’s creative thinking in music. The study was conducted in a primary school classroom with two matched groups of 6-year-old children over a period of six months. The music lessons for the experimental group were enriched with a variety of improvisatory activities, while those in the control group did not include any improvisation. These lessons were didactic and teacher-centered. Children in the experimental group were offered several opportunities to experience improvisation through voices, their bodies, and musical instruments. Analysis of the data obtained with Webster’s Measure of Creative Thinking in Music – MCTC revealed that improvisation affects significantly the development of creative thinking, in particular musical flexibility, originality, and syntax in children’s music making. 

Also, Hallam (2010) reported a study conducted by Hurwitz et al. (1975) related to the role of music in children’s intellectual development. Hurwitz et al. (1975), assigned first-grade children to one of two groups. An experimental group received Kodaly music lessons for five days each week for seven months, a control group did not. At the end of the study, the experimental group scored significantly higher than the control group on three of five sequencing tasks and four of five spatial tasks. No statistically significant differences were found for verbal measures, although the children in the experimental group had higher reading achievement scores than those in the control group which were maintained after two academic years. 

Moreover, the impact of active engagement with music on spatial reasoning appeared during the 1990s. In this period, there was a resurgence of interest in these issues which had as a particular focus an element of intelligence tests (Hallam, 2010). In a typical study, Rauscher et al. (1997) assigned children from three pre-school groups to music, computer or no-instruction groups. The instruction groups received tuition in keyboard and group singing, group singing alone or computer lessons. Singing was for 30 minutes daily. The children in the keyboard group scored significantly higher in the spatial recognition test. Since then, several studies have confirmed that active engagement with music has an impact on visual-spatial intelligence (Gromko and Poorman, 1998; Bilhartz et al, 2000; Graziano et al., 1999; Orsmond and Miller, 1999; Rauscher and Zupan, 2000; Rauscher, 2002; Costa-Giomi, 1999).  Furthermore, Hetland (2000), reviewed 15 studies and reported a ‘strong and reliable’ relationship and concluded that music instruction leads to dramatic improvements in performance on spatial-temporal measures. She commented on the consistency of the effects and likened them to differences of one inch in height or about 84 points on the SAT (p 221). The consistency of these findings suggests a near transfer, automated effect perhaps related to the skills acquired in learning to read music (Hallam, 2010).

In line with the study of Rauscher et al. (1993), Bilhartz et al. (2000) have focused on more general manifestations of intelligence. They studied the relationship between participation in a structured music curriculum and cognitive development in 4-6 year olds. Half of the children participated in a 30 week 75 minute weekly parent-involved music curriculum. Following this, children (N = 71) were tested with 6 sub-tests of the Stanford-Binet intelligence test and the Young Child Music Skills Assessment test. Finding of their research revealed significant gains for the music group on the music test and the Stanford-Binet Bead Memory subtest.  In addition, Schlaug et al. (2005) Adopted a cross sectional approach to compare 9-11 year old instrumentalists with an average of 4 years training with controls. They showed that the instrumental group performed significantly better than the control group on musical audiation, left hand index finger tapping rate, and the vocabulary subtest of the WISC-III. Strong nonsignificant trends were seen in the phonemic awareness test, Raven’s Progressive Matrices, and the Key Math test. Furthermore,  a study was conducted by Schellenberg (2004) who randomly assigned a large sample of children to four different groups, two of which received music lessons (standard keyboard, Kodaly voice) for a year, the control groups receiving instruction in a non-musical artistic activity (drama) or no lessons. The results of this study underpinned the hypothesis that a significant relation exists between music education at a young age and cognitive development of specific nonmusical skills. Even children in this study who received a minimum music intervention, scored significantly higher than children in the control group on one measurement with regard to abstract reasoning ability, namely de Stanford-Binet Bead Memory subtest. The participants who fully attended the program revealed the biggest improvements. This link between the music intervention and memory (Bead Memory score) was of special importance because this subtest showed both spatial-temporal reasoning abilities and sequencing strategies.  Also, results showed that all four groups exhibited increases in IQ as would be expected over the time period but the music groups had reliably larger increases in full scale IQ with an effect size of .35. Children in the control groups had average increases of 4.3 points while the music groups had increases of 7 points. On all but 2 of the 12 subtests the music group had larger increases than control groups. Catterall and Rauscher (2008) argue that the gains seen in more general IQ are likely to be the result of specific gains in visual-spatial intelligence but there may also be effects related to enhanced development of language and literacy skills. Leng et al. (1990), pointed that both mental processes were speculatively described in terms of neural firing patterns necessary for performing activities, including music. 

A key issue arising from this research is what kinds of musical activity bring about change in particular kinds of intellectual development and why. The research reported above has been based on children’s participation in a variety of musical activities, some offering a broad musical education, others focused more closely on instrumental tuition. To begin to address these questions, Rauscher et al. (2007) explored the impact of different types of musical activity in at risk preschool children. Five groups received piano, singing, rhythm, computer or no instruction for two years. The three music groups scored higher following instruction than the control groups on mental imagery tasks but the scores of the rhythm group were significantly higher than all other groups on tasks requiring temporal cognition and mathematical ability. The findings from this study suggest that it is rhythmic training which is important for the development of temporal cognition and mathematics, while developing enhanced perceptual skills in relation to pitch and melody supports language development, although rhythm emerges as important in relation to literacy. Overall, taking these findings together it would appear that active engagement with making music can have an impact on intellectual development. 

General Attainment 

According to Hallam (2010), most of the research examining the relationship between general achievement and active engagement with music has been based on correlations. She stated that evidence from the USA has shown that students who participate in music education do better than their peers on many measures of academic achievement. Using data relating to over 13,000 students from the National Centre for Educational Statistics, Morrison (1994) reported that high school students who participated in music reported higher grades in English, math, history, and science than those who did not participate. Johnson and Memmott (2006) studied 4,739 elementary and middle school students in 4 regions of the USA and revealed a strong relationship between elementary (3rd and 4th grade) students’ academic achievement as measured by test scores and their participation in high-quality music programmes. Trent (1996) and Caradrelli (2003) found Similar effects, although Schneider and Klotz (2000) comparing enrolment in music performance classes or athletic extracurricular activities and academic achievement found that all groups were equivalent in the 5th and 6th grade but during the 7th, 8th and 9th grades the musicians achieved significantly higher academic achievement scores than the athletes but not than the non-participant controls. Several literature reviews support the overall trend of these findings (see ArnettGary, 1998; Shobo, 2001; Yoon, 2000) and Hodges and O’Connell (2007) further point out that being excused from non-music classes to attend instrumental lessons does not adversely affect academic performance. 

One of the difficulties with this research, however, is that participating in musical activities may be related to other factors which promote academic attainment, for instance, having supportive parents and a home environment conducive to studying. A recent study, adopting more complex and sensitive statistical modelling using national data sets was conducted by Southgate and Roscigno (2009).This study was able to overcome the difficulties experienced by early correlational studies. Three measures of music participation were used: in school, outside school and parental involvement in the form of concert attendance. Two nationally representative data sources ECLS-K (20,000 US kindergarten students) and

NELS: 88 (25,000 adolescents) were used. Music involvement was found to vary systematically by class and gender status, and such involvement had implications for both mathematics and reading achievement and for young children and adolescents. However, associations between music and achievement persisted even when prior achievement was taken into account. There was evidence of social class variation in within-school music involvement in adolescents but not in early childhood, while the effects of class on parental music involvement were strong and consistent in both samples. Southgate and Roscigno (2009) suggested that this was likely to be related to resource issues. As a mediator of educational outcomes music involvement was significant for both mathematics and reading achievement. It generally increased achievement levels although gains were not distributed equally among all students, a white student advantage existed. This may relate to the type of musical activity engaged in and the opportunities afforded the students for performance which may contribute to enhanced self-esteem and increased motivation. 

Of the experimental studies that have been carried out on the effects of participation in music on general attainment, two indicated a positive effect (Barr et al., 2002; Hoffman, 1995), while Hines (2000), studying students with learning difficulties from kindergarten through to 9th grade found neither reading or mathematics achievement were affected by type of music instruction, motoric or non-motoric. Legette (1993) also found no effect of music instruction. 

Overall academic attainment depends on the development of literacy and numeracy skills which have been discussed earlier. Motivation is also crucial in how well children perform at school. Motivation is closely linked to self-perceptions of ability, self-efficacy and aspirations (Hallam, 2005). If active engagement with music increases positive perceptions of self, this may transfer to other areas of study and increase motivation to persist. This may account for some of the conflicting evidence relating to general attainment.

However, Abikoff, Courtney, Szeibel & Koplewicz (1996) studied the effect of listening to the favorite music of children on their academic performance. They studied this on children with attentiondeficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD, N = 40). The tests were taken under experimental conditions: 1) 10 minutes music; 2) 10 minutes background speech; and 3) 10 minutes of silence.The results showed that children with ADHD who listened to music during the first condition had twice as many correct answers as compared to children with ADHD who listened to music as a second or third condition. It can be concluded that music has a significant positive effect on the academic performance for children with

ADHD.

In sum, Michel, Bert van, & René (2014) mentioned that in almost all studies reviewed that focus on cognitive functioning, the positive effects of music exposure and music education either appeared to be short-lived or no follow-up data on the sustainability of effects were available. There is only one study (Bastian, 2002) that indicates long-term effects. Overall, with an exception for the studies on the Mozarteffect, the studies reviewed differ widely in terms of design, music intervention and measures applied. Besides the samples used are generally small. Additionally, the wide diversity of music interventions used, is problematic (Michel, Bert van, & René, 2014). The review shows that there are almost as many types of music interventions as there are studies. Consequently, there is little standardization. Furthermore written manuals for their implementation are virtually absent. This in and by itself makes it virtually impossible to identify effective ingredients or components of music interventions as well as doseresponse relationships. As a result, proper replication, with an exception for the Mozart-effect, is absent. Accordingly, any conclusions regarding robust effects of music exposure and education on cognitive, are premature. This does not mean that no such effects exist, but the present state of research has not been able yet to identify such effects in a reliable, valid and sustainable manner (Michel, Bert van, & René, 2014). One of the reasons for this state of affairs might be that the world of music educators and the world of rigorous scientific research have not combined forces enough and where they have, not profoundly enough. Such despite the fact that, as Levitin (2006) shows so eloquently in his treatise “This is your brain on music”, music evolved in human’s evolutionary history because it promotes cognitive development. Or to put it differently, the function of music for the child brain is that it prepares the brain for a number of cognitive and social activities (Cosmides & Tooby, 1989). Apparently, until now we have

not been able to answer that essential question regarding music education, namely; “What does to Whom or What Where When How and Why?”

Statement of the Problem

In light of the above mentioned debates related to the short-lived or no follow-up data on the sustainability of the positive effects of music exposure and music education on cognitive functioning were available, the current study focuses on the following questions in order to answer the positive effect of classical music on the concentration and performance level of individuals with intellectual disability. Therefore, the problem of the study revolved around the following question: Dose Classical music can be considered as an effective treatment for individuals with mild intellectual disability to improve their performance and concentration level? 

Consequently, this study is important since it is one of the few experimental studies that address the importance of music in increasing the concentration and performance in individuals with intellectual disabilities through qualitative and quantitative analysis.

Purpose of the Study

The objectives of this study can be summarized as the following: 

  1. To determine the influence of classical music on the level of concentration and performance level among students with mild intellectual disability. 
  2. To identify the role of music therapy in improving the concentration and performance level of the students with mild intellectual disability. 
  3. To examine the effect of music therapy in classroom activities. 
  4. To educate professionals in the education field on the importance of music therapy when dealing with students with intellectual disabilities as a means for concentration. 
  5. To suggest some recommendations for educators regarding music intervention in special education domain.

Hypotheses

Based on the above cited problem, the hypotheses of the study are:

  1. The students with mild intellectual disability who listen to classical music (The experimental group) will have a better concentration level than those who did not listen (the control group).
  2. There are significant differences pre and post measurements between the experimental and control groups in the terms of performance and concentration level in classroom activities.

Variables

  1. Independent variable:  Mozart Classical music therapy 
  2. Dependent variable:  The students’ concentration level as measured by  the translated  Arabic version of Conner’s  Teachers Rating Scale (CTRS-L) ,the performance level as measured by students’ classroom activities in the form of pattern completion tasks.
  3. Intervening Variables:  the following can be considered as variables that might interfere with the results:

 The diversity of music for pupils 

 The status of student when listening to music.

 Reinforcement (type, frequency).

Method

An experimental design was conducted to treat 4 students with intellectual disability with Mozart classical music in the years 2012-2013 for 54 days, half an hour per day, and a total of 27 treatment hours.

1.    Participants demography

Subjects were eight students (4 males and 4 females) with mild intellectual disability, aged between 8 and 12 years enrolled in special education center in Lebanon. Participants were chosen from a special education center schools in AL- Meshrif, Lebanon. All students have similar IQ average, and struggle to stay focused and attentive in class. Using CTRS -L scores prior of the intervention, all students were found to have same level of severity (percentile between 65 and 80) which is slightly atypical. Also, performance level was measured using pattern completion activities.

2. Training

Students were divided into two groups: experimental and control group, each group consists of four students. The experimental group listened to music in the morning through a treatment program based on the Mozart classical music with a regular rhythm and a control group (did not listen to music).  Pre-test ( 10 days period ) and post- tests (10 days period ) were performed using the translated version of sub- Connor’s Teachers Rating Scale (CTRS-L) oriented for teachers to measure the concentration and performance levels of both groups. The program extended 54 days during the academic year 2013-2014. The total duration of therapy is 27hours (the actual duration is half an hour per day).

3. Tools

The trainer used the translated Arabic version of CTRS: R-L, a stereo, speakers, CD related to Mozart classical, music therapy program returning to (David & Morris program, 2000), a behavior record sheet, and pattern completion activities.

Results

Table 1. Pre-Post Concentration level

Connor’s scales 

Control group

Experimental group

Pre-test 

1.02

1.5425

Post-test 

0.9375

0.7075

Results in table1 showed that there is a decrease in 8.25% in the behavioral problems in control group who did not listen to classical music as compared to 83.5% in the experimental group. 

Table 2. Pre-Post Connor’s Behavioral Problems 

Connor’s Test

Experimental Group

Control Group

Pre-test

38.75

32.75

Post-test

23.75

32

Results in table 2 showed that there is a decrease in 0.75 % in the Connor’s behavioral problems in control group who did not listen to classical music as compared to 15% in the experimental group. Results in table 2 represent the average of students in the experimental group on the inattention subscale (10 items, 30 is the maximum score) showing a decrease in the average by 15 points as compared to 0.75. The less the score is the less inattentive the student is, thus this decrease is considered and improvement in students’ behavior and a better attention.

Table 3. Pre-Post Pattern Completion Performance Level

 Activities  Rate Errors 

Pre- Music Treatment

Post- Music Treatment

Experimental group

4.1650

1.8325

Control Group

5.5375

5.4950

Results in table 3 and below graph 1 showed that there is a decrease in 0. 5 % in the error scores related to pattern completion tasks in the control group (did not listen to classical music) as compared to 0.5% in the experimental group (underwent music therapy). 

Graph 1. Graphic illustration showing errors rate among students in the experimental  group through patterns activities 

Discussion

1. Investigating the first hypothesis

In the behavior disturbance rate recording, the students with mild intellectual disability who listen to classical music (The experimental group) had a better concentration level than those who did not listen (the control group) since they  exhibited unacceptable behavior at the end of the intervention.  As stated earlier, this has become well known as the so called Mozart effect, which documented and was referred by Shaw & Ky in 1993, to the phenomenon that people’s spatial reasoning enhances after listening to music of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Moreover, Findings can be justified by the fact that the experimental group students revealed a better control of reactions and more focus on task in hand after the intervention as the music therapy releases students from tension and stress, hence they control their actions. In the concentration tasks (such as puzzle) students’ scores revealed a better result in finding the answer in addition to less error recorded for solving the task. As Hannon & Trainor (2007) and Schellenberg & Peretz (2008) claimed that music therapy can account for general associations between concentration and performance skills. One explanation is that music lessons are associated with executive function. Executive function refers to the ability to control consciously the contents of working memory, including the ability to plan and make decisions, to correct errors, to ignore irrelevant or distracting information, to produce novel responses and avoid habitual responses, to cope well in dangerous or difficult situations, and to resist temptation (Norman & Shallice, 2000). The appeal of this explanation is that executive function is correlated with performance on many IQ tests and subtests (e.g., Ardila, Pineda, & Rosselli, 2000; Carlson, Moses, & Breton, 2002; Honwansihkul, Happaney, Lee, & Zelazo, 2005). From this perspective, children with high levels of executive function may be more likely than other children to take music lessons and to succeed at learning to play an instrument proficiently. Music lessons could also be one experience that enhances executive function, which, in turn, affects performance on a wide variety of tests of cognitive and intellectual abilities. Thus first hypothesis was confirmed with the presented sample. 

2. Investigating the second hypothesis

As the concentration skill was tested through the measurement of inattention items in the CTRS: R-L, results revealed a decrease in the total score of these items for the experimental group students (25%). The decrease means a better control of behavior and reactions which is explained by the increase of attention. Focusing on a plan during a puzzle or pattern performance game and evaluating of consequences of a move. This slight improvement justifies a better listening skills to instructions and explanations. Therefore, the second hypothesis is partially validated for the present sample. Findings were in line with other researchers cited earlier in the literature review such as Abikoff, Courtney, Szeibel & Koplewicz (1996) who studied the effect of listening to the favorite music of children on their academic performance, & Hallam (2010). Another explanation could be similar to that stated by Sze and Yu (2004), who considered music as an ancient method for healing since it neutralizes negative feelings, increases stress tolerance level and harmonizes inner peace. Consequently, students in the experimental group were more attentive than those in the control group.

Conclusion

Through the above mentioned results, music therapy helps students with intellectual disability in the experimental group to increase their concentration span and pattern performance skill. It was shown that students in the control group exhibited undesirable and unacceptable behaviors as compared to the experimental group. Hence, it is important for students to listen to classical music because it trains them to stay longer on task, control their actions, and maintain focus. Results also revealed an improvement in the concentration tasks and the pattern performance scores at the end of the intervention. After the

analysis of the results based on self-regulation, decision-making, and attention theories, it was concluded that the hypotheses are proved in the present study according to its chosen sample of students. However, there is difficulty generalizing the results as the sample was not representative.

Implications and Recommendations for Further Research

Special education teachers can use music to alter mood and decrease behavioral problems. Children enjoy listening to music, singing, and humming. Music may effectively enhance the ability to use the executive function. Music can be found in both special education and regular education classrooms. Findings revealed that integrating special education lessons and activities with musical therapy helped to increase students’ concentration and performance. Accordingly, music therapy in the regular classrooms can encourage children to relate and participate in the required activities. 

Based on previously mentioned findings, it was recommended that: x The inclusion of music therapy in the school curriculum for the benefits it has on the skills and mental abilities of the individual with intellectual disability.

x A follow-up study with a larger sample and over a longer duration of time

x More studies about the benefit of music therapy for students with special needs to study its sustainability on their memories and executive functions.

x Free and appropriate public education is for all children important to ensure the reauthorization of IDEA (1997) which mandates related services to be included into the Individual Education Program (IEP).  x To implement helpful requirements stated by the IDEA (Individual with Disabilities Act) to provide schools with related services such as music therapy and equipment for a student with a disability. This issue was also supported by Sze and Yu (2004), who viewed music therapy music therapy as an important means which can play an important role in special education because many students with disabilities need special instructional treatment.

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