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The world would be nothing without art. Art is another way of expressing your feelings. In Anna Deavere Smith’s excerpt From Letters to a Young Artist, she argues that to create great art, an artist needs both knowledge and empathy.

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.

One reason they should not be cut from schools is, fine arts have tremendous benefits. The arts also help with early childhood development. Some say they are the building blocks of child development. Arts education helps with motor skills, language development, decision making, visual learning, inventiveness, cultural awareness and diversity, and even improved academic performance. High arts education in a school engages, learning, results in higher test scores, and lowers drop out and truancy rates.

One of the many benefits the fine arts have is that if schools made their fine arts programs mandatory it would increase their IQ scores. To start with, an intelligence quotation or IQ test measures the students potential, not how intelligent they are. Joanne Lipman writer of “A Musical Fix for U.S. Schools” reports that the fine arts give potential to their students:

The thought of art is more than what you see it is what you feel and what you learn from looking at it. Art can heal the soul and create and new outlook on images we may see every day. Sadly, we may not always see the art in things, pieces, or, humans.

One of the largest issues with fine arts implementation is the narrow effects. Garcia et. al conducted research that attempted to determine the effect fine arts have on standardized test scores. The researchers found that specific students attending schools with dense fine arts programs scored higher on the state standardized test; however, this improvement does not imply that fine arts will effectively cure the education decline. When analyzing the results, one sees that the fine arts mainly affect one group of students: at-risk students. The term “at-risk students” generally includes English Language Learners and low socioeconomic students. The research found that the at-risk students exposed to fine arts programs were more likely to have higher scores on the state standardized test specifically on the English Language Arts portion. This research suggests that if these at-risk students are exposed to the fine arts their test scores will increase on this specific portion of the test.

The Importance of Art A lot of people have mixed feelings on what the true definition of what art actually is. In a dictionary, it is defined as “the expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power.” () Art plays a very important role in our society. It comes in many different forms and it can be found anywhere and everywhere around us.

A student who does not enjoy the fundamental classes might not find interest in going to school. The innovated minds that find tranquility in a music class or rather a basic art class is more likely to look forward to attending school the next day. Fine arts enhance the mind. It enhances what is already there or

Famous Spanish artist, Pablo Picasso, once said, “Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up.” Schools all around the United States are closing their arts programs including music, art, and theatre, because of budget cuts. More than 25% of public high schools have closed done away with their arts programs. Blogger Katrina Soliman stated in her blog about the lack of creative opportunities in school, “Children have a knack for originality” and “Schools advise students to be creative but do not give time to do so.” The arts, however, are very important to children while they learn to grow and there have been hundreds of studies showing why they’re important. They improve test scores, give students creative ideas after high school and there are also other nonacademic uses.

Ruppert, S. ( 2006) Critical evidence: how the arts benefit student achievement. National Assembly of State Arts Agencies. Retrieved from

While reading both opinions on how art, whether it be music or paintings, does or does not improve cognitive ability, I’ve come to the conclusion that it does. The articles that were in favor of the arts had great points. They were able to state their point of view, while backing it up with research and scientific facts. The articles against the arts stated that they do not improve learning ability, but rather auditory and visual skills. Despite auditory and visual skills not directly improving a child’s learning ability, they are still a substantial part in child development. Even so, the author of the passage still acknowledged creative imagination’s potential to help a child perform better in learning assessments and IQ tests. Involving in art in the school system, whether that’s learning about it or having the students do it themselves, really can improve school performance in several ways, including heightening brain activity, making them more attentive and enhancing their wellbeing.

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).

“People are forgetting that math is taught when a child is playing an instrument. English is taught when a child is reading or writing a script. Critical thinking is taught when a child is analyzing art” (Sabrina Holcomb). There is a significant correlation between participating in the arts, and success in school. Multiple studies have shown that there is a strong correlation between playing an instrument, and an increase in scores in mathematical subject. In these studies, it was also noted that students who were more creative were better problem solvers than students who were not as creative. All of these characteristics are sought after in the work force, meaning that the arts not only help during the school years, but in work and business as well (Ron Whitehorne). Also, it is important to note that “Low-income students who had arts-rich experiences in high schools were more than three times as likely to earn a B.A. as low-income students without those experiences. And the new study from the National Endowment reports that low-income high school students who earned little or no arts credits were five times more likely not to graduate from high school than low-income students who earned many arts credits” (Tyleah Hawkins). The arts have always been used as a form of expression and inspiration for people across the world, the arts have also been shown to improve high-risk student's outlook on their schooling. Research has shown that the arts help improve standardized test scores like the ACT or SAT (Tyleah Hawkins).People who support the arts believe that quality art education can help engage at-risk students in ways that other subjects such as math, science, or reading cannot. This is why it is believed that the arts are a key tool in the prevention of high-school dropout. There are many studies that point to a lower dropout rate for students who participate in

A lot of people think that art can only go as far as a class in school, but in reality there is art around everyone. Art can be a way of life for some people, and for others it is simply just something they pass every single day. What they do not realize is that art can have benefits in different aspects in their life, in children's lives, and even the world around them.