The Arts Programs in American Public
Schools: Why it is diminishing and the students’ results
Nine in ten American adults believe that it is important for students to receive an education in the arts—including dance, media arts, music, theater, and visual arts—as part of the curriculum in all of their schooling. Rightfully so, as it has been proven over and over again to positively impact the child in multiple areas of life, including academics. However, despite its importance, only 61 percent of Americans believe that students in their area have enough access to the arts. The areas that have the biggest concern regarding the arts education curriculum are people that live in low income and rural areas. Art education in public schools has the ability to cultivate creativity in students and empower them to use their voice with courage. Art develops the critical problem solving and communication skills of students that are vital in creating today’s complex society. The following essay will display how important art education is in the elementary classroom, the specific ways it positively affects a student and how one’s worldview—no matter what field of study—can affect the way they view the world.
History
Art has been a part of American culture for as long as the country has existed. We have always been able to express ourselves and pass down history from generation to generation through various forms of art. However, art programs in public schools have not always been implemented into the classroom, due to the societal rank of art in education. In very early times, the arts were either learned through group rituals that were an essential part of worship or taught to a few through difficult and laborious teachings (Efland, 1990, p. 1). While some societies thought of the arts only for the highest social elite, others thought it was only for the slaves and the lowest ranking of people in their town. Therefore, the history of art education is greatly affected by each specific region’s social status of studying the visual arts (p. 2).
Many societies created specific institutions that would carry out the tasks that the powerful officials desired. For example, during the Middle Ages, art education was regulated by the craft guilds. Therefore, the citizens’ learning would be based off of what the craft guilds wanted their society to learn. In the 16th and 17th centuries, the secular court sponsored the art academics and the music that was then beginning to build. In today’s time, there is a complex network of both formal and informal institutions that allow for great diversity throughout the arts programs, such as professional art schools, museums, liberal arts colleges, the mass media, and many more. However, in order to understand more about public elementary education art classes, it is imperative to understand what has been happening these last few decades.
The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) of 2001was signed into law by President George W. Bush on January 8, 2002. The U.S. Department of Education describes NCLB act being based on four principles: stronger accountability for results, more freedom for states and communities, encouraging proven education methods and more choices for parents (____________). One of the main objectives of the NCLB act is to close achievement gaps between students by bringing all students—regardless of race, ethnicity, gender or income—to the “proficient” level on state standardized tests by the end of 2014’s school year. It was signed into action based on the belief that setting high standards and establishing measurable goals could improve individual outcomes in education. However, this act is mainly built in the hopes of seeing the improvement in the standardized test scores. If the test scores weren’t raised, then funding for that district could be cut. This is one of the main reasons why art has been cut from school districts. Teachers need to spend their time in the classroom “teaching the test” in order for their students’ scores to raise and to ensure their jobs were safe. Teachers and administrators now have no time to teach subjects like art and theatre because other subjects are, essentially, more important for them to teach.
Struggles Within the Arts Programs
This is why the arts are continuously struggling to survive in public elementary schools. Even though many people believe implementing an art education in the classroom is important, the federal funding for this program has been increasingly cut over the years. On February 7, 2017, Elisabeth P. ‘Betsy’ DeVos was confirmed by the U.S. Senate as the U.S. Secretary of Education. Ms. DeVos’s background in the school choice movement and her testimony before the Senate education committee indicates a desire to redirect public investment away from our nation’s public school system and toward private schools. However, due to the efforts of parents who value arts programs, privately funded programs have been maintained in wealthier school districts (____________). Consequentially, there are high quality programs in the private schools and low quality, or in some cases no art programs at all, in the public schools. This inadequate funding has caused many other hardships for the program as well.
In California, 60% of districts surveyed by the Legislative Analysts Office in 2009 had taken Arts and Music Block Grant funds away from arts and music programs. 20% of those districts cut their programs altogether (Legislative Analyst’s Office, 2011). Also, more than one million students were enrolled in school music programs in the year 2000. When surveyed again just eight years later in 2008, that number had dropped by 57% to 470,000. One of the major cities in the world, New York, is also failing in art education. The city’s Public School system’s unsatisfactory condition due to lack of resources and funding is very evident. One out of every four public elementary schools in New York City are operating without an art teacher. Meanwhile, funding for art materials in this city has declined by 80% (________________). These statistics are from California and New York, two of the most populous and wealthiest states in the country, and demonstrate how we, as a nation, are lacking in this area of study.
The Specific Funding Breakdown. Federal funding for the arts and humanities is given to the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). The NEA has already undergone significant budget cuts following the recession — their funding is 14 percent lower than in 2010—currently receiving about $250 million a year. Although it sounds like a pretty substantial amount of money, when it is being compared with the National Science Foundation, which is funded around $5 billion, it doesn't compare. Additionally, when President Donald Trump was elected as the United States President, he vocalized potentially cutting funding for the arts programs altogether. The arts programs account for .002% of the nearly $4 trillion federal budget (Donnelly, 2017, para. 6). Essentially, there would be many more areas that he would need to cut in order for it to make any sort of difference in the federal budget. Defunding the NEA would also cut already-scarce resources for the arts in underrepresented and low-income communities. According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, 40% of the activities it supports take place in high-poverty neighborhoods. The BEA also stated that defunding the NEA would put nearly 5 million people (employed by the arts and culture economy) out of a job. When the BEA studied the impact of the arts economy, they found that arts and cultural production contributed more than $704 billion to the U.S. Economy, greater than the contributions of the construction, transportation and warehousing industries (Donnelly, 2017, table 2).
However, with that $250 million a year that the arts programs receive, most of the budget goes straight to the music programs. In 2009–10, most of the nation’s public elementary schools offered instruction that was designated specifically for music and visual arts (94 and 83 percent). In comparison, 3% of elementary schools offered instruction that was designated specifically for dance, and 4% offered instruction that was designated specifically for drama/theatre (Parsad, 2012, table 1). Therefore, even within the arts program, the classes and resources aren't being spread out equally. Additionally, the separation gap between arts programs in public schools increased as the students eligible for free or reduced-priced lunch increased (Parsad, 2012, p. 14).
Importance of Art in Child Development
There is an urban school located in the South Bronx that decided to have The Bronx Dance Theater’s education director come in to teach ballet twice a week to a 4th-grade class that had the lowest reading scores in the city. After a year of ballet lessons, the children’s reading scores increased. This seemed to those involved certain proof that learning dance had a positive effect on the students’ reading scores. However, when the principal of the school approved the visits from the Bronx Dance Theater, she had one requirement: that the visiting artist come on Mondays and Fridays—the two most frequently skipped days of the week. With the dance teacher visiting, attendance on Mondays and Fridays was greatly increased (Davis, 2008, p. 46). These kids had interest in school again, which leads to a positive school environment and increased productivity in the classroom. There are hundreds of more examples just like this one that successfully display what the arts programs have been proven to do. However, instead of listening to them all, here are the primary ways in which the arts programs help the average student.
Motor Skills: Many of the motions involved in making art, such as holding a paintbrush or scribbling with a crayon, are really essential to the growth of fine motor skills in young children. According to the National Institutes of Health, developmental milestones around age four usually include children being able to draw a square and begin cutting straight lines with scissors. Many preschool programs emphasize the use of scissors because it develops the dexterity children will need for improving literacy skills. A recent study found that the development of literacy skills among pre-kindergarteners was fostered when the children were allowed to act out their favorite stories (Moore & Caldwell, 2002). Drama can also be an effective method to develop and improve the quality of children’s narrative writing. As a “warm-up” writing exercise, second and third grade students used poetry, games, movement and improvisation to act out their story ideas, which also contributed to their improved performance.
Inventiveness and Decision Making: When kids are encouraged to express themselves and take risks in creating art, they develop a sense of innovation that will be extremely important in their adult lives. “The kind of people society needs to make it move forward are thinking, inventive people who seek new ways and improvements, not people who can only follow directions,” says MaryAnn Kohl, an arts educator and author of numerous books about children’s art education. According to a report by Americans for the Arts, art education also strengthens problem-solving and critical-thinking skills (____________). These experiences of making decisions and choices in the course of creating art additionally carries over into one’s adult life. If each child has the opportunity to explore to think and try new ideas, then creativity has a chance to break through and make a difference in his/her life.
Socioemotional Skills: There was a study done on a group of boys, ages 8 to 19, that were living in residential homes and juvenile detention centers for at-risk youth. They taught the boys how to play guitar and told them they needed to play in front of their peers. The researchers found that learning to play guitar and performing ended up boosting these young boys’ confidence and self-esteem. The research also suggested that the opportunity to perform might actually be a powerful tool to help young adults overcome fears and see that they can succeed. The same researchers did a similar study on the same juvenile offenders regarding dance. Once study showed that when a group of around 60 teenagers, ages 13-17 participated in jazz and hip hop dance classes twice weekly for 10 weeks, they reported a significant positive difference in confidence, tolerance and persistence related to the dance experience.
Improved Academic Performance: Lastly, and some would argue most importantly, studies show that there is a direct correlation between art and academic achievement. A report by Americans for the Arts states that young people who participate regularly in the arts (three hours a day on three days each week through one full year) are four times more likely to be recognized for academic achievement, to participate in a math and science fair or to win an award for writing an essay or poem than children who do not participate in the arts. Student involvement in the arts is also linked to increased standardized test scores, greater involvement in community service and lower dropout rates, regardless of socioeconomic status (Catterall, 1997).
Arts participation and SAT scores tend to increase linearly: the more arts classes, the higher the scores. This is clearly shown in the 2005 results when students who took four years of arts coursework outperformed their peers who had one half-year or less of arts coursework by 58 points on the verbal portion and 38 points on the math portion of the SAT. One possible explanation for this is that musical training in rhythm can emphasize proportion, patterns and ratios expressed as mathematical relations, therefore allowing a student to understand math and reasoning in a more relatable way. Students who attend schools where the arts were integrated into classroom curriculum outperform their peers in math and reading who did not have an arts-integrated education.
The Academic Success of Finland. Arts and music education programs are mandatory in countries that rank consistently among the highest for math and science test scores, like Japan, Hungary, and the Netherlands. Finland is also a country that outscores many other countries each year, and yet they don't take any mandated standardized tests besides one at the end of their high school senior year. Finland’s schools don’t have rankings, comparisons or competition between students, schools or regions and actually spend fewer hours in the classroom than Americans. Pasi Sahlberg, a former math and physics teacher who is now in Finland’s Ministry of Education and Culture, stated that their country are not interested in the scores they receive each year on their PISA (Program for International Student Assessment) because, in his words, “it’s not what we are about.” He said later that, “we prepare children to learn how to learn, not how to take a test.” In the 2015 PISA scores, the nation came fourth in reading, fifth in science and ninth in math. In addition to this, their average level of student life satisfaction ranks fifth, which demonstrates their ability to learn extremely well and enjoy doing it (Education GPS, 2015). As reported by the McGraw-Hill Research Foundation, a recent study conducted by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) suggests that if the U.S. could boost its average PISA scores by 25 points over the next 20 years, it could lead to a gain of $41 trillion for the U.S. economy over the lifetime of the generation born in 2010. Therein lies the solution to every major problem facing the American people — including the economy, job creation and terrorism awareness.
Worldview
Each person bases his or her opinion off of their own worldview. It essentially is the force behind every thought in the mind. A worldview is simply one’s view of the world, which accumulates through their own previous experiences and ultimately helps provide a foundation for a set of values or beliefs that one person holds (Noebel, 2009, para. 5). There are a few common world views held by the majority of people in the world of education, two of them relating to humanist and postmodernist perspectives. Public education and school districts have grasped these ideas and fully implemented them into the school districts, taking out every religious aspect they could. This, in turn, conflicts with a Christian worldview because the students are now being taught that supernatural beliefs are falsified and that humans are the center and most important beings in the universe. This has an enormous effect on our education system and is impacting our students greatly.
Humanism. Beginning with defining humanism, it might be easiest to start with saying that humanism is the study or practice of humankind. It puts man at the highest honor and believes that it is our duty and responsibility to “lead ethical lives of personal fulfillment that aspire to the greater good of humanity” (American Humanist Association, 2017). Humanism derives one’s aspirations in life from one’s own human needs and interests and urges the need to take hold of your own destiny, rather than from any theological superstitions or beliefs.
The way in which the humanistic perspective is seen most clearly in the classroom is the need for people to help themselves. It is always important for a child to be self-sufficient, but the humanistic approach emphasizes that a person can be solely responsible for their own happiness. They don’t need anyone or anything more than themselves in order to reach complete happiness. This can be beneficial in some ways, but ultimately humankind is not the most powerful creation in the universe and ultimately cannot fully satisfy their craving for ultimate happiness. This is where it conflicts with a Christian worldview and can make it difficult in a classroom to try and present both perspectives.
Post modernism. Post modernism is essentially a worldview claiming that no worldview exists. It is an idea that questions our knowledge of truth and reality, believing that these two things are individually shaped to one’s own culture, religion, social class and personal history (Cornell, 2006, para. 3). This in turn makes it a socially constructed idea. By claiming a universal meaning, it is viewed as a form of oppressing other’s rights and ideologies of their perspective of the universe.
Although both of these world views are being presented today in the elementary classroom, the post modernist worldview is impacting the students in a greater way. Post modernism is exemplified in the classroom by having the students respond to questions or prompts critically and creatively while having no student be right or wrong. Teachers are increasingly being taught how to decrease competitive mindsets in the classroom by not having “winners” or “losers” in order to avoid neglecting a fellow peer’s opinion and maintain their pride. Johnson and Johnson state that we are preparing students for the “real world” by putting them in artificially constructed competitive situations, imposing on them a specifically biased world-view. If we create a more cooperative environment in our schools we create the likelihood of a more cooperative future; however if we continue doing the opposite, we are continuously creating a more competitive future (Johnson & Johnson, 2006). This is the way in which our country is moving as a whole, whether we are on board with it or not.
Postmodern educators also focus on individual differences in learning rather than “uniformity of thought, knowledge, practice, and curriculum” (Park, 2014). They identify and respond to students with different learning styles, which I believe emphasizes the idea that each person was made unique in the image of God. There isn’t one correct or uniformed way of spreading God’s Word to one another. Each person receives and understands God’s Word differently, which is why it takes Christians in all walks of life to teach His message in the best way they can to that specific listener. The message is still the same, just as the school content is still the same, but the way in which one explains and understands it is different.
Christian Worldview. Public elementary schools can arguably be called “the largest single mission field in America” (Brown, 2016, para 1). It is evident that everyone does not see the schools in this way. People that hold a Christian worldview—people who base their ideas of what is right and wrong according to the Bible and its teachings—are more likely to believe in this statement and act accordingly. However, the Christian ideas and teachings have been cut from the public school systems and replaced with a new worldview dealing with humanism. These two ideas conflict and cause confusion in many people’s lives because both Christianity and humanism have different definitions of what is right and what is wrong. The following essay will explore more about what having a Christian worldview means and how it can clash with some main concepts of what is being taught in schools.
Looking at the world through the lens of a Christian embodies having a set of beliefs based on what Christ has taught us and shown us through the Bible. It contains a few basic elements. First, they believe that an absolute God exists and that He created our universe. This means that God is separate from creation and not a part of the created order. They also believe that man is created in God’s image, which indicates that all people on this Earth are worthy of respect and honor. Lastly, Christians believe that mankind has fallen and that our only hope of redemption is through Jesus Christ (Slick, 2008, para 16).
These main facts don’t change much in this religion, but there are variations of how people choose to live this out. One example would be how teachers find various ways to love on their students in the classroom without breaking any laws. It can be tough to figure out exactly how to execute this in public elementary schools, but some examples include praying with colleagues during breaks, leading religious clubs after school for students, and even just leaving a Bible out on their desk to provoke curiosity in the students. I think the best way to go about promoting Christianity throughout everyday life and also in the classroom is by being subtle, but intentional. Subtlety is effective because it provokes curiosity and allows the person to approach you and ask questions, instead of confronting and attacking the person with brand new ideas. Also, being intentional is extremely important because finding those opportunities to present people with Christianity—whether it is a Bible passage during Language Arts or leaving Christian music playing during recess—can make or break one’s future worldview. Teachers can be a part of planting this seed of Christianity in students who may not have any idea what the religion is about. In this way, Christian teachers have the ability to really impact education as a whole and change the way kids and their colleagues see the world.
Another way displaying a Christian worldview has the power to change education is by showing the students a clear definition of what is right and wrong in a world that has done a great job with blurring these two ideas together. What is being taught in school right now is called humanism, which basically derives one’s aspirations in life from one’s own human needs and interests. It pushes the need to take hold of your own destiny, rather than from any theological superstitions or beliefs (Algozzine et al, 2008, p 93). Although this can be beneficial in the classroom in regards to a student becoming more independent with his or her thoughts and actions, it relies too heavily on a person’s morality to do the “right thing,” when a lot of the times they don’t even know what that would even be. These kids haven’t been taught to base their decisions on how Jesus would act when He was here on Earth, but instead base their decisions on what would be the socially correct thing to do. With social currencies changing all the time, it puts doubt and confusion in one’s mind that have no religious foundation. God made it clear to us what is right and wrong for pretty much all circumstances here on Earth, creating little room for feelings of uncertainty.
As one can see, a worldview shapes how we view the world. A Christian worldview, which was explained above, has the power to positively impact so many people’s lives and display God’s love throughout our earthly and flawed world. It conflicts with other world views, such as the humanistic approach that is being taught in the public education classrooms, but we have the ability to alter it. As Christian teachers, there are many different ways to demonstrate God’s love to students and it is so important because it could be the first time these children are being exposed to Christianity. It is easy to implement these subtle, yet intentional actions into everyday life by just being aware of the surrounding area and to always make sure we are acting in a way that Christ would approve of.
Discussion
Although art has been around for thousands of years, it has had various significance throughout its time. In some some societies, it has held the utmost respect and in others, it was only for the lowest ranking of people. Today, it is losing its significance in society and is being pulled out of a lot of districts. We have decided that teaching how to answer test questions in elementary school is more important than using our unique, creative abilities to figure our strengths and abilities on our own.