This week marks the fifth National Arts in Education Week. As the NEA describes, “on July 26, 2010, the U. S. House of Representatives passed a resolution designating the second week of September as Arts in Education Week to promote and showcase the immense role arts education has in producing engaged, successful, and college- and career-ready students.”
The resolution states:
Arts education, comprising a rich array of disciplines including dance, music, theatre, media arts, literature, design, and visual arts, is a core academic subject and an essential element of a complete and balanced education for all students.
We could not agree more. As our broader minded advocacy campaign emphasizes, music shapes the way our students understand themselves and the world around them. It allows for deep engagement with learning. It nurtures creativity, curiosity, and personal motivation. In other words, music is essential to a superior 21-century education.
Unfortunately, as cuts to music program budgets and class time around the country illustrate, no music program is guaranteed. But every student deserves access to a quality music education.
Countless students have been tremendously impacted by their music education experiences: from band to chorus to orchestra, honors ensembles, jazz bands, individual voice and instrument training, marching competitions, all-county/all-district/all-state and national performances, and so many more opportunities for leadership, growth, and learning.
I am sure I am not the only parent who has witnessed innumerable music students also take on other leadership roles outside of music throughout their schools: in honors societies, clubs, athletic teams, academic teams, robotics teams even (music students master STEM)—not to mention pulling in stellar grades and being ambitious and driven. I never cease to be amazed at the level of maturity and capability I’ve seen among music students. And they are truly well-rounded individuals who think outside the box and are ready not just for college, but for life.
But what pulls them into school and drives them competitively in everything? What inspires them like nothing else? Music, and those who teach it.
And what a tragedy it would be not to have access to music programs—like some of their cohorts around the country. But even here in the DC metro area, music programs struggle to get on, let alone maintain, equal footing in the public schools, both with funding and classroom time. We do our students—our future—a disservice when we fail to provide a full, quality education, which necessitates music education. I’m saddened by the thought of where some students I have met would be without music in their lives.
Thus, it is so critical everyone share their story about what impact music education has had in their lives. And now we have a creative campaign to help spread the word of music’s impact: the Beyond the Bubbles Challenge.
Similar to the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge—in which NAfME did participate and donate—the Beyond the Bubbles Challenge invites those vested in music education and supportive of it to share their own stories; donate to NAfME’s music education advocacy efforts; creatively pop a bubble of any type or pop a representation of a bubble (water balloons would be fun!)—because music education meets students’ needs beyond the bubbles of standardized tests; and then importantly, challenge others by nominating them to do the same.
We would love to share your videos during this campaign! Please use the hashtags #BeyondtheBubblesChallenge, #ThinkBeyondtheBubbles, #NAfME, and #StudentsArentStandardized when you post them on social media like Twitter or Facebook.
Personally, as a band mom, I would love to see some fun videos of marching bands challenging one another in a bubble contest! Or how about choirs showcasing their talent and then popping bubbles simultaneously? A violin concerto in … a bubble bath wading pool?
So many ideas. Show us your best ones!
And if you need ideas on how to express what music means to you, check out this fantastic collaborative video from NAfME collegiate members from the University of Maryland, Michigan State, University of Connecticut, and University of New Mexico.