How Many Schools in America Do Not Have Athletics or Fine Arts

The decline in music and arts courses in our schools is shocking. Even the most stressed-out classroom teacher volition admit music and arts teachers have it worse than the residue of us. All teachers face the abiding pressure of mandates that force us to dumb downwards educational activity and middle on teaching-to-the-test.

All of united states of america work in an environment of cronyism where teachers who speak out on the real problems in education are the target of intimidation and bullying past administrators to exist silent. Teachers across the nation cringe every time we meet an ambassador alter a declining form to passing, because nosotros know how much that hurts the child.

But on tiptop of all this, music, arts, and electives teachers have to face the constant threat of eliminating their courses entirely. The worst role is knowing that cancellation is almost ever based on 2 deliberate and intentionally misleading lies by school administrators covering upwards the real reasons for cancelation.

For extended versions of this and other D. A. Russell blogs about
the existent issues in today's education arrangement, please visit: Lifting the Curtain

The big prevarication -- cancellation is a funding issue

In the urban high schools I researched over three years before writing Lifting the Pall: The disgrace we call urban loftier school educational activity, almost all of them had eliminated all arts, music, and electives during ninth and 10th grades. Hundreds of subsequent emails and posts reported the aforementioned in eye schools. In each case the reason given was "... a lack of funding." Simply the real story was that funding had zero to exercise with the cancellation -- no matter what funding was available, there was no room in the curricula for these courses anymore. The elective class periods had all been preempted for standardized exam prep.

Look at a typical 5-class freshman or sophomore day in school 20 years ago:

• Math
• English language
• Scientific discipline
• History
• Electives

The electives slot was the joy for children. Here is where we painted, crafted, and learned about music. Hither were study halls and gym (more than than just one day per week). But wait at the same 5-course schedule today:

• Math
• English
• Science
• History
• Standardized exam preparation

The existent reason for canceling arts and music now becomes clear. Disingenuous administrators claim it is a "upkeep" event. But their real reason has zero to practise with budgets -- information technology's that in that location are no open freshman or sophomore open up grade slots for electives, because all are existence used for examination prep.

In near urban high schools, there are no electives, music, or arts courses in the freshman and sophomore years. Simply in the concluding ii years of high school, after the standard exam are over, does a period become available for electives. But sadly, any constituent that requires continuity and a progression of skills, like music and the arts, are no longer possible. It is alike to a football programme - y'all sometimes go a freshman star, but the heart of a skilful squad is the seniors who take been in the program for four years of evolution. A ii-twelvemonth football program will not exist very proficient. A ii-twelvemonth band will take a hard time playing anything John Philip Sousa would be able to recognize.

The little lie - music and arts are too expensive

The second lie is one that sounds reasonable - music and arts are far too expensive for today's schoolhouse budgets. After all, it is truthful that equipping a large band or orchestra is expensive. Only schoolhouse administrators intentionally exit out an important factor in their endeavour to hide the need for test grooming classes. Today's children dear the low-upkeep music appreciation and arts courses, non the loftier-cost operation courses that administrators use as a blood-red herring. At that place are plenty of peachy opportunities for music and arts without needing to buy 76 trombones!

The Bottom Line

So, we have hit upon yet another unintended issue of mandates that shortchange our children. In urban high schools across the nation, the freshman and sophomore children have at least i course each day dedicated to helping pass standardized testing - often i for both English and one for Math. This leaves no room for freshman or sophomore electives, art or music. Many schools are looking to add more exam grooming classes for bio, chemistry, and history as those topics become part of standardized testing. In New York, a governor with no understanding of didactics and classroom realities is fifty-fifty looking at adding tests for music. And reprehensibly, many of the schools that all the same merits to have music and arts programs (largely in 11th and 12th grades, only) care for them as second class citizens with little support.

Nationwide, administrators focus but on protecting their positions and the school'due south status by concentrating curricula on passing the tests, rather than helping teachers be freed up from micromanaging mandates so those same teachers could teach over again in their classrooms, making test prep classes unnecessary.

So do the math - who loses when i or two classes each solar day are tied upwards with remedial test prep training? Where is there a infinite for artistic writing? For police? For minor business organisation bug? For psychology? Where is tin we fit band, art, home economics, study hall, or carpentry?

Once again, the real reason for the loss of arts and music in our schools is elementary - also many mandates trying to compete for too little time. The career DoE bureaucrats exercise not empathize something as obvious as that 7-viii classes cannot fit into a 5-half dozen class day - and our children are the losers.

We need to set this.

KIRKUS and CLARION both praise the acclaimed book "...from the unique perspective of a classroom teacher" about our declining instruction system: Lifting the Curtain: The disgrace we phone call urban high school education. The 2nd edition includes dozens of teacher submissions from across the The states and nine
new chapters. Please get a re-create HERE or on Amazon.