erformance enhancement on standardized tests, such as the SAT, with music students scoring approximately twenty to forty points higher than students with no art or art appreciation studies. Because music is thought of as such an enjoyable activity, students that are involved are less likely to drop out of school than if they were not involved in it at all(Russell). Music skills that are taught at pre-adolescent ages can enhance abstract reasoning skills that are used for math and science more so than computers can, making music the seemingly logical choice. Fractions tend to be difficult for children to learn quickly, and through the study of music they are taught by using a hands-on approach that incorporates using the time and rhythms of the music. Knowing that they have the ability to accomplish certain things gives these students the skills and motivation that they need to succeed in the "real world." According to the National Association for Music Education (MENC), music gives children the necessary ability to think clearly, study effectively, and communicate(MENC). The statistics from a 1999 study show that music students receive more honors and awards, more "As and Bs" in their classes, and hold more class offices than the other students in the schools(MENC 1999).Other statistics reveal that while 12.14 percent of the students in the total population of a school that remained nameless in the study are labeled as disruptive, only 8.08 percent of the music students in this same school received this label(MENC). It has been said that music "has an impact on all levels of education"(Russell). To prove this point, someone once said, "(sic)Musical training increases speech fluency; folk songs improve a students general knowledge of history and geography; rhythm training abets the development of math skills; and the learning of new melodies builds the memory" (Nikiforuk).The last argument that is to be presented is the argument ...
