25th November 2002

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Children with Down’s Syndrome can benefit greatly from singing lessons, according to award-winning research by University of Ulster undergraduate student Nicola Hazlie.

Nicola picked up her awards – and £500 in prize money at a ceremony in Belfast to honour Science Shop researchers.

The awards are presented each year to students who carry out the best research projects for the community and voluntary sectors.

Nicola, a BA/BSc (Hons) Combined Studies student based at the UU’s Magee campus, worked with Foyle Down’s Syndrome Trust on a project examining the effects of singing lessons on children with Down’s Syndrome.

Her study found that singing lessons can be beneficial to the children, and the Foyle Down’s Syndrome Trust now hopes to incorporate singing as part of its social programme provision.

Among the benefits to the children she found were

• An increase in verbal and non verbal communication
• Increased eagerness to learn and attend lessons

Parents were encouraged by their childrens’ responses to the singing lessons, said Nicola: “One parent spoke of her happiness at watching her usually quiet, introverted daughter joining in the singing. Parents also commented on how their children demonstrated their enthusiasm for the activity, with lots of smiling, clapping and laughing.”

Welcoming the research, Kay Devine, of the Foyle Down’s Syndrome Trust, said: “Nicola’s research has really helped us to further our understanding of language development in children with Down’s Syndrome. I’d like also to pay tribute to the professionalism, commitment and support given to us during the project by Nicola and the University’s Science Shop.”

Professor Richard Barnett, Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Teaching and Learning) at UU, said: “The Science Shop provides students with the opportunity to put the theory they have learned at university into practice in a manner which furthers their own learning experience. They also contribute to the social economy by assisting community and voluntary groups.”

For further information, please contact:

Press Office Department of Communication and Development
Telephone: 028 9036 6178
Email: pressoffice@ulster.ac.uk