Regarding the Status of Arts Teachers and Disciplines in Schools
A Position Paper for Discussion
By Dr. Sue Snyder
The terms "art specialist," "music specialist," "arts specials," are ubiquitous in school settings from Pre-K through high school, and in pre-service and in-service teacher training. While these teachers (and the arts disciplines) are indeed "special," the label has become a reflection of second-class status. Arts educators are asked to generate arts products for entertainment and public relations, but often there is no understanding that these products should be the result of learning processes in the arts. In this article I will set forth evidence that the arts faculty and disciplines should be equal partners in schools and curriculum.
Typical Program Characteristics
In my work with school districts and education programs, the following characteristics are the norm.
- Arts teachers and disciplines are called "specialists" and "specials." While they can be considered special because of their richness, ability to take thinking to a higher level, and student liking; the label represents a marginalized view of these teachers and the disciplines as entertainment for students rather than core curricular education.
- Arts are most frequently scheduled to provide compensatory preparation time for classroom teachers, rather than planned for student benefit, or teaching/learning in the art discipline.
- The minimum time possible for each art is scheduled, particularly in elementary grades. At the elementary level, this practice eliminates the possibilities of classroom teachers attending arts classes with their students, or of arts teachers planning with classroom teachers.
- Often there is no music or art instruction in the early grades, where arts experiences are critical for developing brains. Most classroom teachers have inadequate training in the arts, and while they may be able to superficially teach through the arts, are not comfortable or willing to teach in the arts of music, movement, or visual art.
- In the middle school, arts blocks are often scheduled for 1/2, 1/3, or 1/4 of the school year. This would never be allowed in language arts, but is considered appropriate practice to develop literacy in the languages of the sound, image, and gesture. In music, students involved in instrumental ensembles may not be permitted to participate in chorus or general music, and those scheduled for general music may be forced to attend because they aren't interested in ensemble experiences. In the middle school, as teachers tend to become compartmentalized, there is even less chance than in elementary that the arts will be part of teaching and learning across the curriculum.
- In the high school, arts are usually elective, and reserved only for those who have interest. Many states have a requirement for one-half to one arts credit for graduation, which may be earned through technology as well.
- Arts teachers are often scheduled to teach in more than one school, with no specified home base. When there is school-based planning, meetings are often held when they are at the "other" school. This is often not intentional, just an oversight because they are not considered equal in the decision making process.
- Art and music rooms are often used for other purposes, or the arts teacher has no room at all, delivering instruction from class to class on a traveling cart. The arts teacher may have no secure desk or permanent room in which to work with students, display student products, or do planning.
- Arts schedules are inappropriate for arts content and standards, which are often mandated by the district, state, and national guidelines. If one 30 minute class a week is not enough to teach word literacy, then it is not enough to teach music, visual art, or movement literacy either. As languages with unique symbol systems, each of these disciplines should be afforded equal time.
- Administrators, board of education members, other teachers, and the community at large have little to no understanding of the purpose of the arts, and less skills and understandings. This lack of understanding leads to inappropriate requests, expectations, and scheduling; and a general lack of support for the arts teacher. Arts teachers are rarely consulted when schedules are determined, nor are their complaints grounds for serious problem solving.
- Arts teachers and programs are often first on the chopping block when budgets get tight. If the arts were considered curricular equals, there would be equal cuts across curricular disciplines, programs, and staff.
- In many settings, the arts are considered extra-curricular, rather than part of the core curriculum. This is in spite of the arts' specification as core disciplines in Goals 2000, and other federally outlined programs.
- Dance/Movement is usually part of the physical education program, taught by individuals who have no training or experience in movement, and are mostly interested in organized sports.
- Drama is rarely a staffed position.
- The lower socio-economic status of the school community, the less arts education is provided. While the above is the norm, many private, magnet, and grant-funded schools have strong arts programs.
Evidence of Arts Education's Importance
These characteristics continue to exist in light of an ever-growing mountain of evidence that the arts are essential human forms of communication, and are strongly linked to all learning. In a society that clamors for values clarification, community building, higher order thinking, task commitment, and reaching out to different learners; the arts provide tried and true pathways to success. It has been suggested that the arts should be at the core of the curriculum, and the hub of the school. (It has also been suggested that students be at the center of the curriculum, another unique, sensible, and overlooked possibility that would raise the status of the arts based on student interest.) This evidence includes the following.
- Early experiences in the arts (music, visual art, dance, and drama) build brains that are more able to receive, process, and use visual, aural, and kinesthetic information. This is growth to last a lifetime, and there are critical periods before age 9 for developing sound, image, and movement neural networks.
- Learning in the arts is brains-on, hands-on, and helps children develop the processes of creating, performing, and responding. These artistic processes become a lab for learning in all disciplines. The artistic processes are linked to higher order thinking and creativity.
- Musical, visual art, and movement skills such as singing, playing instruments, moving, and drawing, when developed sequentially over time, are linked to higher achievement, higher motivation, and liking of school. Research has shown that there are strong links between arts activities and many other skills and understandings. The more arts, the more success.
- In high poverty and urban schools, students in arts-rich programs outperform students in arts-poor programs on virtually every measure. Students in schools that have strong arts programs score higher on high stakes tests. More important, these students are more successful in life.
- The arts are preferred ways of learning and knowing for many students who fail in traditional schools.
- The arts are often cited as motivating factors that keep students in school through the middle and high school years. They are equally important for low, average, and high achieving students; and particularly for high creative students who can always see (hear, or feel) more than one right answer.
- The arts build self-esteem and the ability to think independently. They also build both the ability to work alone and to collaborate in communal activities that build a sense of belonging.
- Students involved in the arts at the high school level score higher on SATs and other standardized, high-stakes tests. The more years of involvement, the higher the average scores. Involvement in high school is almost always linked to experiences in lower grades that build liking, understandings, and skills.
Possibilities for Effecting Change
If arts teachers and the arts disciplines are marginalized, the message to students and society is that they are not important. However, the evidence above (only the tip of the iceberg), should suggest that the arts are essential to learning, and trained arts teachers are necessary to deliver adequate instruction. Education in the arts must be sequential and consistent to have positive effects.
There are many pressures on schools today, and if meaningful arts education is going to occur, it must be intended, planned, and managed. Changes must be made. What might be done to change the discrepancy between the importance of the arts and arts educators, and the general disrespect displayed by the educational community?
- Teacher training programs must reflect respect for the arts as core disciplines, and arts teachers as equal partners in the school. This cannot be an afterthought, but must lead the change effort.
- Arts teachers, as deliverers of arts content, understandings, and skills should have equal status with other teachers. There should be art, music, and movement teachers staffed at every school, with a teacher-student ratio that makes teaching and learning possible. When arts teachers have schedules split between buildings, staff meeting should be scheduled when all arts personnel are able to attend.
- Every student should have arts every day, and every art every week (music, visual art, dance/movement, and drama). There is no way around the necessity to increase staffing, room allocation, and funding. This also means that some other priorities will move down on the list, or be removed. Hopefully choices will be made to benefit students, rather than for adult convenience. If the appropriate commitment is made to the arts, the desired positive benefits will follow.
- At the high school level, block scheduling that has at least 8 blocks allows students to be engaged in more arts experiences, building a sense of belonging and opportunities for self-expression. A four-block schedule eliminates arts experiences for most students, and is unacceptable.
- There should be the same expectation of professional excellence among the arts faculty as of all teachers. Arts teachers are not baby-sitters. They are highly trained educators who plan and deliver arts curriculum, and at best are also practicing artists in their chosen field. They often teach students over many years, developing relationships that are very different from those who see students for only one year or semester.
- The school community should redefine the arts as core disciplines with core competencies, and an aligned curriculum from Pre-K - 12. One way to do this is to embrace each of the arts (music, dance/movement, visual art, and drama) as a language and establish a goal of literacy in that language through ability to speak, listen, read, write, and think in it. (Yes, these terms need to be adapted to each discipline.) Another way to align the curriculum is to start with the National, State, and/or District standards in the arts.
- Expectations for arts teachers should be measured by demonstrated student growth toward specific, developmentally appropriate goals and objectives. While this growth can be demonstrated through performances such as concerts and art exhibits, such performances are the outcomes of learning, and students should be able to explicitly discuss what they have learned with their audience.
- Scheduling should be constructed to best teach the students and the discipline, not for the benefit of the budget or classroom teacher "breaks." An example is that music classes in the early grades should be shorter than art classes, which require longer setup and cleanup. Overall, however, development of arts skills requires reinforcement and practice more than once a week. If the arts are to be available as routes to learning and thinking, students must first gain the understandings and skills in each art.
- Flexible scheduling may allow arts teachers to begin earlier or finish later than other personnel, allowing a longer school day for students. Schools without walls may allow groups of students to meet regularly in a central location for instruction outside of their own school building. After school programs for middle school and high school students might become curricular offerings.
It is action that will cause change. All the lip service in the world won't do it. Rhetoric has been abundant regarding the importance of the arts and arts teachers. But only action will remedy the inequity of the current situation. The reason for making this change is because it will benefit the students, and ultimately our society. And along the way, the model of respect that is due all teachers will be applied to arts teachers as well. Perhaps the first tiny step is to use the term "teacher" rather than "special" when referring to arts-based educators.
An Invitation to the Reader
Dear reader:
I can only guess what the reactions to these ideas will be. I invite you to write your story or perspective and add to the conversation.
Some readers will nod their heads in approval. To them I ask, what will you do to facilitate change in your situation? Are you in any way responsible for some of this condition?
Some readers will say, "Yes, but . . ." To them I ask, can you find your way out of your box into a different configuration that might better meet students' needs related to the arts?
Some readers will say, "It's not my problem (or job)." To them I say that the children who become tomorrow's adults are not problems, but they are our opportunity and responsibility. We can help them grow up whole, more deeply human, more capable of thinking and problem solving, more understanding and supportive that we were taught to be. If you're not willing to do what's best for society and students, you are a problem.
One of the ways to begin is to dialogue, discuss, and ponder. Whatever your reactions, I'm interested in you addition to the conversation. When you have time to jot down some thoughts, please send them along!
Sue
Need some ways to start?