Researchers from Northwestern University have come up with a study regarding the Harmony Project in Los Angeles, a non-profit organization providing free music lessons to students from low-income families and gang-ridden communities. 

The founder of the said organization, Margaret Martin, released a statement saying that the kids they are teaching are now graduating from high school and are being accepted into famous universities because of music.

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The researchers from Illinois believe that music training has had a great impact on the students' educational attainments. Martin did say that almost 90 percent of the kids who are taking part in the free music lessons graduate from high school while 50 percent or more who are not taking the lessons do not graduate at all.

Researchers conducted the study over a period of two years with a sample of 44 students.

The conclusion was that the training changed the youngsters' brains, making it easier for them to process sounds. According to the researchers, due to this change, there is a direct improvement with regard to both reading and speaking skills.

However, the study showed that listening to music is not enough, one has to play an instrument to get smarter.

The study's lead author and director of Northwestern's auditory neuroscience lab, Nina Kraus, said that research like this is very challenging because they have to follow the subjects for a couple of years in order to track precise changes.

She added that her team still has to research more districts around the country in order to understand better how studying music can affect children's learning.

Previous studies by Kraus and her team have focused on the value of music in improving concentration, memory, and focus in kids.

According to Mary Luehrsen from the National Association of Music Merchants Foundation, children need a "rich, multisensory" environment and learning music is the perfect avenue for such requirements. She added that music training should be an essential part of curriculums offered in schools.

TagsMusic, Harmony Project, music study, Northwestern University, music makes kids smarter