Fine arts and music education should continue in public schools. Anyone exposed to the arts and/or music benefits from life-long advantages. Education in these areas is associated with improvement in mathematics, reading, cognitive ability, critical thinking, and verbal skills. These are very important aspects in life, all of them necessary in order to make a mark on society. Studies also show that involvement in the arts increases motivation, boosts confidence, and also improves concentration and teamwork skills. Again, these are very important aspects in life.
Students who are exposed to the arts generally perform better on standardized testing than those who do not. This is due to the academic gain in important subjects such as math and reading, which have a tendency to be tested the most heavily. Also, as stated before, students exposed to the arts gain important critical thinking skills, which is included in most standardized testing.
Unfortunately, some school districts fail to recognize the importance of education in the arts. Over the past three decades, art education has been gradually slipping. The result? Lower test scores. I’m sure you can see the correlation. On the bright side, a majority of the United States realize the importance of art education. Forty states require art education in order to graduate from high school. Those 80% of high school graduates in our country more than likely have better jobs and better communication skills. Why? Because they participated in art education.
All evidence points towards the necessity of art education in all public schools, no matter elementary, middle or high. There is overall higher academic achievement, critical thinking skills, and other things that are important in living life. I hope that everyone would agree.