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The Importance of Arts to Education


Educators and arts professionals have long advocated for arts in schools as vital to fostering well-rounded students who can contribute to society in multiple ways. Nevertheless, arts programs are often the first to be cut when school districts need to reduce expenditures. The problem is so severe that in a 2011 document titled “Smart Ideas to Increase Educational Productivity and Student Achievement,” U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan advised governors nationwide to “avoid short-sighted cost-cutting” of “instruction in the arts and foreign languages.”

Cuts still occur, but that trend may be changing.

Multiple studies have now shown that student participation in and study of various arts produces measurable benefits. Steven N. Kelly, an associate professor of music education in the College of Music at Florida State University, wrote that the data shows that “individuals who participate in school music, art, theatre, and dance experiences achieve higher academic success in the classroom and higher scores on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test” than those who do not.

Kelly analyzed data from the Florida Department of Education and found that “students who participate in K–12 music and arts classes have a lower dropout rate than students not enrolled in arts classes and that these individuals score higher on SAT exams.” The more time students spent in arts programs, the more pronounced were the effects. This holds true across all ethnic and socioeconomic groups. A nationwide study of middle and high school students performed by the University of California at Los Angeles had similar findings.

A study by the National Governors Association found that arts can even be an economic driver. In a report titled “New Engines of Growth: Arts, Culture, and Design,” the association showed that the arts contribute to economic growth in five ways:

  • Providing a fast-growth, dynamic industry cluster

  • Helping mature industries become more competitive

  • Providing the critical ingredients for innovative places

  • Catalyzing community revitalization

  • Delivering a better-prepared workforce

Since the arts have proved so vital to both education and the economy, parents will do well to consider how to provide their children with early access to the arts as part of a comprehensive education. If you are choosing a private school for your child or are considering a public school magnet program, ask administrators what their school is doing to support arts education.

Benefits of Participating in the Arts

When we think of arts education, we can often fall into the trap of believing that this kind of learning is only important to musicians, dancers, visual artists, or others who intend to pursue art as a career or primary avocation. But in addition to direct arts studies, students can study art-related subjects such as literature, art history, or music appreciation without learning to write a novel, draw a picture, or play an instrument.

Participation in arts or art-related studies can benefit any student. In addition to the overall improvement in grades, test scores, and graduation rates, arts-related courses can improve students’ lives in multiple ways.

Career Goals. A study by the National Endowment for the Arts found that students with high exposure to arts were more likely than others to choose a professional career rather than a vocational one.

Civic Engagement. The NEA study also found that students with high levels of exposure to art were more likely to be civic-minded than those with less experience in the arts.

Cognitive Ability. Music in particular has been shown to improve students’ mathematical skills, s