Music in the lives of young children

Abstract

There is a growing body of literature pointing to the significance of engaging with music, and to its potential for bringing about positive change in areas such as cognitive development, academic performance, educational motivation and learning, socio-emotional development and behaviour, and mental health – across the life course from infants through to seniors. Our decision to initiate a special issue of Early Child Development and Care (ECDC) surfaced from the fact that although there is a wide array of journals that specifically cater to readers of music education andmusic psychology, these do not necessarily cross the borders from our profession to other readers. Moreover, those in the child care vocations, especially focused on very young infants, toddlers, and pre-school children, are not always familiar with the contents and research findings of the specific music education and music psychology literature. On the other hand, ECDC is a multidisciplinary publication with a readership of parents, educators, social workers, psychologists, and paediatricians. ECDC publishes papers in all aspects of early child development and care, including descriptive and evaluative articles, as well as experimental and observational studies. In the year 2020, the journal was received by institutions and private subscribers in over 190 countries, with downloads registered among the highest for all education journals of the Taylor & Francis publication group. For the year 2020, the journal boasts of its 190th volume, with an average 16 issues per annum, each consisting of 11–12 articles per issue. We note that such a massive bulk totals an average 180 manuscripts per year having been accepted from more than 400 submissions undergoing editorial review cycles per year (excluding those rejected without entering a review cycle). The special issue ‘Music In The Lives Of Young Children’ targets music and its significance in young children’s lives with a focus onmusic education and the musical experience of pre-school children. The special issue is comprised of 11 articles that have been written by 32 authors (several teams of co-authors) from 10 countries (Canada, Germany, India, Israel, New Zealand, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America). These research studies were carried out in nine countries (Australia, Canada, Germany, India, Israel, New Zealand, South Africa, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America). The methodologies employed by the papers in this issue include: case studies; classroom vignettes; conceptual development of assessment measures (principal components and validation analysis); direct observation studies; empirical studies evaluating transfer effects; insider research; performance analyses (both audio and video capture); pre-post intervention outcome studies; randomized controlled trials (RCTs); self-report recollection survey questionnaires (both hard copy and on-line presentations); and theoretical reviews. The research samples of the studies herein are infants, toddlers, and young children in nursery, kindergarten, and pre-schools (aged 2–5 years old), as well as school-aged children in Reception classes and Grades 1–3 (aged 5–8 years old). In addition, some studies recruited parent care-takers, music education, and general education teachers, and in one case members of the general public. For the most part, the studies were carried out in classrooms or at ecologically natural home environments – albeit in one case there was an on-line web-wide internet survey. Foci of the papers comprising the special issue include young children’s active engagement with music in formal (e.g. school) and informal (e.g. home) contexts, the musical experiences of pre-school children and children in the early years of schooling, music education and pedagogy in the early years, as well as papers advancing theory on musical ability in childhood and teacher–child