Music as a Significant Means for Speech Cultivation in Pre-School Children

This dissertation of an interdisciplinary character involves music education, music psychology, linguistics and special education. In the theoretical part of the thesis the author explains the term timbre from the musicological and linguistic perspective; characterizes timbre hearing as a musical hearing ability; introduces and compares timbre and phonemic hearing tests; describes the development of musicality and speech of pre-school children from an ontogenetic perspective, and emphasizes hearing atten- tion as a prerequisite for their advancement. The author also characterizes disruption of these abilities and describes reeducation therapies that involve elements of music education and mu- sic therapy. A field study described in the practical part of the thesis has a form of fundamental research and experiment. Research participants were 180 pre-school children. A field study is addressing the relationship between speech and musical manifestations of pre-school children with atypi- cal speech development. The aim of the experiment was to search for the most effective com- bination of music and language education with positive influence on both musicality and speech. Chapters of the thesis introduce a unique diagnostic material, experimental methodol- ogy and research outcomes. A field study..