Music Month 2010
Hearing preservation By Melinda Collins
Tinnitus is a hearing deficiency which is usually described as a ringing noise. In some patients however, it takes the form of a high pitched whining, buzzing, hissing, screaming, humming, or whistling sound. However perceived it can’t be enjoyable. And that's just one of the common symptoms of prolonged exposure to sound. Teachers of music are often exposed to high levels of noise in their workplace; it's their job. But there are ways to limit your exposure to noise and, ultimately lessen your chance of developing some form of hearing disability.
Ways of reducing exposure • Suitable rooms - ensure teaching rooms are assessed as suitable for the purpose. The size of teaching rooms is important as it is likely that teaching in a small room will result in higher exposure levels than those in a larger auditorium where they can get further away from the sound being produced. • Avoid highly reverberant rooms by selecting an appropriate acoustic. Select rooms not by size of instrument, but by how noisy they are; the players of the loudest instruments need the largest rooms. • Acoustic treatment - use a teaching room that has been fitted with sound-absorbant materials such as carpeting, acoustic panelling or drapes. • Positioning when teaching - some instruments are highly directional. Teachers should avoid standing directly in the 'line of fire' during lessons. When possible make use of acoustic screens between the pupil and the teacher. • Scheduling of lessons - avoid back to back lessons without 'respite' periods. • Content of lessons - it might be possible to include some instruction which does not require the student to play. • Teaching levels - ask the student to play at a reduced level during lessons whenever possible. • Reduce overall noise levels - avoid 'playing along' with pupils to reduce overall noise levels. When teaching in groups avoid constant 'group' practice. • Familiarise yourself - keep an eye on exposure levels which are available from www.soundadvice.info/ and keep in mind that for some instruments the lengths of time you should be exposed is less than others. • Protection - wear hearing protection when necessary. 32 | Principals Today | Term 2 2010
Resource • The National Foundation for the Deaf Inc. includes information and resouces for the deaf and hearing impaired, along with advice and encouragement of hearing preservation from www.nfd.org.nz Children's hearing in the classroom Hearing is not an issue solely for the teachers and is of equal importance to what children absorb in their lessons. Children gather 50 to 90 percent of information through hearing alone. So it is certainly no surprise that research suggests good classroom acoustics are vital for learning to take place. Because children's brains are not fully developed for listening until they are in their early teenage years, primary aged children find it much harder to correctly hear their teachers' voices. New Zealand research into classroom acoustics has found classroom noise is a problem for most children and teachers. In fact, sometimes background noise was higher than the teacher's voice, making listening and learning extremely difficult. In New Zealand very little attention has been paid to the effects of poor classroom acoustics. Research undertaken by Kelston Deaf Education Centre regional co-ordinator Michael Heeney for his PhD, carried out in New Zealand schools, found that students benefit significantly from the use of soundfield amplification systems in classrooms. "Sound-field systems are the single most cost effective intervention a school can invest in to increase literary outcomes," Heeney says. The research showed sound-field systems made a significant difference in terms of the listening and reading comprehension, vocabulary and mathematical skills of the students involved. "The difference between the test scores of the students in classrooms with sound-field and those without was quite dramatic," he adds. "While sound-field made the greatest difference in low decile schools, the study shows the systems provide considerable and significant benefits to all students, regardless of their school, ethnicity or whether they had middle ear problems such as glue ear."
Even the students and teacher involved in the study were positive about the system. "Children found it easier to hear the teacher and found the quieter classroom environment more enjoyable. Because they could hear the teacher's answer to other childrens' questions, their 'incidental' learning increased and they didn't need to ask the question themselves. "Teachers noticed increased attention levels among students and a decrease in disruptive behavious. They also had higher energy levels from reduced voice strain and not having the repeat questions or instructions."