Arts In Schools

The arts have always been a staple of American education. High school plays, musicals, and art shows have been put on by generation after generation. These events, along with things like band and music classes are weaved into high school tradition, and are what make student’s experiences in school memorable and enjoyable. These arts programs can be life changing, and multiple studies have shown that participation in the arts improves students’ performance overall. So why, then, are arts programs being cut? Why are they being ignored, and what can be done to shift the focus of schools towards a more creative and artsy curriculum?
Before you can brainstorm solutions, you have to look at the problem which, to put it simply, is this: When schools
Art education has been shown to improve students’ overall performance, including in the core subjects and standardized tests that are so critical in today’s schools. In a study performed by The College Board, on average, students who took four years of art classes scored 91 points higher on SAT exams than those who took half a year or less (Hawkins). Perhaps this improvement has to do with the positive mental effects of art that counteract the negative ones caused by pressure to excel. Art can be a healing force for people with mental disorders, and can contribute to psychological well-being of people regardless of whether they have a mental disorder or not (Friedman). Art programs bring back enjoyment and happiness into the intense and unforgiving core classrooms. A love and passion for the arts can be what motivates students to attend and work hard in class, and makes school less of a burden to kids struggling with stress and mental illnesses. Schools with arts programs have higher graduation rates, as the combination of motivation and closer ties with peers and the community created by said art programs can be game changing in terms of education, and greatly improve the chances of graduating -especially in low-performance students (Metla). With higher graduation rates, there’s more opportunity for quality jobs in the future,
At this point, it’s easy to see just how impactful the arts can be, and quite a bit more difficult to see why nothing is being done about the drastic situation we’re in. Thankfully, there are some short term saviors like private funds and patrons of the arts that are willing to fund art classes across the country (Hambek). People will donate money to the schools that goes to materials, teacher salaries, and other necessities for a quality art program. Their kindness and generosity is much appreciated, but it can’t last forever. Eventually, private funds could run out, or patrons could get sick of dealing with other people’s problems. At some point in time, the schools themselves will have to step up and take action if they really want to change things. New York for example, has taken matters into their own hands by implementing in depth art programs modeled after private schools and using different methods to expose children to art (Metla). These schools are hopefully just the beginning. While it will surely take quite a bit of effort, the goal of this charter school experiment is to spread these sorts of programs throughout public and any private schools that have strayed away from a focus on