Documenti di Didattica
Documenti di Professioni
Documenti di Cultura
5-24-2019
Fidel Aguas
Los Angeles Leadership Academy HS, faguas100923@laleadership.org
Art Socialization Aguas 1
Abstract
The purpose of this essay is to discuss the effects of performing arts on young adolescents in
school. Students without participation in the performing arts do not perform as well in school as
student who do. Arts rich students form relationships and develop a sense a self through the
performing arts. So, it is clear that young adolescents who participate in the performing arts
during high school show a positive increase in academic and civic engagement, the expression
of self, and social relationships. Therefore, School districts need to better apply the performing
arts into their curriculum in order to achieve high student success. I declare that school policy
should change to include the performing arts in all four years of high school.
Acknowledgements
I would like to acknowledge myself for doing it. I would also like to acknowledge all my peers
that peer-reviewed my drafts despite working on their own work. Thank You.
Art Socialization Aguas 2
The purpose of this essay is to discuss the effects of performing arts on young adolescents in
school. Students without participation in the performing arts do not perform as well in school as
student who do. Arts rich students form relationships and develop a sense a self through the
performing arts. So, it is clear that young adolescents who participate in the performing arts
during high school show a positive increase in academic and civic engagement, the expression
of self, and social relationships. Therefore, School districts need to better apply the performing
arts into their curriculum in order to achieve high student success. I declare that school policy
should change to include the performing arts in all four years of high school.
The Incident
As I pressed play on the controller, the TV screen turned black. Dark and quiet, until the
production cards of film were on. The intro of Step Up 3D conveyed, that many dancers can
come from all over the community. One thing united them. A common interest. A hobby. A
passion. Dance. The musicality, dancing on beat, of the movements. The flow of the
choreography. The focus was always on dancing as it is a form of expression more than the
actual dialogue from mouth to screen. The movement of the actors was just so intriguing from
Art Socialization Aguas 3
the moment I finished watching the dance film. I pondered, “Do people actually dance for a
living?” The dark evening passed outside my windows, and I pulled out my grey iPod 5 with a
gameboy design case. I jumped into Youtube, clicked on the search bar and typed, “Real dance
videos.” Many suggestions came up, but out of the pool of videos, there was this one video that
really caught my attention. A video of a thin, blonde girl as the thumbnail, that had one million
views. I clicked on it and watched all 2 minutes of “Chachi Gonzales- Like A Boy.” I
remember feeling as if I found a hidden gem yet to be discovered. The Youtube video
introduced me to the community of performers and choreographers that appreciated the art of
dance. To my surprise, the highest viewed videos showed young adolescent and teenage
dancers. It was then that I realized kids my age, late teens, were making a staple in the dance
community. I went on questioning, “What would stop me from pursuing a career in performing
art?” Ever since my discovery I took it upon myself to watch choreography videos to learn
from. When I dance, even if it is a simple groove to the music in the background, I feel good
and in the moment. My body heats up from the movement and my hands follow the rhythm of
When I entered high school as a freshman, I became quite disappointed due to the lack
of performing arts available. I approached high school as a fresh start to my academic and social
life and really wanted to dance in high school. As the years dragged on, the courses available
for performing arts lessened throughout the years. Why? Why was not dance, theatre, music,
etc. valued as much as the three years required of Math, two years of Foreign Language, and
four years of English. Why was it that electives were limited to extensions of already required
classes to graduate? I speculated the school did not find importance in investing time and effort
Art Socialization Aguas 4
into the performing arts. However, I do see the significance Performing Arts in high school and
Analysis
Introduction
According to David Davies in his book Philosophy of the Performing Arts h e defines the
The place of the performing arts in this new philosophical landscape is interesting, for
the very notion of “the performing arts” already imposes a structure on the arts. The
things usually grouped under this label – music, dance, and drama (2011, p. viii)
Essentially dance, music, and drama is what qualifies as a performing art. However, the
A journal titled, “Access to High School Arts Education: Why Student Participation
Matters as Much as Course Availability” by Thomas, Singh, Klopfenstein, and Henry shows the
correlation between the quantity of arts curriculum and the rate of student’s participation.
Thomas et al.’s research concluded that high schools that offered a substantial number of art
courses did not receive equally high student participation… however, small sized schools did
have a high rate of student participation due to the fact that because courses were limited,
students wanted to be part of them even more (2013). For the four years that I have been in high
school, I waited patiently for a performing arts elective or course. Eventually, I got tired of
waiting and started my own dance club. The students that participated really enjoyed it. The
dance club instructor was my advisor and he really tried his best to teach us what he knew about
dancing.
Art Socialization Aguas 5
instructor or student, it becomes apparent that participation in the performing arts can be very
beneficial. Especially during a time in which high school students are trying finding themselves
and identify who they are as people. The transition from teen to young adolescent differs for
everyone, however research has largely implied that taking part in performing arts courses can
Study of Focus
Taking a performing arts course is much more and goes beyond what you learn in class.
Students can take what they learn and value it outside of school. Dr. Linda F. Nathan states,
“The place where young people feel the safest, where young people feel they can be themselves
is almost always the arts teacher’s classroom” (2013, minute 17:59). Even academically,
students who have experienced a form of the performing arts do well in school, compared to
those who do not. Therefore, it is clear that young adolescents who participate in the performing
arts during high school show a positive increase in academic and civic engagement, the
Students who participated in the performing arts during high school experienced a
growth in academic improvement and civic engagement. For example, James S. Catterall (2012)
states in his report “The Arts and Achievement in At-Risk Youth”, “Students with arts-rich
experiences attended some sort of college after high school… and more than twice as many
high-arts students, compared with low-arts students in that group, attended a four-year college”
(p.10). Most high school districts tend to focus on the rate their students attend college right
Art Socialization Aguas 6
more likely to show civic-minded behavior than young adults who did not. They take an interest
engagement with local or school politics” (p.18). Community is another aspect in which high
school districts take pride on. If their students can demonstrate high levels of involvement in
their communities, then it shows they are directing young adolescents in the right path. Students
with art rich experiences tend to excel in both school and community participation. The reason
is because arts engagement gives young adolescents encouragement to strive for better through
Social Relationships
Through participation in the performing arts, students learn to develop their social skills
in communication and relationships. Art gives students a safe place to talk about their
differences. In Dr. Linda F. Nathan’s (2013) TEDx Talk she says, “Back in early 80s, when
Art Socialization Aguas 7
gang warfare was on the rise, theatre gave us a safe place in which to talks about our
differences” (minute 6:16). In the video she further explains how her students were able to put
all their differences aside and form close connections with other students through school theatre.
Nathan (2013) celebrated her students culture by putting on show on campus. In fact, her free
theatre program was eventually at its capacity and students still had a strong desire to join
(minute 2:14). This goes to show the relationships that can be formed when participating in
theatre.
Additionally, in another TEDx Talk video by Rachel Harry (2017), she reveals
“Embracing diversity requires the ability to acknowledge and accept the strengths and
weaknesses of others without judgement, and accept the strengths and weaknesses within
ourselves” (minute 5:46). Through Harry’s experiences as a theatre instructor, she saw the
caring environment her students provided towards each other and how they would not judge one
another in order to fully embrace being in theatre. Similarly, when me and my associates were
in dance club we participated in team building exercises. This allowed us to dance freely
Expression of Self
Being able to express themselves freely with a sense of purpose, students can take full
I have watched students develop a form of artistic identity that blends their reputations
in school, with their reputation outside of school through the Arts. These kinds of things,
give young people a chance to really develop a vision of self (minute 10:34)
Art Socialization Aguas 8
High school is a time where young adolescents find ways to better understand themselves.
Forming an artistic identity can really help with the expression of self, as performing arts
requires students to indulge themselves to the activities while being the most creative they can
be. For instance, when people excel in a activity under the performing arts label, they identify
themselves with that particular skill. If an adolescent has musical skills they would identify
themselves as a musician, if they have dancing skills then they would be a dancer, and so forth.
Susan Bidwell (2014) takes a cognitive approach and finds, “A dominant theme was that
participants were eager to engage in activities that would provide a sense of purpose to lives that
were otherwise characterised by isolation and monotony” (p. 7-8). Health can be associated
with the performing arts. In this study, Bidwell (2014) found the participants cared for their
health more and did what they could in order to feel better by the performing arts. Specifically,
in high school when students are usually always overwhelmed with school work it is beneficial
to partake in performing arts activities. As it would help students focus and relax from all the
pressure.
Opinion
Based on the research I personally believe that performing arts courses could help me
achieve more in school and in my personal life. I could have higher grades and better social
relationships with others. Dr Nathan claims, “If you can create schools that really stand for
something, we actually have a prayer at making society a better place” (2013, minute 6:45). She
is beyond correct. I do agree with the research, participation in the performing arts is very
beneficial in more ways than one. My school district does not provide much because they
Art Socialization Aguas 9
believe the benefits do not outweigh the cost. However, performing arts as a subject in schools
are undermined by the fact that they do not add statistical value to such schools.
Conclusion
Looking at the positive effects performing arts has on high school students it is clear
that, through academic and civic involvement, a form of artistic identity, and development of
relationships with peers; School districts need to better apply the performing arts into their
curriculum in order to achieve high student success. School policy should change to include the
performing arts in all four years of high school. I believe by changing the curriculums, students
can take full advantage off all the benefits the performing arts provides and thus make schools a
better environment.
Art Socialization Aguas 10
References
https://www.creativenz.govt.nz/assets/ckeditor/attachments/1058/the_arts_in_health_evi
dence_from_the_international_literature.pdf?1411611918
Catterall, J. S., Dumais, S. A., Thompson, G. H. (2012). “The Arts and Achievement in At-Risk
Youth: Findings from Four Longitudinal Studies.” National Endowment for the Arts.
Davies, D., (2011). Philosophy of the Performing Arts. Wiley-Blackwell. Retrieved from
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/9781444343458.fmatter
Harry, B. (2017, November 13). “How theatre education can save the world.” [Youtube].
Thomas, M. K, Singh, P., Klopfenstein, K., Henry, T. C. (2013). “Access to High School Arts
https://epaa.asu.edu/ojs/article/view/1224