Arts Integration and Student Achievement Essay

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

To begin with, education and engagement in fine art programs are an essential part within the school curriculum because subjects such as mathematics, science, and language arts all require cognitive and creative capacities which are enhanced with the process of learning art. For instance, in the article, Critical Evidence: How the Arts Benefits Student Achievement, it states that “researchers

Art is around us everywhere we go. Art can be in architecture, landscaping, performances and paintings. The arts can affect the way people think and how they act, like when a young child draws or paints a picture, they have to make small choices that can help them in many aspects of life. BUt sadly the beneficial education tool of The Arts has been in a rapid decline. In her article, School Art Programs: Should They Be Saved?, Valeria Metia says, “During the 1999-2000 school year, 20 percent of schools offered dance and theatre classes, but in the 2009-10 school year, only 3 percent of schools allocated funds for dance classes, and only 4 percent taught theatre.” Since this decrease in art programs students ages 5-18 are missing out on valuable characteristics in their education. Art gives students improved test scores and better thinking skills, significantly higher graduation rates,better performance in schoolwork,development of habits including problem solving, critical and creative thinking, and working with others and a happier and better school day. SInce art is so beneficial to a student's learning we should push harder and get art programs into our public schools again.

Because of this, arts education is required in most states. Fran Smith points out why arts education should be a requirement in schools. She says, “Years of research show that it's [arts education] closely linked to almost everything that we as a nation say we want for our children and demand from our schools: academic achievement, social and emotional development, civic engagement, and equitable opportunity” (Smith 1). She lists these goals in hopes that people will realize the benefits that arts education could have if taken seriously. Smith uses her professional knowledge to promote her opinion on arts

Greek philosopher Aristotle defines the arts ¨as the realization in external form of a true idea, and is traced back to that natural love of imitation which characterizes humans, and to the pleasure which we feel in recognizing likenesses.¨(IEP). The fine arts which have been a part of human history for 30,000 years have played an essential role in the development and advancement of our societies. As of today, the fine arts are facing the danger of vanishing in the education system of the United States Schools in places like Minnesota, Michigan and Philadelphia struggle to obtain arts programs within their schools. Districts like the Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan district, have been struggling with raising student’s academic scores in courses

The formative growth of preschoolers that participate in arts instruction. It was also shown that simply exposing children to music was not appropriate for the English language learner. Physical movements, including dance, are useful instructional tools for young children. It has also been seen that fine arts integration is effective in benefiting special needs students in various therapies within the school setting. It is clear that the integration of the fine arts is an effective instructional and therapeutic practice.

The pairing of arts integration in the classrooms and a structured arts rich learning environment is the most effective way for students to fully express their creativity and to thrive in academic studies; but, even though using both tactics is the best way, it is not used as often as the majority of school systems place a greater importance on standardized testing based subjects. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts stated that the integration of the arts is “an approach to teaching where the students can construct and demonstrate an understanding through the usage of an art form.” This “approach” engages the students in a way that builds their creative processes and connects the subjects together more cohesively. This cohesion is why arts integration is of importance for the schools systems, which have increased scores, and the students, which not only enjoy their education but also learn and understand more

Using theses conclusions, one can justify art integration as a means of increasing attendance to school as well as productivity. If a student can remain engaged, excited, and interested in their own learning, then their growth academically will flourish. These studies also found interesting correlation in young students growth academically when paired with art education. The study conducted by the Arts Education Partnership found that “James

During school, students should be engaged and willing to learn more about what they are learning. With art, there is no need for someone to be good at it. Art is dependent only on the artist herself. If students view art as just another subject, then they are missing the academic value art gives. Art goes beyond having artistic value and surpasses the idea of one's own limits. According to Allyono17, one of the authors of an article in Teen Ink magazine,

Silverstein and Layne (2010) define arts integration as “an approach to teaching in which students construct and demonstrate understanding through an art form. Students engage in a creative process which connects an art form and another subject area and meets evolving objectives in both.” Arts integration combines curriculum and teaching among dance, music, theatre, and visual art while interconnecting the arts with non-arts subjects. Integration takes many forms as teachers from different subject areas collaborate for rich curricular connections.

Education, in the 21st century, refers to certain core competencies such as collaboration, digital literacy, critical thinking, and problem solving that advocates believe schools need to teach to help students thrive in today’s world. (Education Week, 2010). Students are encouraged to think critically and creatively, nevertheless, there are schools throughout the state of Kentucky that exclude the arts from their core curriculum which eliminates a creative outlet for students. Arts integration in public schools provide students the tools they need to think creatively and ameliorate their state mandated testing scores. The arts provide students with developmental skills that aid in the improvement of their fine motor skills, language development,

When used well, the arts are the cement that brings all the disparate curricular areas together. In the best schools, this is often the case. The arts are valued for their interdisciplinary potential. The result is a more cohesive curriculum in which students explore relationships across disciplines. . . . the arts in conjunction with other aspects of the curriculum afford students more complete and compelling conceptions. (p. 7)

“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).

Arts programs all over the United States have been dwindling rapidly over the past few years. Funding for them has been cut by state and local governments, and many people begin to believe that the arts are no longer of importance. This reasoning can be by the hypotheses of performance in school not being related to the performing arts. However, the arts have more of an impact than most people believe. The performing arts can reach children and adults of all ages on emotional, mental and physical levels. This means that government grants and subsidies should be given to lower-income and lower level schools to ensure that the performing arts are incorporated into all levels and sects of school, regardless of age, income, or social status of the children or the school systems. The influence that the arts can give to students will set them up to success for life. Through thorough investigation, discoveries have been made showing how the government used resources to help, or try to help, the increase in arts in schools. Also, the importance of the STEAM grant and how educators, students, and parents view its importance will be discussed throughout the paper. Opposing views such as the current political views on arts education and how arts don’t relate to academic success will be discussed and refuted by showing studies on student performance and attendance in places along with interviews showing that the arts can create a wonderful learning environment.

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).