One of America’s favorite pastimes is listening to music. For many, riding in a car, means listening to the radio. People want to listen to music everywhere, so why should their free time at school be different? Sometimes, it helps people concentrate and shuts out the distractions of the people around them when they’re working
However, this is not an opinion held by many school administrators, who ban music devices. We should be able to bring CD, tape, or MP3 players to listen to at school.
Many schools would disallow this activity because it is “disruptive.” For example, if a student brings portable speakers so everybody can listen, it could make a lot of noise, and many might not like the style of music. On the contrary, it is does not have to be disruptive at all. If one uses the music player to just play music during free time, such as recess, there should be no problem. Also, when one uses earphones, no sound will issue out, therefore it would disturb no one. Listening to music this way provides enjoyment, and will offend nobody.
Another reason music devices are banned is because the school would be blamed if a student lost his or her music device. To avoid this liability, for many schools it is easier to just ban music devices. However, by being careful, this problem could easily be avoided. The student could keep his CD player or MP3 player in a locked locker, and then take it home at the end of the day. This would be no problem at the school, and even if a music device was lost, surely no parents would complain to the school because it is the child’s responsibility to take care of it.
The Dissertation on Music School Drop Outs
Three of the four highest rated possible reasons for student dropout essentially support findings of previous research; "loss of interest," "scheduling conflicts," and "lack of parental support" apparently are perceived as continuing problems with respect to loss of students in instrumental music programs. However, the reason perceived by directors as the major contributor to student dropout, ...
Listening to music devices at school has positive elements as well. For example, when doing math homework, writing papers, or doing anything that does not involve working with others, listening to music will shut out all the distractions of the other students. Most of the time, in classrooms, there is always one class clown that will make tons of noise and disrupt others. When listening to music, the sound will block out distractions, and consequently, will make the student work more efficiently.
Imagine a classroom where every child is quiet. The teacher sits at desk, grading papers and smiling. “The children are working diligently and being quiet!” she fawns. Every child is wearing earphones and listening to their favorite music. This could happen if school administrators realized that listening to music is not disruptive, is not a liability to the school, and helps people concentrate.
