We fail students by minimizing arts

By Millie Turek

They promised the pendulum would swing. That’s what I’ve been told for the last 29 years as an arts educator in the Georgia public school system.

Whenever the next big reform idea came out that (unintentionally) threatened arts education in the state, they said, “Don’t panic, the pendulum will swing and everything will be fine.”

Well, I disagree. The pendulum didn’t swing. Instead, it has been a long, slow, downhill slide.

The latest reminder of this came in a recent article by AJC education columnist Maureen Downey in which she discussed what constitutes a good school.

In her effort to draw attention to the lack of parental outrage over low standardized test scores, Downey cited instances in which parents overlooked low scores because the school boasted a great drama or music program. “Are marching bands, art classes and drama programs acceptable surrogates for strong academic performance?” she asked.

Let me state up front that I agree it is time for parental involvement and parental accountability in the education of children. I agree that it is the parent’s duty (as well as the school system’s job) to know what a child does and doesn’t know. Parents are the No. 1 advocates for and contributors to (and sometimes barrier to) a child’s educational development. Our society decided a long time ago that it was in our best interest to have an “educated” population. Meeting the educational needs of the whole child should be our top goal.

That said, let’s actually go back to basics. What are the basic needs when it comes to becoming a truly “educated” human being? Educators often fantasize about what we would include in a perfect school. I propose the following as basics — reading, writing, arithmetic, a physical education and an aesthetic education. I do not propose these in any order of priority. In my opinion, these are the top tier of needs of an educated human being.

To put it simply: If a child can read, all other subjects are open for exploration. If one can write, one can communicate ideas. All humans need a functioning level in mathematics to survive. One must be educated in the needs of the body to remain healthy. And to fully develop as humans, we must be able to express ourselves aesthetically.

My career in “aesthetic” education has been spent in the area of music. As an undergraduate music education student, I was taught to be able to articulate the need for the study of music for music’s sake. The study of music can serve other academic and social areas — extra-musical areas. I am not addressing those areas, as they can be enhanced by a number of other subjects.

I believe the aesthetic education of every child is a fundamentally essential part of his development as a human being. I believe the human brain is hard-wired for the development of aesthetic expression through the arts. I believe artistic expression left undeveloped in a child leads to underdeveloped humanity. Scientific research on the brain and educational research is just beginning to document the facts and uncover the benefits surrounding artistic development in humans. At present, this research is proving what artists throughout history have known — that there is an organic connection between art and humanity.

Instead of heading toward developing an education system that strives to educate the whole child, Georgia has continued to experiment with one reform after another that has resulted in less access to an aesthetic education for all children.

In the last 30 years, we have “reformed” ourselves through the middle school concept, block scheduling, the Quality Core Curriculum, and the No Child Left Behind Act. Each of these “reforms” has made it more and more difficult for all children to receive an aesthetic education.

The “Pyramid of Intervention” punishes an elementary child who is struggling in math or reading by sacrificing his access to art, music and physical education. The fear of not making Adequate Yearly Progress has led education administrators to lose sight of the whole child, not to mention honesty and integrity in some cases. More and more, arts education is only available to the academically gifted child or economically privileged.

A couple of years ago, I was required to document the time I spent as a high school choral director with students after school hours — not the time I spent planning or calculating grades, but actual time teaching students beyond the school day.

When totaled, the time came to 66 extra eight-hour days between August and May. With my salary supplement, this came to roughly $3.79 per hour. During the school day, I was teaching double the number of students of a regular classroom teacher and working to raise money to pay for the activities and supplies needed to run my classes. I have been a financial bargain for the public school system.

There are many arts educators just like me all over Georgia. While we are confident of the impact an outstanding arts education has had on our students, what has been surprising is the continued misconception that the arts are an expensive frill. Or that parents and administrators who value this part of their child’s education are lacking in prioritizing what is important.

Now with an economic challenge before us, we are in danger of completely losing sight of where we need to go to educate our children. As we struggle to only afford that which is essential, we better know what is essential. We have the opportunity and will to remake ourselves into anything, not just settle for anything we can afford. We can work to make affordable that which is essential for all children.

Despite economic challenges, it’s time to go forward in teaching the whole child. A “good” school is one that gives the child the basic skills to become a lifelong learner. A “good” parent is one who is actively involved in his child’s complete education. A “good” society continues to improve itself through education of the whole human being.


Millie Turek is choral director and fine arts department chair at Fayette’s Sandy Creek High School.