Music and language engage similar processing mechanisms, including auditory processing and higher cognitive functions, recruiting partially overlapping brain structures. It has been argued that both are related in child development and that linguistic functions can be positively influenced by music training above 4-years-old. In this randomized control study, with a test–training–retest methodology, 44 children (3–4 years old) were assessed with a phonological awareness test, prior and after an intervention period of a school year with weekly music classes (experimental group, n = 23) or visual arts classes (control group, n = 21) in kindergarten. In the preassessment there were no significant differences between groups. When comparing pre- and postassessment, results showed significant differences in both groups, but music classes’ students outperformed the control group, showing larger differences between the beginning and the end of the intervention. Improvement in both groups is expected due to general developmental reasons. However, the fact that children receiving music classes show greater improvement indicates that music lessons have influenced phonological awareness. Our results support the hypothesis that music training may promote language abilities, specifically phonological awareness, prior to the ages previously studied.

中文翻译：

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音乐对 3 岁儿童语音意识发展的影响

音乐和语言参与类似的处理机制，包括听觉处理和高级认知功能，招募部分重叠的大脑结构。有人认为，两者都与儿童发展有关，并且 4 岁以上的音乐训练可以对语言功能产生积极影响。在这项随机对照研究中，采用测试-训练-再测试方法，44 名儿童（3-4 岁）在一个学年的干预期之前和之后进行了语音意识测试，每周音乐课（实验组，n= 23）或视觉艺术课（对照组，n= 21) 在幼儿园。在预评估中，各组之间没有显着差异。在比较前评估和后评估时，结果显示两组存在显着差异，但音乐班学生的表现优于对照组，在干预开始和结束之间表现出更大的差异。由于一般的发展原因，预计两组都会有所改善。然而，接受音乐课的孩子表现出更大的进步这一事实表明，音乐课影响了语音意识。我们的结果支持这样的假设，即音乐训练可以在之前研究的年龄之前促进语言能力，特别是语音意识。