Comments for Art Decay

Comment on Who, Where, and When Instead of Why and Relevance by Desi

Desi — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 18:25:02 +0000

I could stand up and clap, that is if I knew you would see me standing and clapping. I love how things you will never EVER use in life are what we test students on. Like your Civil war example, I too have no idea when it was fought and could careless what the answer is. Why are these tests forcing students to memorize rather than learn?

This is off subject, but I am currently in a Genetics class at GVSU that I hated after the first two classes. The professor told us that if there was anything on the exam that required memorization, he would give us all bonus points. In all of my years of college (and trust me, I have plenty) this was the first professor that actually wanted me to LEARN the information rather than regurgitate it for a test. I compare this method of teaching with my anatomy professor. I love the class, don’t get me wrong, but EVERY exam is pretty much a memory game. I would tell people to avoid genetics at all costs until it finally hit me–this professor actually cares about the knowledge I gain. He wants to make sure I know the info rather than just memorized it. Its the first class in a long time that I feel I have paid gotten every cent worth.

As far as standardize testing goes–how is that an accurate test of what students know? Most students don’t eat breakfast before taking these tests–so they’re probably hungry and thinking about that. Most know the pressures of getting a high score and what it will effect down the road. Some could careless what a stupid bubble test says about their intelligence. Why force students to learn this information for one test? Shouldn’t we be teaching them for a lifetime, not for a test? As you can see, I kinda went on my own rant here. I enjoyed your post and felt the need to have my voice heard as well

Comment on Bleak Future for the Arts by No Tiger Woods at This Links | Brevity is the soul of wit.

No Tiger Woods at This Links | Brevity is the soul of wit. — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 20:34:29 +0000

[...] Megan [...]

Comment on Bleak Future for the Arts by Travis

Travis — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 20:25:26 +0000

I won’t say that I’m a big fan of G.W., nor do I understand most of his policy choices. When I read this blog and the article I was really shocked. Bush, either really doesn’t care about the American middle class children, or there’s something he’s not telling the American public.

Music and Art programs are a much needed outlet for growing children. It enhances creativity, allows for expression of emotion, and let’s face it, it’s down right fun. It’s pretty sad that organizations have to sap money from Middle American families during fundraisers to save programs they should be allowed to have in the first place.

Math and Science are being focused on because less and less of America’s youth are seeking professions in those fields. This means outsourcing for help in these fields. Yes, America wants to have the biggest and the brightest. Case in point would be what happened with German Scientists during World War II. America granted citizenship to scientists and their families just to stay on top. We have tried to do the same with India, by baiting the brightest to shine on our soil. As technology is advancing, these same people are deciding to stay on their home turf and work from familiar surroundings.

The world is full of people who make choices they think are for the best. Usually, the modus operandi is money, power, or fame. Every once in a while a choice is made and it makes people happy to be a part of it… G.W.’s decision is obviously not one of those.

I just thought of something, but I’m not sure about the truth of it. The sale of oil or petroleum based paints should make our leader happy, but then again he gets more from our need to survey a canvas in our cars than from a few kids squiggling lines on a piece of paper.

Comment on Practical Uses for Art Education by My Comments | Brad's Pedablog

My Comments | Brad's Pedablog — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 03:26:23 +0000

[...] Practical Uses for Art Education — January 31st, 2008 at 2:43 am [...]

Comment on Practical Uses for Art Education by You Write, I Respond | learning, living, and lesson plans

You Write, I Respond | learning, living, and lesson plans — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 17:37:14 +0000

[...] http://fineartandschools.edublogs.org/2008/01/31/practical-uses-for-art-education/#comment-6 [...]

Comment on Practical Uses for Art Education by Allie

Allie — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 14:52:26 +0000

I really liked this article a lot. I think it’s CRAZY that schools are cutting art and music out of the budget to make room for one more literature or history class. I never understood who decided which classes are more important. While I understand that art, choir and band are often elective classes, I think they are just as important — if not more important — than many of the academic classes.

I liked the quote you included which argues that with art education, “…one finds self-motivated students, greater parental involvement, intensified student and teacher engagement, strengthened collegiate aspirations, and respect for cultural differences.” These things really rang true for me in middle school and high school. I never got involved in art until 7th grade, and the second I took Art 101, I fell in love. It became something I poured my heart and soul into. It was something I took pride in. It was something I could communicate to my art teacher through. It was something my parents wanted to hear about. It really worked to create connections outside of the classroom with many different things.

High school students need to realize that they all have different strengths and weaknesses. I think if students do not excel at math or English, they feel like a failure. If they are an amazing artist, it doesn’t really matter because “art isn’t important.” This is the wrong message to be sending these students. Art seems to be such an enriching activity that teaches creativity, opens doors between parents, students and teachers and even encourages self-confidence.

Comment on Who, Where, and When Instead of Why and Relevance by Laura

Laura — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 20:20:38 +0000

Your blog is very interesting to me because I place great value on the arts in education. I was not personally an art student in high school, but many of my friends were. I was, however, very involved in Choir and Drama. To me, the fine arts in any form are essential to a well-rounded education.

I think many educators are put between a rock and a hard place thanks to NCLB legislation. Yes, there are in many cases the same number of class periods, but now schools are forced to allocate more periods to core classes just to keep their heads above water on the standardized tests. Also, some schools are switching to schedules that don’t allow for much in the way of electives. To top it all, there are new increased requirements for many classes such as Math, where four years must now be completed.

This may seem a little silly, but I can’t help but comment on the final remark about the question on Job. It is actually a perfectly valid question. The book of Job is an ancient work of literature and is the oldest book in the Bible (written somewhere in the period between 2700 and 2200 B.C.). At most it is taken to be divinely inspired writing by millions of Jews and Christians around the world. At the very least it is a great story that stresses the values of patience, trust, and loyalty.

I don’t mean to seem rude, but it is not fair to take anything to do with the Bible as invalid just because you may believe it to be fictional. This denies the very thing you profess to value; the very aspects of Art, History, and Literature that are so important to education. The very things that NCLB is trying to expel from the nation’s schools.

Comment on Practical Uses for Art Education by Jeremy Battaglia

Jeremy Battaglia — Sat, 02 Feb 2008 04:12:02 +0000

I like the above comment. I think it’s right on the money. What kid does feel alive when doing math homework or feel that they have a better understanding of their dark and contemplated soul all because of algebra? A famous defense of the arts that I have heard discusses this. Students loose so much when such class like art are cut from the schools. If the focus is just on the Three R’s, what will these kids write about? It saddens me when programs like No Child Left Behind seem to reinforce this, it’s backward. I have always felt one of the great parts of education is getting excited about something new, discovering a thing that touches your soul.
I think most subjects can be enriched by incorporating other aspects. Imagining studying History for example. Many students find memorizing dates boring, and frankly, I do to. Sometimes such things are important. An understanding of the past and how a people came to be where they are is very crucial, especially when a child can incorporate such information and use it in new and personal ways that lead to a greater insight. I think that by interjecting various aspects into classes such as history can have a snowball effect. Just think of a 20th Century U.S. history class, sure knowing when WWI ended is important, classifying the next decade as the roaring 20’s is important, but turning your students on to the Jazz and music that came from that era is also important. I feel that looking at pieces of literature by Hemmingway and Fitzgerald can help to gain a better understanding of the time they were writing about. Just as experiencing pieces of art from the same time can also provide insight as well to a child. We should not be dropping classes such as art if students aren’t performing well in other subjects, ones that many small minded people consider to be more important or key. In fact, studying art can actually add to a child’s understanding of other subjects such as history. I feel our education system suffers when we take the narrow view. Why not expand our ideas and incorporate many aspects of thought, teach multiple subjects in hopes of a greater understanding.

Comment on Practical Uses for Art Education by mypedablogy

mypedablogy — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 07:43:28 +0000

I think it was Van Gogh who said that the only time he feels alive is when he’s painting. That’s an interesting thought. I think the most sincere point that this post makes is that art is a crucial part of how we perceive the world. Art is expression. For art students, expression is an important outlet that not many other courses can provide. Have you ever felt like you were expressing yourself doing a math worksheet? Or have you ever said to yourself, the only time I feel alive is when I’m reading my history textbook? Art is powerful in that regard.

Most classroom environments have students looking at culture from a birds eye view, studying it from some external context. What your post purports, and that I never really considered before, is the extent to which an education in the arts asks the student to look for those same kinds of reactions to culture from within. So much of life is reconciling the notions of what were given from outside sources with what were feeling in our soul. An education in the arts helps students recognize and listen for their own voice. I’m wondering, in your opinion, what sort of art is the most efficient in terms of helping students to meet with that kind of inward thinking?