Music programs are being cut from the curriculum in public schools to save money and resources, yet a recent study revealed that music aids in children’s mental development and increases learning ability.
A study conducted at the Center for the Study of Human Development at Brown University showed a correlation between children’s early language skills and musical ability.
The study found children as young as 3 could remember words to songs they heard in repetition, proving ability to retain information. When music education is included in schools, research has shown that along with mental development, increased math, English, and science scores prevailed.
According to National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM), the trade association of the international music products industry, a study done at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) on 25,000 students found that students involved in a music program scored higher on standardized tests reading proficiency exams then students with no musical involvement.
The students’ instruction in music revealed non-musical abilities such as literacy, verbal memory, visual perception and spatial processing, mathematics and IQ, NAMM reported on its advocacy website, supportmusic.com.
More than half of Virginia public school students are receiving little to no instruction in music education, according to data collected by the Music Educators National Conference (MENC). By cutting music programs, officials are doing more than just doing away with another deemed “unnecessary” program.
“It’s tragic,” James Borling, director of Music Therapy at Radford University, said. “They are eliminating an opportunity for a lot of kids who are unable or unwilling to participate in traditional activities.”
According to the U.S. Department of Education website, www.ED.gov, $1 trillion was spent nationwide on education for the 2008-2009 school year. Due to the signing of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in 2009, The Department of Education currently oversees $96.8 billion in discretionary funding and $62.6 billion in discretionary appropriations, or money the government sets aside for a specific investment.
The Department of Education reported only 8 percent of the federal budget is put toward elementary and secondary education in the country’s more than 14,000 school districts. That’s 56 million students and 98,000 public schools.
The other 92 percent of elementary and secondary institutions’ funds come from state, local, and private sources. With decreasing support and aid from federal sources, state and local institutions have had to cut back on programs that aren’t considered necessities. Music, art, dance and even physical education programs have recently been the subjects chosen for cutbacks and possible elimination.
More pressure is being put on teachers to boost math and language skills rather than extracurricular subjects such as music and art. The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law enacted in 2002 requires every state to set standards in math and reading, and for students to be skilled in those by 2014.
Elementary and middle school students are tested yearly, and if schools fail to make adequate progress, then they face having to provide tutoring or takeover by the state, and, in some cases, can be completely shut down.
“If we are to adhere to NCLB in content areas, why not the arts as well?” Radford city schools music specialist, Sandy Findley said. “Students learn in a variety of ways, and music education promotes learning aurally, visually, and kinesthetically. Our curriculum must address our music Standards of Learning as well as provide musical material that enhances what the children are learning in other content areas.
An example would be teaching African music to third graders who study Mali and colonial music to fourth graders.” Findley is the music teacher for both McHarg Elementary School and Belle Heth Elementary in Radford.
The four core subjects: Math, English, history, and science– are currently the only subjects that elementary students K-12 are tested on using the government-mandated Standards Of Learning (SOL) proctored tests. Math and English, however, are the only subjects a student is required to pass.
Since 1997, the Board of Education held students, teachers, administration, and school divisions accountable for the results of these tests. There are no standardized tests or official exams for music, art, dance, or physical education yet. The lack of testing and importance put on fine art subjects, has many teachers worried that their jobs are at risk and fearful that their entire programs could be eliminated.
“Until we get on that SOL, we will never be off the chopping block,” R. Wayne Gallops, director of Music Education at Radford University, said.
The New York Times reported in March 2006 that since the passage of the No Child Left Behind law, 71 percent of the nation’s school districts tremendously reduced time spent on history, music and art to make more time for these two subjects.
Studies show that in trying to improve math and language test scores by cutting fine arts programs, scores in those two subjects actually went down. “Cuts in Arts Programs Leave Sour Note in Schools,” an article from the Wisconsin Education Association Council, revealed that schools who cut their music and art programs, had decreased attendance, morale, and even saw an increase in disruptive and violent behavior among students.
“Other subjects do not have the same emotional, physical and mental impact that music does,” Gallops said. He said humans are not wired to be in tune and grow from just a few subjects. “Music provides a different experience and aids in many different processes that can’t be achieved through math, reading, even physical education and athletics alone.”
Programs supporting instruction in music are available for schools that are cutting or wiping out their programs in music. School Music Matters, Vh1 Save the Music Foundation and he National Association for Music Education are among the groups fighting to keep music education in schools. They each donate money, instruments and time to schools in need. Parents and teachers can also fight for music education in schools and encourage their child or student to become more involved with music in their community, teachers said.
Blacksburg Middle School chorus
“Early parental involvement is important,” Charlotte Mckee, music teacher at Blacksburg Middle School said. “Parents can address school boards to stress how important music education is. Music teachers must also do their part to promote their programs by public performances by their groups.”
Some experts say people making decisions about funding are the real problem for music education, not budget cuts and lack of funding from federal sources. “Certain schools are cutting programs, like music, because the people choosing what stays and what goes are not educated enough to make those types of decisions,” Wayne Gallops said. “They’re not listening to researchers and educators on the importance of music and art programs and what studies have shown, so they just eliminate whatever is not required for a student to get out of grade school.”
Gov. Tim Kaine’s proposed budget cuts, a total of $700 million from Virginia’s education system, have affected and are still affecting all teachers, students, and public schools in Virginia, the Roanoke Times reported in a recent article. The federal budget, government officials, and school boards dictate the future of music education and what will become of public schools’ curriculum. “It’s a vicious cycle,” Gallops said. “Money is being spent in the wrong places, students are suffering, and they just don’t get it, and until they do, nothing is going to change.”
