Music evaluated as a subjects that is many times overlooked. If a school seems to have financial trouble, then music and art programs are the first to get cut. Essentially, students do not need them to succeed and they are just hobbies. This is the mindset that many school boards have towards music education.
I have had the pleasure of being involved in music from a young age. My schools did not offer music programs, but my parents saw an opportunity in music education so they decided to look for private instruction. The lessons were not cheap, but my parent’s investment was well worth it. As I got older, I became more involved in music and missed the fact that my schools did not provide a music program that I could join. More than anything, I wanted my other peers to experience what I was going through with music. A lot of them did not have this opportunity.
When I was in middle school, I came across Merit School of Music. Attending their tuition free conservatory widened my perspective in music education. Their program is constructed in a way where students learn various aspects of music such as theory, performance, and history while getting the opportunity to meet other young musicians. There, I noticed that some students attending prestigious magnet and private schools of Chicago actually had music programs in their schools. This is where I first noticed education inequality. Not every school has a music program and this means that a lot of students do not get the opportunity to learn music. If music was appointed as a core subject, then every school board would make sure that this requirement is met and everyone would have the chance they deserve.
Years back the act No Child Left Behind (NCLB) brought atte...
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Music plays a major role in life for most people. It can soothe and excite, encourage sleep and encourage dancing, we can sing to it and ponder it. There are so many different uses of music and so many mediums through which to play it such as Pandora, Spotify, YouTube, etc. Beyond that, more songs every day there are new songs being written. Statistics show that ninety-five percent of all Americans think that music is a core part of a balanced and well-rounded education. The same study showed that ninety-three percent of Americans thought music belonged in the public schooling system, and seventy-nine percent even suggested that music education should be mandatory for all students. Still, studies show that a staggering twenty percent of high school students choose
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The once formerly instructional and practice time for music performance of 30 minutes per day has been shortened in schools or completely eliminated. The amount of time in which music instructors are present to a class immensely shortens their effectiveness capability to teach music material. Nevertheless, the reductions in their profession to teach, elementary school music instructors are still expected to yield similar results within students and their achievements. The main argument behind budget cuts for fine arts departments in elementary schools has been caused by an ever growing focus on higher test results in core curriculum subjects, such as language arts, social studies, science, and math. This logic is highly mistaken; the correlation between early childhood exposure to music and scholastic excellence have been proved and has been acceptable for a vast amount time. “Music competencies achieved from birth to age five assist students in later school experience ” (Colwell 1721), concluded a research conducted by the Perry Early Childhood Education Program. Amy Graziano has proven music education to enhance intellectual ability in abstract fields such as math when entering into early elementary years. Therefore, ongoing budget cuts and layoffs within the fine arts departments of public school systems is inexcusable and absurd. Hypothetically speaking, if school systems proceeded to hire more
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middle of paper ... ... Music was not taught in the high school I was in. To satisfy my interest in learning about music and how to play musical instruments, I had to find a source of education other than school; a great depiction in agreement with Graff’s claim that students are being limited by not considering their interests when creating curricula (Graff 197). In conclusion, education is broader than just falling into what the contemporary school system has to offer. Both Gatto and Graff proved this by explaining how conforming students to certain perspectives of education limits their potential in other educational branches that interest the students.
This country is always saying how everything is done for the future of this country, the children. Then, how come the idea of teaching music wasn’t thought of till then? But at least the USA decided to mandate that the arts be taught in schools from elementary to high school. “Not just in elementary schools or in high schools as electives, but as a comprehensive, sequential curriculum taught by qualified teachers, beginning with pre-school instruction and continuing with required courses for high school graduation (Ivey, 55).” Later, into the 1980’s the United States slowly began to evaluate what music did to the mind. How the mind was scoped by music, what music did to the brain and etc?
Music is a basic part of everyday life. What makes music unique is its ability to create an emotional response in a person. A music education program should develop the aesthetic experience of every student to its highest potential. Aesthetics is the study of the relationship of art to the human senses. Intelligence exists in several areas, which includes music. The concept of aesthetics allows us to see into ourselves, which in turn helps the development of the intelligences. Not only are these intelligences brought up greatly in music education, but they can be transferred to other areas as well, allowing students to grow more through their other subjects.
Students need to be introduced to the power that music has on people. Music allows students to find a whole new confidence when it comes to interaction with other people. Students, especially in the earlier years of education, need to be able to advance these skills in order to make sustainable relationships. These skills can be translated to skills that society uses everyday. Therefore, students must be able to have access to musical
The Importance of Arts Education Jane Alexander, Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), once said, “Many children are missing out on something which gives their education context, gives their lives depth and meaning, and prepares them to be the future workforce.” This “something” that she spoke of is music and art education. Unfortunately, she is entirely correct. We are currently seeing a dramatic cut in arts education curriculum in our public schools due to the limited amount of time and funding. In many cases, budget cutbacks mean arts education cutbacks.
Brown, L. L. (2012, May 25). The Benefits of Music Education. Retrieved September 29, 2017.
For many years, music education has been an important part of elementary and high schools around the country. Recently, many schools have been dropping various music programs because it is thought to be unneeded and too expensive to pay for. What theses schools are not seeing is performance of the students with music in their life. There are many ways that music education impacts students positively because it impacts the brain greatly. Various tests of different skills have come to show that students with music education in their elementary and high schools have shown better scores on tests and knowledge in various places of education than students that do not take or have a music education class.
"The Purpose of Music." EzineArticles Submission - Submit Your Best Quality Original Articles For Massive Exposure, Ezine Publishers Get 25 Free Article Reprints. Web. 23 Feb. 2010. .