No Child Left Behind Argumentative Essay

In his eight book of Politics, Greek philosopher and scientist Aristotle defined his core branches of study for a well-versed, well-rounded, and well-educated scholar. These included reading and writing, as to be expected, but also exercise, music, and drawing. In his own words, “Art is identical with a state of capacity to make, involving a true course of reasoning.” In our modern world however, this ancient wisdom is lost. While pure in intention, recent governmental programs, such as No Child Left Behind, have created an environment hostile for any course not in direct relation to reading or math. These cuts have been felt most strong in lower income schools, where a drop in fine arts relates to lower graduation rates and overall academic performance. On the surface, The No Child Left Behind act would appear to encourage fine arts classes. Rod Paige, the Former Secretary of
Misguided tunnel vision on core academics means the elimination of all other electives, which in turn harms students in the long run. According to a recent study by the National Endowment for the Arts, low income youth exposed to art outperform their peers at an exceptional rate. Those with this exposure are ten percent more likely to complete a high school calculus course, three times more likely to earn a bachelor’s degree and twice as likely to take part in academic extracurricular. And that’s just the beginning. As a society, we are all set to benefits from arts education. States implementing fine arts programs for at-risk 4th through 12th graders have already seen a near doubling of their financial investment, through increased tax revenue, youth volunteering, fewer youth court referrals, and the creation of a more well-rounded