music programs may play a protective role in adolescence. Music is the closest thing to a time machine that we will ever have. When we want to transport ourselves into another time or place, we can listen to music or play our instruments, and feel those emotions. Being in the music program has helped me find

  scoping review in her paper includes only 24 studies and the systematic review includes 18. Whilst Tanya’s search was worldwide, apart from one Japanese study, she only found examples of interventions from English speaking countries. The majority were implemented in Australia, with a few in the UK and one in the US. 

A large body of research has highlighted some straightforward ways of  enhancing learning, but these effective strategies are underutilised by students. In a recent paper, our Researcher of the Month, Professor Shana Carpenter, and her co-authors, reviewed key findings on two learning strategies that are known to be effective, but which are underused: spacing and retrieval practice. They found that underuse of these strategies could stem from false beliefs about learning, a general lack of awareness, or their counter-intuitive nature. The paper has important implications for the increasingly common situations in which learners must monitor and regulate their own learning, and choose the right strategies at the right time.

Professor David Putwain, School of Education, Liverpool John Moores University