There’s a rumor that some school districts are doing away with or consolidating their art and music classes at the elementary level.
I would assume this is probably to fit more standardized teaching and preparation for more standardized testing. Even though the tests the world procures for us outside of academic walls are anything but conventional.
There’s a big difference in asking “what’s the answer?” and “what do you see?”. The answer is memorized. What is seen is imagined. Art gives us that opportunity.
There’s a big difference in asking “what’s the answer?” and “what do you feel or hear?”. The answer is a formulaic. What is felt and heard taps into soul. Music gives us that opportunity to tap into such things.
Maybe school should ask more than it tells its students…the same goes for parents: children, leader: team members, etc.
Learning thy self just may be the highest form of education, and we have a problem when our children have missed the opportunity to discover their own unique and personal voice.
It never ends well when we let the music stop.
Ashton.Gustafson 