Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
The importance of arts education for children
Benefits of music in the classroom
Benefits of music in the classroom
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: The importance of arts education for children
In Crawford County school Corporation our school is in a budget crunch which forces administrators to look for ways to cut back on spending. In addition to freezing teacher salaries and holding off on needed structural updates, schools look to “elective” programs to eliminate to save money, such as art, music, and PE. However, schools should not be so quick to cut these programs, as they have many benefits for our children. Students who participate in arts programs are at least three times more likely to be recognized for academic achievement, have higher scores on standardized tests, elected to class office within their schools, participate in a math and science fair, win an award for school attendance and win an award for writing …show more content…
For example, third-grade art students who participated in the Guggenheim Learning through Art Program performed better in six categories of literacy and critical thinking skills including thorough description, hypothesizing and reasoning. Kids also learn planning and problem-solving skills which will greatly benefit them in their future. Art can be used to reinforce other disciplines. Pouring glue, creating ceramics, and mixing paint can help teach scientific principles. Sorting, patterning, and categorizing can help reinforce math skills. Arts education has a measurable impact on at-risk youth in deterring delinquent behavior and truancy problems by keeping them engaged. Students also learn about persisting through periods of difficulty. Children who study music tend to have larger vocabularies and more advanced reading skills than their peers who do not participate in music lessons. Children with learning disabilities or dyslexia who tend to lose focus with more noise could benefit greatly from music lessons. Music programs are constantly in danger of being cut from shrinking school budgets even though they're proven to improve academics. Children who study a musical instrument are more likely to excel in all of their studies, work better in teams, have enhanced critical thinking skills, stay in school, and pursue further education. In the past, secondary students who participated in a music group at school reported the lowest lifetime and current use of all
Once this is accomplished, students gain personal pride in achieving this new skill. Music programs offer lots of chances for students to develop new talents, whether that is playing an instrument or singing a song. “Music programs in public schools help to foster a student’s sense of pride and self-confidence” (Hoffman 1), and with this newfound pride, students will develop more experience in other areas, like working with others and communicating with different people. Music plays an active role in student’s lives, and as core subject grades begin to rise, “music education remains a key component in a student’s academic success and in positive social and emotional growth” (Hoffman 1). Music forms dignity in a students abilities, offering to give the students a chance to develop their communication and social skills in a safe environment, and give themselves positive feelings about their accomplishments. Without music programs in schools, students will have less pride in their abilities and will not let them gain that safe environment to achieve these experiences with
There have been many studies done to find how music influences a child’s development. The College Entrance Examination Board discovered that students who took music appreciation classes had higher verbal and math scores than those who did not take the classes. (Stephens 2003) The U.S. Department of Education found that in 25,000 secondary schools, students who were highly involved in the music program did much better in math than any other students. (Stephens 2003) These studies and more have found that involvement in music increases chi...
Visual learning and decision making are being promoted through art education because students are exposed to different forms of art every day. Technology forces students to take in more visual information through cues or pictures (Lynch). Dr. Kerry Freeman, Head of Art and Design at Northern Illinois University, stated that, “Parents need to be aware that children learn a lot more from graphic sources now than in the past…Children need ...
All around the United States, art programs are being cut out of the budget in public schools. The arts include dance, band, chorus, theatre, film, drawing, painting, photography and literary arts. Some school board members feel these art programs are not necessary and do not benefit the students in any way. Elementary, middle, and high school students are forced to quit their passion and feel that their talents are not supported by their schools. Although many are not aware, there is a strong connection between arts education and academic achievement. Unfortunately, due to budget cuts in many public schools, the art classes are first on the list to be cut. It is important that the students, parents and teachers fight for their desire to keep the arts in public schools. Art programs in public schools are essential to the development of young minds; therefore the school boards should enhance and improve the programs and should not cut funding or force a class to be discontinued.
“Recent studies show that being involved in music classes makes it easier to learn other subjects and improve skills in other classrooms” (Brown, “The Benefits of Music Education”). A lot of people tend to overlook how much music education has an impact on the success of a student. Because of this, schools should be required to offer fine arts and music classes as electives for the students. Not only will this improve the students test scores, but it will also give the students a broader imagination and more creativity in and out of the classroom. In a lot of schools, fine arts and musical classes are the first to go when there are budget cuts. “Seventy-one percent of the nation’s fifteen thousand school districts have cut instructional hours spent on music and other subjects” (“State of the arts: should music and art classes be brushed aside”). Not only is it affecting the teachers who have specialized in the study of fine arts, it is affecting all of the students and parents who are actively involved in these programs. “Johnson, professor of music education and music therapy and associate dean of the School of Fine Arts at KU, found jumps of twenty-two percent in English test scores and twenty percent in math scores at elementary schools with superior music education” (Lynch “Music Boosts Test Scores”). With that being said, schools should be required to offer music and fine arts classes as an elective for their students.
Much too often in America today, modern music and art programs in schools are perceived to many as extracurricular activities rather than important subjects that are vital to a students learning and skill development. The truth of the matter is that encouraging music and art education in public schools has a much larger impact on student’s grades, academic performance, and the economy than the majority people realize. Within the next year city school budgets will be dropping by twenty five percent, and despite the fact that music and art programs have been showing a dramatic contribution to student’s learning, this substantial drop in funding for the programs will lead to no dedicated money for art or music programs (Mezzacappa). There is no doubt that a cut in funding for art programs will take a huge toll on students overall grades and test scores. Research has found that the studying of music and art facilitates learning in other subjects and enhances children’s skills in other areas (Brown). Furthermore, providing students with a creative outlet can do great justice in reducing the stress from many other classes and even offer insight for students in possible career paths involving the art field. The art industry today currently supports 4.1 million full-time jobs (Dorfman). By increasing the funding of music and art programs for students preschool through twelfth grade we can see a dramatic increase in the education of children across the United States, assist with skill development in young students, and greatly benefit the economy at the same time.
The arts are not only a nice way to pass time; the arts can greatly help with education. Schools in the United States have encouraged children to have an outlet and if the outlet is not sports, most kids take some kind of art class. According to Velasco (2012), a child development specialist, certain students who have taken at least one art credit every year since the start of third grade were more likely to comprehend math and literature easier; for example, counting the beats in every stanza of music or learning the history and background of song lyrics. Velasco also states that students scored 1.5 times better in standardized tests, than kids who did not take an art credit. By helping schools fund art programs, the skills learned by students taking these classes can ultimately help schools excel in academic achievements, and they can aid students to a brighter future.
This is the opening statement of “The Value and Quality of Arts Education: A Statement of Principles,” a document from the nation’s ten most important educational organizations. The basic message is that music and art programs in the schools help our kids and communities in real and substantial ways. There is an abundant amount of facts and information that supports this statement. The benefits of arts education can be narrowed down into 4 basic categories: success in developing intelligence, success in school, success in society, and success in life.... ... middle of paper ...
Friedrich Nietzsche once said, “Without music, life would be a mistake”. Music is almost as old as the human race and is as much a part of it as anything. So why would anyone choose to get rid of it? An Increasing number of schools across the nation are deciding to cut music education programs. This includes band, orchestra, choir, and general music classes. In 1991, 55.4 percent of public school eighth-graders took part in music classes at school. In 2004, this figure was just 49.1 percent. Money plays a huge role in this statistic: “...when funds are scarce, arts courses are usually the first to be dropped from a school’s curriculum” (“Arts Education”). While many argue that music education is an unnecessary cost for schools, it improves student’s overall well being.
Not only can art help improve a kids education over all, having it taught as a regular part of the curriculum helps children learn to express themselves in a way that is safe and promotes problem solving. There is no right answer in art so it allows the student to explore all options before finding the one
The creation of art, music, dance, sporting activity and literature should be made a fundamental part of every school 's pre-K to 12th grade curriculum. The creation art it’s very important for children from their early age, a lot of benefits children can do and learn through art. A lot of benefits they can receive:
A child’s drawing can tell so much about what they are thinking and feeling about their surroundings. They see things differently from adults and teens because when they are drawing or doing some sort of art they are not told that it is a “bad picture” or what ever they are doing is “not right.” They don’t have a limit upon their thoughts and ideas, but when they grow up, they do. Starting from the first day of school, they are taught about the wrong things and the right things. As we grow older there are more classes that have right and wrong answers to a question like, for example, math.
As a school system’s budget decreases, extracurricular activities are bound to get cut. Among these are are athletics and the arts. When choosing between the two, the solution is obvious, cut sports. With academic and psychological benefits, arts programs are noticeably more vital to a student’s life.
Art Education is not always valued in school settings. Although some may see it as an unnecessary use of school funding, there are many who believe it is beneficial to students in more ways than one. There are many different studies that have been conducted to test the effects that art education has on school-aged children. Some studies have proven that art education can help students to improve in other academic areas. In a journal article from Ohio State University’s “Theory in Practice,” Karen A Hamblen states, “There are linkages between art learning and learning in other subjects areas and that art study can promote creative behaviors, critical thinking skills, and academic achievement.” It has also been found that the arts can teach children better self-regulatory strategies, and even foster more confidence and self-efficacy in school which relates to confidence in academics. Overall, art education in schools has been very beneficial and has proven to ignite creativity, confidence, critical thinking skills, and academic achievement in students.
Firstly, children’s cognitive development is greatly enhanced through visual arts. In order for children to produce art, they have to think of an idea, an experience or feeling and construct symbols to express what they know (Isbell & Raines, 2007). Exploration of art materials help children build a knowledge of their physical properties which supports decision-making, evaluation and problem-solving (Edwards, 2010). Moreover, children will have many opportunities to work together in small groups and will then learn to value others’ ideas (Isbell & Exelby, 2001). Since visual arts is a form of self-expression, children can express their feelings through artworks and hence, learn emotional regulation. Small muscle development occurs when children cut, paste, draw and paint while large muscles develop through activities such as creating a large mural (Isbell & Raines, 2007). Therefore, visual arts enhances children’s development in all