J Tidwell- Lanier M.S.

Student-Led Townhall Meeting 1

Jessica Tidwell

Lanier M.S. Student Townhall

February 21, 2018

Essential, Not Extra: Arts Education is Integral to Academic Success

Hello, my name is Jessica Tidwell. Thank you for being here and listening. When you

were in school did you play an instrument, or take an art class? Do you remember how happy it

made you? Well, I am currently doing both and they make me incredibly happy. I play violin in

my school’s orchestra and am on my school’s dance team and I know many of my peers who

also participate in an art such as band or choir. Do you enjoy going to museums or to the

symphony? If we continue to let the arts slip away, then you won’t be able to enjoy these small

pleasures and many others. Today, I’m going to be talking to you about the restrictions HISD

have put on children by making budget cuts to the arts and putting so much money and emphasis

on test prep.

Over the years, it has been proven that students who participate in a fine art whether it’s

playing an instrument, being in an art class, or being a dancer, have had higher academic

performance in math, reading and science. Researchers at the University of Oregon observed

brain activity of 4-7 year olds and discovered that the arts can train a child’s attention, which

helps later on. Also, Elizabeth Spelke, a neuropsychologist at Harvard University discovered that

children with music training performed well in geometry and map reading. Plus, researchers at

the University of California have proven that when college aged students listen to Mozart for at

least 10 minutes before a test, they do better on certain parts. This is known as the ‘Mozart
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Effect’. Some IQ scores increased by 8 or 9 points after listening to Mozart’s sonata for two

pianos. Also, arts help children develop social skills because for many activities you’re in a

group or on a team and you learn teamwork skills, communication skills, and acceptance. All of

this shows that the arts improve academic performance and can help children in school and later

in life.

While math, reading, and other core classes are important for the students, so are the arts.

I do understand why you would believe that core classes should be put before the elective classes

because you think it’ll make them ‘smarter’ but arts are also incredibly important. You may think

‘Oh, there isn’t a test on it so they don’t need it.’ but for many people, going to their arts class is

their favorite part of the day. A lot of classes focus on just STAAR prep and have made school a

terrible experience for most kids. In one of my classes, recently my teacher told us that we have

finished the curriculum and we will now be focusing and working on just STAAR prep. It has

made me dread going to that class because I know we are just going to be working on passages,

answering questions, and memorizing.

I believe that we should start preserving funding for the arts despite budget cuts because

it really does help. We need art, drama, and music teachers in schools because it is something

other than the horror of the test prep that we are forced to do. It also helps children develop

themselves as human beings rather than just robots who can circle an answer to a question.

Elective teachers are sometimes considered ‘extra’ and many core class teachers think that if we

miss something in their class than we can just skip our fine art class to come make it up but for

many of those classes, they are preparing for something else on a deadline too. It could be a

performance, a competition, a show, etc. Elective teachers get frustrated that they are considered
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not as important and that their class isn’t as necessary as core classes. They are doing the same

thing and teaching students, just like other teachers, but are considered ‘extra’. They don’t even

have many of these teachers in many low-income neighborhood schools because they are not

provided with the funding to employ teachers but in low-income communities and schools,

enriched learning through arts education in schools are even more important, because many

parents cannot afford private lessons for their children.

Some solutions could be that money is just set aside every year for these teachers and I

understand that it’s not easy to take money from other programs but we could take donations

from student families, or have benefits to raise money and awareness for the serious problem that

is the arts slipping away from many schools. I know that in low-income communities this is not

realistic because parents don’t have a lot of money to donate to their child’s school but there is a

possibility that these schools could get sponsors or team up with different programs that could

bring in arts programs into their schools. This could help get national funding for the school

which would help a lot but it’s still HISD’s responsibility to help out these schools. It is essential

that HISD enforces the arts into every schools’ curriculum so the students get a proper arts

education. I know that my school’s debate team has had very little funding and almost all of their

money comes from parent donations of several thousand dollars. They are even facing the

chance of not being able to go to their national tournament even though they qualify because

they can’t afford it.

The definition of ‘art’ is the expression or application of human creative skill and

imagination producing work to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power.
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HISD is limiting kids so all that they learn in twelve years of school is how to take tests rather

than use their imagination and apply creativity to their everyday lives. In low-income

neighborhood schools, all they do every day is test prep. They are pushed and pushed to

memorize for tests but it doesn’t work. To fully comprehend a subject or topic, most kids need

hands-on or enriched learning that they can relate to their to everyday life. If all they do is test

prep, they’ll never really get the topic and it won’t help in the future or on tests. It’s a vicious

cycle that needs to be put to an end.

Today in a classroom we can see teachers teaching students how to take a test not how to

deal with real life situations. Arts have everything to do with today’s society. They provide

opportunities such as jobs dealing with STEM and help the people become individuals and learn

how to deal with situations in real life that don’t have four answer choices. Creativity motivates

us and puts us in the mindset to reach and strive for our goals. Do you really want to take that

away from your future leaders?