Since 2001, schools across
the nation began cutting certain programs from their curriculum; among those
were the music and arts programs. I had to ask myself why would they do this.
One of the reasons is that they could not test for music and arts on the standardized
test. I remember as a child in school I would question the fact about why I
needed certain classes in order to advance to the next grade. I always viewed
music and arts as fun and entertaining classes. I believe it gives the students
an opportunity to explore their creative sides.
Why is the value of music
and arts education being questioned? Whenever budget cuts come up these
programs are the first to be cut by our school administrators. It truly makes
you wonder how you can place a value on your child’s education.
Doing further research on
this topic I came across an article called How important
is music education in schools? by Jennifer
Cerbasi. She addressed several pertinent facts that
music is just not a hobby, but played a key role in the development of our
children. In 2007,, the Journal for Research in Music Education stated,
“quality music education instruction improved academic performance,
specifically, better scores on standardized tests.” She also quoted another article
from 2005, The Midland Chemist, which stated “almost all of the past winners of
the Siemens Westinghouse Competition in Math, Science, and Technology for high
school students played one or more instruments.”
In New Jersey, River Edge's
Teacher of the Year, music teacher Kelly Dent said. “In this way, music
programs, especially those focused on making music, play an essential role in
the development of social skills and emotional awareness in students."
So if, our educators are
constantly stating how valuable these programs, why do the administrators
continue to cut these from the school curriculum? According to research we can
see that facts have shown that these programs are beneficial. It would seem
that the Department of Education should take a closer look at the budget for
more than one school year at a time. We need to figure out a way to keep these
programs in our schools. I truly believe that we express ourselves by being
creative.
A great website that promotes activities and
resource for the establishment of music education as a profession is the National Association for Music Education. They are here to promote and provide guidance
of music study as an integral part of the school curriculum.
The beauty of music is the creation of where it
comes from, so be unique and different!
Sing, write, compose and
produce from your heart!
