Kociski 1 Dominic Kociski English 1 - Block 4 Mrs.

Knowles 31 August 2013 Art Funding It has come to my attention that Art Program funding for education is being cut across the United States. I feel that the importance of the arts cannot be ignored. The arts in education consists of Visual Art, Literature, Performing Arts, Music, Dance, Theater and Foreign Language. I believe that Art is an important part in a students education. It helps them focus, gives them confidence and increases their creativity and imagination. The arts have been an important part of my life since I can remember. Since I was a little boy my mom and grandma used to sing to me all the time. My aunt has been teaching music for 20 years and has played an important role in my musical discovery as well as the fundamental arts. Some of my fondest memories are when my Aunt Andi took me to see Broadway shows in New York City. She took me to art museums and many different performing art shows. My uncle was a Director of Operations for the Hard Rock Cafe and has introduced me to many different music genres. My Baba and Dedo played traditional Macedonian music on Sundays which got me interested in learning about my heritage. I played violin in the orchestra for 3 years. I enjoyed putting my heart and soul into the music. I loved going to class every day and learning something new. My teacher taught me that music is a way to express yourself without using words. Music has always been something for me to turn to in good times and bad. The arts are like the human body. The organs of the body all have to work together in unison to create the ultimate body

Kociski 2 performance. Same for the arts . All the the individuals in the arts must work together to create the ultimate performance. Music is about communication, creativity, and cooperation, and by studying music in schools, students have the opportunity to build on these skills, enrich their lives, and experience the world from a new perspective ~ Bill Clinton Former President of the United States, www.performingartsconvention.org/advocacy. I found this on DoSomething.org, the countrys largest not-for-profit for young people and social change (http://www.dosomething.org/tipsandtools/11-facts-about-arts-education) lists 11 facts about art education. I am focusing on the ones that I feel have the most impact on students Students who study art are 4 times more likely to be recognized for academic achievement and 3 times more likely to be awarded for school attendance. The No Child Left Behind Act clearly mandates The Arts (music, art, foreign language, etc.) as a core academic subject. One study group showed that third, fourth, and fifth-grade students who were taught a foreign language every day in school outperformed the students who were not exposed to a foreign language on their Basic Skills Test. Federal funding for the arts and humanities (an organization funding the arts ), rolls in around $250 million a year, while the National Science Foundation ( an organization funding science research and education ) an is funded around the $5 billion mark. Researchers find that sustained learning in music and theater correlates strongly with

Kociski 3 higher achievement in both math and reading. Multiple studies have concluded that curricular and extracurricular art studies and activities help keep high-risk dropout students stay in school. As you can see, it is beneficial for students who are associated with the arts. For most of these students, it is a passion they don't want to give up and shouldn't have to give up. If it is not being offered in school at a young age, then most children will not be given the chance to learn about what the arts have to offer. I would love to research this topic more because I believe that the arts are important part in a students education. I want kids to be able to not only be involved with the arts but enjoy them. I learned that the arts help students morality and creativity. The arts also help Students concentrate. The point was to keep funding the arts and the counter point is that the arts are wasting money so they should get rid of them. I strongly agree with the point because I believe the arts are important. I want to discover more about funding the arts because I plan to petition the governor and state legislator of South Carolina.