Studying with music

[Hoya11]

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I always see people buried in their books with headphones on and I always wondered how they kept their attention on the book and not on the music, but now that I am coming up on the end of my first year I feel like studying in silence all day is just killing me.. I have been listening to music inbetween chapters and stuff, is it possible to listen AND study?

 

[cooldreams]

i find it easily possible to perform mind numbing repetition while listening to music, but to try to study and retain knowledge, i would say it will hinder your progress... there have also been studies to this effect...

 

[Law2Doc]

i find it easily possible to perform mind numbing repetition while listening to music, but to try to study and retain knowledge, i would say it will hinder your progress... there have also been studies to this effect...

I was going to say this as well. While some people are probably gifted enough multi-taskers that they can enjoy music and learn, a large number of psychology papers have been published on this topic, and have determined that people who study to music retain less info, on average.

 

[Sweet Tea]

for me, it depends on the music. i tend to fall asleep without music, but i can't study to just any music. it really depends on my mood. what works one day, won't work the next. But I definetly need music.

 

[Doc Ivy]

Personally, I like to study to instrumental Jazz, I like it so it keeps me awake, but it doesn't have words so I can't rock out and start singing instead of studying. If you like classical, which I do, that might work too, but I find that it makes me sleepy.

 

[felipe5]

yeah, it totally depends for me........some days music does seem to kick in my spontaneous ADD, but sometimes, a nice lyric-less playlist (classical, jazz, etc) goes along nicely with a long day of hittin' the boox

 

[roja]

I can *not* study without music. I would ALWAYS have headphones on.

the music was usually ambient/familiar music that would kind of keep the background of my brain occupied. I am to easily distracted without music.


Everybodies different.

 

[lata]

definitely with music on... i find sometimes that an entire playlist is done and i hadn't been paying attention....

if i don't have the music, then i get distracted... i start thinking of other stuff .. my mind wanders but with music - somehow it doesn't and i can concentrate better. ...
😀

 

[KitesurfDaEarth]

i agree. listening to music gets me into a rhythm and keeps my mind from wandering away. though music selection is absolutely crucial. I can't listen to anything with lyrics (at least english). I like stuff like Sigur Ros, mogwai, mark farina (anything from the mushroom jazz series) and anything from the chill-out genre of electronic music.

 

[thackl]

definitely with music on... i find sometimes that an entire playlist is done and i hadn't been paying attention....

if i don't have the music, then i get distracted... i start thinking of other stuff .. my mind wanders but with music - somehow it doesn't and i can concentrate better. ...
😀

I think it's called tunnel vision. With regular background noise (music, coffe shop, etc) I can "tunnel out" and be super effective. When it's too quiet I notice every little thing going on and don't focus as well.

 

[Sweet Tea]

I think it's called tunnel vision. With regular background noise (music, coffe shop, etc) I can "tunnel out" and be super effective. When it's too quiet I notice every little thing going on and don't focus as well.

that sounds about right. the library=instant nap for me, but i do really well in coffee shops and/or with music. helps me focus.

 

[Discobolus]

I've found that this CD has a pretty profound effect on my ability to focus on what I'm reading.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/A...60473/sr=11-1/ref=sr_11_1/102-6618095-3193723

 

[Elysium]

I totally need music to study. I can also study in Starbucks, Barnes and Noble, etc. For some reason, having too much quiet drives me bonkers. However, when I come down to crunch time memorization I do need to have quiet. I've found that trying to study while listening to talk radio ("Loveline", Stern) is impossible because I get too distracted.

 

[erin682]

Try studying with instrumental music that way you won't get as distracted by the lyrics.

Discobolus, does that learning enhancement CD really work. What type of music is it? It is worth $17? Just curious, I need all the help I can get.

 

[typeB-md]

i like thrash metal when i study... also TOOL is very ambient and nice. Whatever music you like to listen to, try studing with that, but make sure it's something with a somewhat up-beat timing, otherwise it might make you tired. dunno, everyone has their own method.

 

[10minutes]

Musics don't do it for me. I need an ABSOLUTE quietness. Thank you.

 

[Blake]

I can study with both options. I listen to music when reading non-important stuff or stuff that I don't need to memorize. When it's time to remember little details, then the music if off.

 

[tigershark]

I wear headphones when I dont want to be bothered. Maybe some of the people you see arent really listening to music.

 

[s137mack]

I listen to music occasionally as well as a change of pace. I have to listen to CDs that I don't know the lyrics to. 🙂

 

[Hoya11]

i couldnt do it at the same time
i can never do anything i enjoy doing at the same time as studying it is a soul stealer, peace

 

[goldie]

When I was in post-bacc, I found Mozart good for studying-for-memorization (studies show his music makes you smarter....I believe it's something to do with the perfection and resolution of his writing), and when it came to problem sets, punk rock did it for me. Especially Husker Du's "Zen Arcade". I'm in third year now, and don't get much time for tunes, but lately The Shins and the new Interpol record have caught my attention.