Well Begun is Half Done
Well this sure is something. Three months ago… two months ago… heck even just last week arts education advocates would have NEVER bet that the Governor of California would provide ANY additional funds for music or arts education… let alone $100 million worth. But rolling off his lips in last night's "State of the State" […]
A National Curriculum?
There has long been this ying and yang about national testing and national curriculum (BAD!) and local testing and locally designed curriculum (GOOD!) that, with the efforts of No Child Left Behind, has now amplified the debate. This point was eloquently articulated by the great educational thinker Diane Ravitch in a November 7th New York […]
As Music Fades in Schools, a Few Play On
An Interesting article and series from the Washington Post. It is another in a series of recent articles that speaks to the decline of music and arts education in our schools. An earlier article from the Pittsburg Post Gazette and my commentary is also worth a glance after you read the story below. What disturbs […]
Music and Arts Education Enters Prop 74 debate in California
Who would have thought music education would enter the battle over prop 74 in California. Well it has. This is the Mercury News (San Jose) analysis of the ad: _ Title: "Stop Playing." _ Length: 30 seconds. _ Airing: Began Tuesday in major markets. Dominant image: Stephanie Floyd-Smith, seventh-grade teacher, sitting in a classroom, speaking […]
Step By Step: LA Arts Ed Plan is Making a Difference
LA County's Arts for All plan seems to be gaining steam and is having a real impact on the restoration of music and arts education. The plan calls for 5% of school funding to be allocated to arts education. The LA Times reports today that it is working. This is certainly a model worth looking […]
The Parent Trap – EP
I wrote about this earlier but was so bothered by the issue I created an EP (extended play) version for everyone! “The minute a school district is able to shift the responsibility to fund a program from the district to the parents… they will never take the responsibility back.” There is an emerging trend that, […]
A Global Education Revolution Leaves US Behind
Regular visitors to this blog know that I have been on a creativity rant for the past two years. My interview with Sir Ken Robinson on the topic of The Arts, Creativity, and the Modern Economy encapsulates much of what I believe to be true and the flaws with an educational system heavy on test […]
This News Story Makes Me Mad
"I haven't seen any concrete empirical evidence that the arts are getting cut across the board in favor of subjects that are getting tested," said Matt Gandal, executive vice president of Achieve, a Washington D.C.-based group led by governors and corporate executives that promotes rigorous standards and assessment. "All anyone has is anecdotal evidence," Gandal […]
What do you teach with a music degree? Reading!
New Rule: If you are hired to teach a music program… YOU MUST TEACH MUSIC! In the words of Yogi Berra "It's deja vu all over again!" When I lived in California a really good friend of mine was teaching music in Pasadena. He told me part of job was now to teach math. I […]
No Program is Safe
My July SBO column: Being Good is no Longer Good Enough Why on earth do we need a Band Director’s Survival Guide? I have never heard of a Math Teachers Survival Guide or an English Literacy Teachers Survival Guide. And just what is it that band directors need guidance about to… survive? Well, let’s pretend […]
