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Page: << Prev | 1 | 2 | 3 | Next >> Schellenberg also wanted to separate out the effect on IQ of training in music per se, from that of training in the arts in general. To do this, he provided a third group of 6-year-olds with free, weekly drama classes. A fourth group of 6-year-olds received no classes during the study period.
The children's IQs were tested beforehand using the full Weschler intelligence test, which assesses various aspects of intellectual function in 10 separate areas. All of the children, Schellenberg explained, "came into my lab in the summer before first grade and they had the entire test, which takes about three hours."
Following that initial assessment, the children "went off to first grade and to the four different groups that they were assigned. Then in between first and second grade they came back to the lab and were retested."
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At the time of retesting, all of the students -- even those not enrolled in music or drama classes -- displayed increases in IQ of at least 4.3 points, on average, Schellenberg said. "That's just a common consequence of going to school," he said.
Focusing first on the children taking the drama class, Schellenberg found they "didn't differ [in increased IQ] from those in the no-lessons group." However, kids taking the acting class did tend to score higher on aspects of sociability than other children, probably due to the cooperative nature of putting on a play.
The only added boost to IQ came to kids taught either piano or voice. According to Schellenberg, children in the music groups "had slightly larger increases in IQ than the control groups," averaging 7-point gains in their IQ scores from the previous year -- 2.7 points higher than children placed in either the drama or no-lessons groups.
This increase in IQ is considered small but significant, and was evident across the broad spectrum of intelligence measured by the Weschler test, Schellenberg said.
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