How to Learn 60 Percent More in the Same Amount of Time: Turn Off Your Music
Not that you probably need science to tell you this, but music is amazing. Listening to your favorite tunes not only makes you happier and more creative, but even healthier (and if you’re into uplifting anthems, nicer too). Playing music at home is correlated with more laughter and more sex. Studying an instrument seems to help kids be more successful.
Which is all a long-winded way of saying that music makes life better. But according to research there’s at least one exception, a time when many of us pop on our headphones but really shouldn’t. Science is clear that whether you’re studying for an exam or trying to digest important information for work, you’ll learn more, faster if you study in silence.
Why studying to music is a bad idea.
Trying to cram facts in your head can be, frankly, pretty boring, which is why so many of us try to liven up the experience with a little music. But as I recently learned when I came across a series of UK Guardian articles on the science of learning for teachers, your favorite study music might be slowing down your learning.
The article explains recent British research that asked volunteers to study for a reading comprehension test either in silence, listening to pleasant pop…
