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.The arts have a crucial impact on our economy and are an important catalyst for

learning, discovery, and achievement in our country. This quote by Paul G. Allen, the Co-

Founder of Microsoft points out the impactful influence art has in our country. Furthermore, art

does not just impact America but countries all over the world. But just how do the arts impact a

world that is centered around math and science? We can find all forms of art in just about

everything we do, from our clothes to the buildings we walk into everyday. However, despite the

huge significance that artistry has on our society many students can go most of their school life

without being introduced to or taking a single art class. The arts should be considered as an

important aspect in school curriculums because art education does not just connect

students to the world around them, it is also linked to improved literacy skills and leads to

higher attendance and fewer problems from students.

The arts has always been used to express oneself in a unique way. Humans have always

found ways to insert some form of creative outlet into the things they do. However, despite how

much art is incorporated in everyday life it is usually one of the first programs to be cut from

schools. Schools seem to believe that art classes are useless enough and do not give students the

kind of skills that subjects such as math, science and language classes give. However, according

to the website for the organization Do Something, students who study art are four times more

likely to be recognized for academic achievement and three times more likely to be awarded for

school attendance. The arts are a way for students to creatively learn in school. It keeps them

interested and excited to participate in class. Recently, the arts and arts education has gained the

spotlight. Many states including North Carolina, Illinois, New York and more are recognizing the

importance of art education and are introducing bills that preserve the arts in schools.
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Sculptor Magdalena Abakanowicz once said "Art does not solve problems, but makes us

aware of their existence,". While art may not be able to solve most of the worlds problems, it

does have the ability to lead us to the sight of them. School is a place where students learn about

the world they live in, past and present and sometimes even the future. Students are taught about

how our society has gotten to where it is today. One lesson that all students learn throughout their

school life is on the Renaissance.

The Renaissance was a time of rebirth, a great revival of the interest in the classical

learning and values of ancient Greece and Rome. (history.com) It was during the Renaissance

where the world was seen through a different looking glass. Along with the advancement of

technology was a growing appreciation of philosophy, literature and most of all art. It is during

this time we are were introduced to some of the most influential and well known people and

artists in history such as Michelangelo, Raphael, and Leonardo da Vinci. The art of artists such as

these three and many more looked to capture the experience of the individual and the beauty

and mystery of the natural world (history.com).

The artists of the Renaissance period used art to explore and learn more about what was

around them. They found a way to use art to connect to not only the world but to themselves as

well. Students are taught about the importance of the Renaissance and the different forms of art

that was created during the time. They are told about how influential art was to history yet today

art programs such as music, dance, drama and more are one of the first to be cut from school

curriculums during budget cuts.

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Students lose their opportunity to connect to the world the way great artists like Leonardo

da Vinci did during the Renaissance. They are refused the right to learn if they are capable of

making their mark in our history books. Even if a child has no interest in being a painter, dancer,

or musician and find themselves gravitating towards fields in math or science they can still

benefit from the arts.

According to an article from the Deseret News, Looking for School Balance, some

parents believe their children can learn from the arts. Laurie Coleman, whose children are well

involved in STEM, Science, Technology, Engineering and Math, believes that the arts is a

puzzle piece that ties it all together, helping them build a foundation of creativity and draw
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connections in their work. That is why she and many others look at STEAM or Science,

Technology, Engineering, Art and Math as a complete academic puzzle.

It is a well known fact that most students do not like the idea of school and do not look

forward to eight hours of sitting in a classroom. As they get older and subjects get more rigorous,

they start to lose interest more quickly. Attention is important when it comes to succeeding in

school, it assists with comprehension and retaining information taught during lessons. When

students first start school their lessons have many aspects of art in them. They learn the alphabet

through songs, are asked and encouraged to draw everyday and are basically taught to embrace

the arts.

Art should not be seen as some way to ease boredom, as a distraction from what is

important. While art and all of its aspects are generally used as entertainment, it can be used to

help improve student performance. For example, an elementary school in Washington, DC ,

Savoy Elementary, in 2013 started using art classes such as music and dance to help students

improve their reading and math.

This school along with other schools in neighborhoods in Des Moines, Denver, New

Orleans and other places was a part of an effort funded partly by the government to turn around

eight low-performing using an intensive arts program(Melissa Block). The eight schools that

participated in the program, The Turnaround Initiative, were all schools in low-income

neighborhoods. In an interview on NPRs or National Public Radio All Things Considered NPR's

Elizabeth Blair reports on The Turnaround Initiative and how the program has affected Savoy

and the schools involved.

According to the committee's director, Rachel Goslins, these schools were schools

where the kids seemed defeated and resigned. There wasn't a lot of motion or purpose or energy
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in the halls. They were schools that had failed for a long time. The children in these schools

held no motivation and their scores showed it. In their eyes there was nothing to look forward to

when it came to coming to school. Savoy Elementary principal, Patrick Pope stated that while

the school is trying to improve students math and reading before that can happen they need to

feel good about coming to school. He goes on to say so there is an internal, individual

motivation that has to do with, where do I find success and is school a successful place for me?

And I still may not be the best reader in my class but I can certainly produce a song or be in a

musical piece or learn a dance that everyone in my whole grade does equally well.

The Turnaround Initiative really did turn around the schools involved. While only some

of the assessment scores at Savoy had gone up, they did not fall as it had in the past. However,

according to child psychologist Ellen Winner, the arts should not be credited for improved test

scores as the kinds of thinking skills and habits of mind that students learn when they study the

arts are a far cry from what's tested on multiple-choice standardized tests. But despite there

being no evidence that there is a link between the teaching of the arts and performance on tests,

Winner did believe that the Initiative could succeed. According to her, while the arts are not

directly linked to test scores it does lead to engagement and attendance, and interesting teachers

and engaged teachers. And it's that which leads to test scores. Like most of the schools in the

Turnaround Arts Initiative, good news is that school attendance is up and visits to the principal

are down says Blair.

Attendance is very important when it comes to school. It is essential for students to come

to school in order to gain information and succeed in school and in life. Although attendance is

vital in a student's success in school, students start to dreading sitting in a classroom for eight

hours five days a week. As they enter high school, some students start questioning why they
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should come every day. They start skipping certain classes that bore them, and if they do

physically come to school they may not be there mentally. Teachers may question why these

students do not interact in lessons and never seem to be paying attention in class.

On the other hand elementary and middle school students have a much harder time

getting away with not coming to school but although that may be the case, it does not stop them

from faking illness. It is important to note that most people wish to be accepted, especially kids

in grade school. It is not uncommon to hear about children being bullied for things like not being

smart enough or not participating in class.

Not all students learn the same way, that should be a well known fact in all schools.

While some children are able to learn by listening and writing down information, others may be

visual and perform better maybe drawing out what they are taught. Incorporating the arts into

lessons helps these students by gaining their attention. Bringing more art programs in schools

can make students look forward to coming to school.

While the arts are fundamental in a students success in school some people argue that

when it comes down to it cutting the fine arts is beneficial for schools. The fine arts takes up a

large percentage of school budgets. They are also looked at as not as useful as other subjects

because according to Nate Shellton who is a sophomore in college interviewed for an article by

the washington post, math and science is what is being tested, tests that determine a schools

ranking is what is most important to the school, Consequently, this means that the arts are the

first to go.

It would only seem right that one of the most expensive and seemingly unimportant

program would be cut for school budgeting in order to assist in making other programs and the
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school prosper, but the institutions ranking is not necessarily whats in the best interest of the

students as a whole person.

It is important to recognize the arts for its importance in a students school life. While art

programs may be expensive to fund, it is important that we are aware of the benefits it brings to

students and their achievement in school. The arts are not just a way to kill boredom and distract

children from what is important in life. In fact it does the opposite and allows student to embrace

the world around them and want to succeed in school.

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Works Cited

Stirgus, Eric. "Arts Coming Back to Georgia Schools." <I>Atlanta Journal-Constitution</I>. 14

Feb. 2016: B.1. <I>SIRS Issues Researcher.</I> Web. 02 Nov. 2016.

Kienzl, Gregory, and others. "Arts Instruction of Public School Students in the First and
Third...." <I>ISSUE BRIEF</I>. June 2006: 1-3. <I>SIRS Government Reporter.</I> Web. 02
Nov. 2016.

History.com Staff. "Renaissance Art." History.com. A&E Television Networks, 2010. Web. 04
Dec. 2016.

Jacobsen, Morgan. "Looking for School Balance." <I>Deseret News</I>. 03 Feb. 2016: n.p.
<I>SIRS Issues Researcher.</I> Web. 02 Nov. 2016.

"Creative Classes: An Artful Approach to Improving Performance." <I>NPR All Things

Considered</I>. 16 Apr. 2013: n.p. <I>SIRS Renaissance.</I> Web. 18 Nov. 2016.

Toner, Erin. "To Boost Attendance, Milwaukee Schools Revive Art, Music And Gym." NPR.
NPR, 23 June 2014. Web. 05 Dec. 2016.

"Arts Education and Academic Achievement." PERPICH. Perpich Center for Arts Education,
n.d. Web. 06 Dec. 2016.

Hawkins, Tyleah. "Will Less Art and Music in the Classroom Really Help Students Soar
Academically?" The Washington Post. WP Company, 28 Dec. 2012. Web. 07 Dec. 2016.