Essay on American Schools Need Music Education

Music, dance, drama, painting and drawing teachers try to incorporate academic lessons into their art classes. Students can be learning both art and academic topics at the same time. This can benefit the students extremely because it will not only engage the students in helpful activities, but it will keep them interested in learning the different topics. For example, schools may play music in the halls to introduce the students to culture that may help them to be open to learning new things in all of their classes. The painting teacher may have her student’s paint a picture of a historical event they learned about in their history class and discuss it in front of the class. The music teacher may ask the students to pick a certain song that reminds them of a book they read in their English class and explain to the class why the song reminds them of that certain book. The dance teacher might assign a dance to the students that will get them thinking of a subject to write their paper on for writing class. The possibilities are endless as to how to mix academics into the arts. It is important to do so to keep the creative juices flowing in the young minds of the students in public schools. By participating in an arts course, students are fueling their cognitive developments and are

Fine arts broaden our perspective and to help promote social tolerance, but also gives students many academic advantages they can use for a lifetime. Students that are exposed to an environment where they are allowed to express themselves freely musically or artistically will guarantee the ability of teamwork skills, confidence, and critical thinking skills. Some school districts fail to recognize the importance of education in the arts. Musical involvement promotes better math skills, students with band and orchestra experience attend college at a rate twice the national average, art teaches critical thinking rather than just getting the right answer, and theater participation helps develop social tolerance. All of these examples show why arts in public education are so important and why is a necessity in a public school and has overall higher academic achievement, critical thinking skills, and other things that are important in living

Budgets cuts are being made to music and art classes in schools across the country. While they are among the most expensive programs for a school to maintain, parents and communities are finding themselves concerned about the declining exposure to the arts. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, the number of elementary schools offering performing arts has dropped over 60% since 2008. The argument can be made that large amounts of money are saved by terminating art programs, but art programs have been shown to have positive impacts on student learning, with some of the most impressive improvements being made outside of art class. Are the experiences art classes provide worth the money?

The intended audience for this presentation are an educational advisory boards with regards to advocating for art education in school curriculum in America. This topic is appropriate for parents that are interested in how fine art education helps to improve at risk student

Arts and music even benefits younger children. A study was done with Goodlow Elementary Magnet School, Whittier Elementary and Boone Elementary, three elementary schools in Chicago with high ethnic diversity. The study found that 4th graders who started an arts education program had an 11.5% point gain on standardized test scores by the time they started 6th grade just two years later. Just two years. Imagine what the gain would be if these students continued in music for the rest of their

This survey records the habits of mind, personal attitudes and social abilities intrinsic to arts education. Moreover, review of the article has identified that students learning the arts would have the better influence on their mind for other subjects such as mathematics, reading, and social studies. Students who are enrolled in art classes experience improvement in other domains of life and course subject to learning. A report of the national survey, which has used a federal database of more than 25,000 students, the analyst found that students who were involved in any program of arts in any way gave better performance on standardized achievement exam than students who do not participate in the education of arts. A very general viewpoint about learning experience is that it includes some transformation both in education and life inside the school or outside the school life. However, the extent and nature of this transformation remain a subject of interest for the researchers. (Ellen,

By dissuading students from fine arts, education stifles the student’s ability to express themselves, and creates an environment that is counteractive to effective learning. According to the Americans for the Arts,  “[Their] studies show that children involved in the arts are four times more likely to be recognized for academic achievement and four times more likely to participate in a math and science fair” . Lack of funding for the arts, ultimately, is doing a disservice to children.

Supporters argue that art classes teach the very qualities that educators believe can reinvigorate American schools: analytical thinking, teamwork, motivation, and self-discipline. “Art education improves overall academic performance of students, including the common core academic subjects. Students who took four years of art classes scored 91 points higher on their SAT exams than those who took half a year or less.” The report conducted by the Center for Arts Education noted that schools with a solid arts program had higher graduation rates. The report analyzed data collected by New York City Education Department from more than 200 schools over two years, reported that schools ranked in the top third by graduation rates offered students the most access to arts education and resources. While schools in the bottom third offered the least access and fewest resources. Schools in the top third typically hired forty percent more certified arts teachers and offered forty percent more classrooms dedicated to course work in the arts than bottom-ranked schools. The full report is at caenyc.org. California State University study found a link between art and literacy. “The people who were art majors had the highest reading scores.” An art major can ask provocative questions, can challenge their own beliefs, point of view, engage in intellectual discussions, generate hypotheses, familiar with discipline's vocabulary,

"Studies show that students in the arts outperformed their non-arts peers on the SAT by 96 points, while a child who has continued access to arts education has a 74 percent higher chance of planning to attend college” (Urist 9). The arts teach several lessons to children and they provide an equal opportunity for everyone. The arts also provide a different form of discipline and insight into the real world. While others may say that sports make kids strive for good grades, the arts support children in a different way. Others may also say funding should go towards core subjects, but what they don’t know is that the humanities use the core subjects during classes. Even though fine arts are not exciting for everyone, they should receive more funding in schools because fine arts keep kids out of trouble, provide a way to express oneself and help teenagers make life decisions.

“The arts are an essential element of education, just like reading writing, and arithmetic…music dance, painting, and theatre are all keys that unlock profound human understanding and accomplishment” (William Bennett, Former US Secretary of Education).

Having arts in school helps students with learning and decrease the dropout rate. The article states, “Washington said the arts classes taught her about collaborate with others. They also helped her learn to be responsible and to think outside the box.” Arts in school can help students figure out patterns and think by using multiple perspectives. The article provides these quotes, “‘It's not that the arts are something to put on in the final period of the day once all the 'real work' is done,’ Washington said. ‘Arts are actually how we can help them get the 'real work' done.’” Art in school also provides a way to improve the understanding of core subjects in school. Another quote says, “Gubitz said the arts are an ‘accelerator’ for improvements

There are many benefits in each child taking part in a fine arts related matter. One of

Vincent Van Gogh, a brilliant artist from Auvers-sur-Oirs, France, once explained his passion for art: “I dream my painting and then I paint my dream.” The importance of art classes is a highly debated topic in the educational system and whether or not art is a necessary class to provide students. There is an extensive amount of different forms of “the arts,” including music, drama, foreign languages, painting, drawing, and sculpting. No matter what form of art, they all have many positive outcomes. Art classes should be fully funded in public school because they help the emotional development of students by allowing them to communicate their emotions, take a break and relax from any stress, and express their beliefs and opinions.

Art education has been proven to help with “cognitive ability, critical thinking, and verbal skills” as well as “motivation, concentration, confidence, and teamwork” (Smith). Having the ability and patience to sit down and paint a masterpiece or work through a song on the piano requires high focus and dedication. Students willing to do this will in turn have stronger skills to focus and be dedicated in other subjects. The mixture of all these abilities gained from participation in art programs lead to higher test scores and overall better performance in school. Still, these are only a few of the assets provided by art education.

Schools that offer fine arts classes have lower dropout rates and raised attendance. The fine arts positively impact students of lower socioeconomic status more those of a higher  status. The fine arts have no barriers for race, religion, and culture when it comes to being involved in the arts. Everyone is welcome and encouraged to be involved (Katy Independent School District). Without the arts these students have no outlet for creative capabilities and no way to express their talents. Students who need this way of expressing themselves are overlooked and they are the ones who need it the most (Dickson). When viewing the participation of arts in the eyes of a ten-year old, “It cools kids down after all the other hard stuff they have to think about” (Arts and Smarts: Test Scores and Cognitive Development).