Bands Can Make Them Dance: A Neurological Lens on the Impact of Urban High School Band Programs on Black Students

• In Event: Rhythms of Resistance: Black Aesthetics, Sensorial Literacies, and the Architecture of Educational Liberation

Abstract

Objectives: ​​This study explores how participation in urban high school band programs influences Black students' cognitive development through neurological mechanisms activated by structured musical training. It seeks to reposition music education as a critical, evidence-based intervention that supports academic achievement, identity development, and educational equity for Black students in under-resourced urban settings. By synthesizing interdisciplinary literature, the study advocates for the reintegration and preservation of band programs as culturally sustaining and neurologically enriching components of the K–12 curriculum.

Theoretical framework: This review is grounded in an interdisciplinary framework that integrates Critical Race Theory (CRT), neuroplasticity, and culturally relevant/sustaining pedagogies (Bell, 1992; Ladson-Billings, 1998). CRT provides a lens through which to examine how systemic racism and curricular disinvestment disproportionately impact Black students’ access to cognitively enriching opportunities like band programs. Neuroeducational perspectives, particularly those related to functional and structural neuroplasticity, offer insight into the cognitive benefits of musical training (Kraus et al., 2014). The framework also draws from Cognitive Load Theory (Sweller, 2011) and Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy (Good-Perkins, 2023) to highlight how culturally relevant music education fosters engagement, belonging, and academic persistence among Black youth.

Methods: This study employed a qualitative systematic literature review methodology. Through peer-reviewed literature from 2003 to 2023, the study synthesized findings on the cognitive, neurological, and cultural impacts of music education for Black students in urban schools. Narrative synthesis and thematic coding were used to identify and analyze recurring patterns and gaps in the literature. Methodological rigor was assessed using adapted criteria from the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP) (2025) and the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) tools (Mathioudakis et al., 2019).

Data sources: ​​The study draws on over two decades of peer-reviewed literature, including empirical studies, meta-analyses, and theoretical works in the fields of neuroscience, urban education, music cognition, and critical pedagogy. Included studies address music education’s cognitive outcomes, brain-based changes due to musical training, culturally responsive teaching, and structural inequities in educational access. Materials were filtered for relevance to Black students, urban high school settings, and K–12 music education.

Results: The review substantiates that participation in urban high school band programs can significantly enhance cognitive development among Black students, particularly in areas related to executive function, memory, language processing, and emotional regulation (Doyle, 2014; Fiese & DeCarbo, 1995; Fitzpatrick, 2011; Fitzpatrick-Harnish, 2015). The findings challenge the narrative of music programs as expendable, positioning them instead as essential educational spaces for both neurological development and cultural affirmation. Furthermore, the study highlights a policy-practice disconnect in which evidence of music’s cognitive benefits is largely ignored in urban education reform.

Scientific or scholarly significance: This study contributes to the literature by reframing urban high school band programs as neurologically and culturally vital educational interventions, especially for Black students. It offers a multidimensional framework for integrating neuroscience, equity, and arts-based learning into education policy and teacher preparation. By centering Black students’ experiences, the study addresses persistent gaps in how race, culture, and cognition intersect in educational research. It calls for a deliberate reinvestment in music education to advance academic excellence, cultural empowerment, and systemic equity in public schooling.

Author

• Kevin L. Jones, Stephen F. Austin State University