Chemistry to music: Discovering how Music-based Teaching affects academic achievement and student motivation in an 8th grade science class

Teachers should have access to new and innovative tools in order to engage and motivate their students in the classroom. This is especially important as many students view school as an antiquated and dull environment - which they must seemingly suffer through to advance. School need not be a dreaded environment. The use of music as a tool for learning can be employed by any teacher to create an engaging and exciting atmosphere where students actively participate and learn to value their classroom experience. Through this study, a product and process was developed that is now available for any 8th grade science teacher interested in using music to enhance their content. In this study 8th grade students (n=41) in a public school classroom actively interacted with modern songs created to enhance the teaching of chemistry. Data were collected and analyzed in order to determine the effects that the music treatment had on student achievement and motivation, compared to a control group (n=35). Current literature provides a foundation for the benefits for music listening and training, but academic research in the area of using music as a tool for teaching content was noticeably absent. This study identifies a new area of research called "Music-based Teaching" which results in increases in motivation for 8th grade students learning chemistry. The unintended results of the study are additionally significant as the teacher conducting the treatment experienced newfound enthusiasm, passion, and excitement for her profession.