Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Noise Pollution and Its Impact on Children

“With the modern world so dependent on and enchanted with noise-producing and noise-related technology—automobiles, aircraft, helicopters, motorcycles, snowmobiles, jet skis, leaf blowers, amplified music, bass-driven car stereo systems—the noise level is rapidly accelerating.”  Anonymous

As the youngest and only girl out of four, I loved the days my brother would pick me up from middle school. He would have his windows rolled down and his very popular music playing loud. Of course at the time, and for many years following once I was driving on my own, I thought loud music was the cool thing. The impact it had one me was the last thing on my mind. Now as a young adult, I see the impact this music has had on my hearing every day. I found the T.V. has to be louder for me to comfortable hear it, and my students must speak louder in order for me to hear them. With the impact this has had on me, I was curious to learn about the impact it has on young children and if it impacted other areas rather than simply hearing.

     
Maxwell and Evans (n.d.) reiterate the impact loud noise has on the auditory system, but also warns parents and educators of the impact in can also play on the cognitive, physiological, and motivational areas of development.  There research finds that children living or attending school close to airports, trains, and high traffic suffer from higher blood pressure. Teachers in high noise areas also find motivating students in an activity to be very difficult. They also are less likely to take on a challenge. Chronic noise also impacts student’s ability to remain attentive and impacts children’s reading ability. Maxwell and Evans (n.d.) state that cchildren from noisy homes and schools are at more of a disadvantage than children from quieter homes.

 Japan has always been a fascinating country to me, and knowing the busy lifestyle of Japan, I was curious about noise in Japan and if it is a stressor in this country. Through my search I found that Japan is right up there with the United States when it comes to noise pollution. Japan’s city is filled with public loud speakers, and constant air travel. Chepesiuk (2005) states that many people find themselves wearing ear plugs in the city to minimize the noise.  The impact of noise in the United States also applies throughout other countries. Japan is also taking action by passing many noise pollution acts to minimize the noise within the city.  



Reference:

Maxwell, L. & Evans, G (n.d.) Design of child care centers and effects of noise on young children. Retrieved from http://www.designshare.com/research/lmaxwell/noisechildren.htm



Chepesiuk, R (2005) .Decibel Hell: The effects of living in a noisy world. Environmental

Health Perspectives. 113(1) A34-A41.  

6 comments:

  1. Hello,

    I liked your quote “With the modern world so dependent on and enchanted with noise-producing and noise-related technology—automobiles, aircraft, helicopters, motorcycles, snowmobiles, jet skis, leaf blowers, amplified music, bass-driven car stereo systems—the noise level is rapidly accelerating.” Anonymous

    Your information about Japan and their noise problem was also interesting!

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  2. Great Job Jo,
    Noise pollution is such a gret subject to study, i remember as a kid thinking it was cool to blast your music.

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  3. Wow! I never thought about noise levels making children having higher blood pressures. I have seen in my classroom that anytime there is a loud noise, my kids are so distracted and they are easily to get off task. Thanks for sharing your research!

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  4. This was an excellent read! I had no idea of the effects of noise on children. This really explains a lot, as I sit here and reflect over the families that I serve in my Head Start program, as well as, the communities in which they live. Thanks so much for bringing this topic to the forefront. You have peaked my interest. I will continue to research this topic. Thanks!

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  5. Many people have probably never really thought of noise pollution as being a major problem. If children are exposed to loud music or loud vehicles on a daily basis it could defintely affect their sense of hearing. We know that the sense of hearing is very important for healthy development because children learn language from the people and sounds around them. This is defintely an area that needs attention.

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  6. How interesting. I would never have thought to think about the noise level in Japan, it's such a busy country. I love loud music and as I get older I am realizing the negative consequences of playing my music too loud.

    Great information, thank you!

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