Why Teach Art for Dummies

In order to make room for math, science, english and  writing the arts have been pushed aside. 

Not just drawing, painting and coloring. But dance, music and, in general, self expression.

There is a book called "Battle Hymn of a Tiger Mother."  (This book is discussed in an article from KSL) The author is a professor of law at Yale and the methods in the book she says worked very well. 

" Her children were expected to get all A's and practice their musical instruments two hours a day, even on weekends and vacation."

Ashlie Bundy, a mother of three from Utah said "I think you miss out on a lot if you were just to come home from school and do homework and be on the piano; you wouldn't be as fun as a person."

Maybe this way of parenting works for some children, maybe parents are just fooling themselves into thinking it works. But either way, this is a form of suppressing self-expression.

Art is a way to let emotions roam free without causing harm to anyone.

In the text book Emphasis Art (pg 6) it is said "The goal of education is to help students develop both their intellectual capabilities and their capacity to express their thoughts and feelings."

Education is not for cramming all we can into a child's mind. Education is to teach them how to function in the world, to be critical and abstract thinkers, to be able to become healthy adults with a knowledge of right and wrong and how to take care of themselves, physically, mentally and emotionally.

Art is not just a pretty thing to look at. Art is a pathway through which all subjects can be expanded and made more clear.

Being a pathway, Art can be a useful tool in helping children of all ages learn difficult concepts. It can help them to 'Get Smart.'

Elliot Eisner said "Getting smart... means coming to know the potential of the materials in relation to the aims of a project or problem..." (Eisner, pg 73)

Some schools have no Art programs, but there are some that are completely filled with the arts. In those schools, where students find the arts all around them and are expected to participate, math, science, and language teachers find their students grasping knowledge they could not before because they are "thinking creatively and flexibly, imagining ideas and problems from different perspectives, taking imaginative leaps, and layering one thought upon another as part of a process of problem solving." (Champs, 36)

But saying Art only helps other fields of study would be problematic as the other pieces of education help create Art!

Children have to create in order to make Art and "In order to create, the child will need the use of other subjects; math  (pattern), science (color), health (medium), physical education (motor), social studies (techniques), music (rhythm), and language arts (read directions, communicate, and understand safety procedures)..." (Hermsen, Par. 3)

If Art is taken out of the classroom, hundreds of thousands of learning opportunities are taken away as well. Art is a way to communicate just as much as talking or writing it. But Art brings more to the table. Not only does art help in teaching and learning other subjects, but it teaches mandatory skills for life that are not learned elsewhere.

"Such skills include visual-spatial abilities, reflection, self-criticism, and the willingness to experiment and learn from mistakes. All are important to numerous careers, but are widely ignored by today's standardized tests." (Winner, Hetland, Boston Globe)

Art means so much to the world, to adults and children's lives, but it is seen as unnecessary and is then the first thing to be taken out of the budget, to give more money toward math or science.

Art should be taught to help in school and to help in life, but not because of school or life. Art should be taught because it is a way to cope with anything life can throw. 

Butterfeild, Amanda. "New strict parenting book has Utah moms buzzing." KSL.com. KSL, 12 Jan. 2011. Web. 27 Jan. 2011.

Clements, Robert D., and Frank Wachowiak. Emphasis Art. Ninth ed. Boston: Allyn & Bacon, 2010. 6. Print.

Eisner, Elliot. The Arts and the Creation of Mind. N.p.: Foundation of Phillip Hamilton McMillan, n.d. 73. Blackboard. Web. 28 Jan. 2011.

Fiske, Edward B., ed. Champions of Change: The Impact of the Arts on Learning. N.p.: The GE Fund, Macarthur foundation, n.d. 36. Blackboard. Web. 28 Jan. 2011.

Winner, Ellen, and Lois Hetland. "Art for our Sake." The Boston Globe 2 Sept. 2007. Web. 28 Jan. 2011.