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Sunday, December 7, 2003

The importance of art in education

By Kenneth Sockwell/Special to the Press Dispatch

There is no doubt that the arts have an important place in every culture. We are surrounded wherever we go with music, paintings, dramatic presentations and other artistic expressions. It's even been said that without art, there is little reason for existence.

In education, however, the visual and performing arts have often been thought of as extra-curricular or enrichment, something extra to do if the teacher has time. In many school districts, band and choir are the first classes that are cut from the schedule when money is in short supply. Once eliminated, it is difficult to reinstate these programs.

In the 1998 California State Visual and Performing Arts adoption report, the State Board of Education put forth the bold premise that the arts are "core subjects" and should be taught to all students along side the traditional reading, writing and arithmetic. They encouraged schools to offer a comprehensive arts program that contains a rich body of knowledge from each of the arts disciplines; dance, music, theater and the visual arts, and that, in turn, supports and enhances learning in the other core subjects.

Furthermore, students applying to the University of California and other colleges must have approved visual and performing arts classes on their transcripts before they can be admitted. It seems that the tide is turning and the arts are finally being recognized as an important part of education. There is much research to support that students who are active in the arts do better in their core subjects.

According to the 1999 "Profiles of SAT and Achievement Test Takers" from the college board, music students continue to outperform their non-arts peers on the SAT; students with coursework in music study or appreciation scored 61 points higher on the verbal portion of the test and 42 points higher on the math portion than students with no coursework or experience in the arts. In the younger grades, dance, music and art develop critical hand-eye-coordination skills, improved comprehension in math, social studies and language arts.

One study shows that upon integration of the arts into major subjects at 14 New York elementary and secondary public schools, student behavior improved strikingly in such areas as cooperating, problem solving, taking initiative for learning and being prepared.

There are several steps that parents can take to help their children reap the benefits of an arts education.

First of all, encourage your school district to maintain in-class, standards-based music and arts programs for elementary grades.

Provide opportunities for your student to take private or class music lessons beginning around age 10.

Finally, praise and encourage the artistic creativity of your children. Their test scores will reflect their involvement.

For more information and to view any of the state standards for visual and performing arts, visit http://www.cde.ca.gov.

Kenneth Sockwell is the visual and performing arts department chairman at the Academy for Academic Excellence, where he teaches instrumental music and theory.

Used with permission by Daily Press, Freedom Communication, 2003