Some of the good news is out with regard to David Gerry’s PhD thesis. You may remember from discussions during Suzuki ECE training or from the last two SAA conferences in Minneapolis that David undertook a project to examine whether or not Suzuki ECE plays a significant role in the development of babies in the very early years. Indeed he has been working steadily on this for a few years.

He has been working with Dr. Laurel Trainor. Laurel Trainor (Psychology, Neuroscience & Behaviour, McMaster) is the founding director of the McMaster Institute for Music and the Mind. She has done groundbreaking research on musical development in children and infants.

The stated purpose for one part of the project was:

“To test whether 6 months of participation in an early childhood Suzuki music program affects infants’ knowledge of Western tonality”.

Conclusions include:

“The results indicate that active musical participation accelerates musical acquisition compared to passive listening. Infants can engage in meaningful musical training when appropriate pedagogical approaches are used. Other aspects of the larger project suggest possible social and cognitive benefits of the Suzuki program as well, indicating the potential usefulness of the approach for special populations and infants at risk.”

The above was presented to the 2010 International Conference on Infant Studies, March 10-14, 2010, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.

You can read more online.

Dorothy and Sharon are very excited about this research! They feel that there will be a significant impact for all of us teaching Suzuki ECE. Thank you David Gerry.

You might be able to use this information to get some media attention for your local Suzuki ECE program. Why not take this opportunity to contact the media about your program.