“Access to arts education is one of the civil rights issues of our time,” [1] according to Anthony Brandt in “For Sake of Society, Young Minds Need Art.” School boards across America are facing difficult choices as the standardized testing mandated in the 2001 No Child Left Behind Act and, understandably, the bottom line have become the sole drivers of educational decisions. Budget cut after budget cut, music and arts education fades from American schools. Consider, however, that the original goal of the No Child Left Behind Act was to close the achievement gap in education. “If we marginalize all non-tested subjects, we create a system in which only the affluent members of our society have access to the most comprehensive and well-rounded educations, which widens the achievement gap rather than closes it.” [2] So, before all of our children’s opportunities completely disappear, we must frankly evaluate whether the original goal of the No Child Left Behind Act is achieving the polar opposite. Politics aside, what are the ramifications of these rash cuts in music and arts education on our children, on our society and on humanity itself? More importantly, what do we all gain from an education in music and arts?
With greater clarity each day, brain science defines the significance that music and arts education brings to virtually every aspect of one’s life. Evidence of this connection is not breaking news, at least not to music and arts educators. Breakthroughs in interdisciplinary offshoots of cognitive science such as biopsychology and behavioral neuroscience have brought fresh perspectives to the argument. Recent studies involving the effects of music education on individuals which are adeptly summarized by Tom Jacobs of Miller-McCune Magazine highlight these breakthroughs. Please refer to the footnote at the end of each paragraph for further details of these studies.
“We are still married to antiquated, 19th-century notions of genius and creativity.” Questioning whether recognized cognitive gains are a function of a genetic talent or a function of prolonged instrument training, a recent study confirmed that brain scans show a clear alteration of brain networks. “The results: Violinists’ brains, when they listen to violin music, look like flutists’ brains when they listen to flute music. That extensive experience with their own instrument resulted in the recruitment of this special network.” So, the action of studying and practicing a musical instrument from childhood results in the exact brain activity required “to produce music, including heightened activity in motor regions and auditory association areas.” [3]
Delving further into brain science, “Our brains operate using two types of behavior: automated and mediated. Automated behavior puts a premium on reliability and efficiency” in order to complete mechanical tasks such as rote memorization, as well as unconscious behavior which is either innate or learned. Automated behavior leads toward one “right” behavior. Since “the goal of mediated behavior is flexibility and innovation, [it] depends on multiple brain circuits working on the same problem.…” Mediated behavior involves conscious awareness, subjective reasoning and the management of our thoughts - the ability to assimilate what we learn into what we already know or believe. Mediated behavior leads toward imaginative and multiple answers. “The vigorousness of our mediated behavior is unique in the animal kingdom. It is what defines us as human beings.” Critical to our success as human beings in order to complete the complex tasks required is to obtain education and training in both automated and mediated behavior. Music and arts education offer the opportunity to advance the essential skills vital for the development of mediated behavior. [4]
“The reading skills of young children who received structured training in music were clearly superior to those of their peers who did not have the benefit of such instruction,” according to an innovative study. Music training for students in a study group began in kindergarten and the students were tested at the beginning and end of second grade, the third year of the students’ music training. Literacy tests indicated that these music students scored “significantly higher” than those without music training with vocabulary tests showing the most substantial outcome. Curiously, at the beginning of the second grade, the literacy scores for both groups were comparable even though students in the study group were in their third year of music training. “…there are several alternative explanations, including the idea that the benefits of music education are cumulative, and the evidence ‘there are significant spurts of brain growth’ around ages 6 and 7, when these students were being tested. Perhaps second grade is the developmental stage where music training can show particularly strong benefits.” [5]
Another recent study connects verbal intelligence and improved performance to the brain stimulation a child receives from early music education. “These results are dramatic not only because they clearly connect cognitive improvement to musical training, but also because the improvements in language and attention are found in completely different domains than the one used for training….” The study reveals “a rapid transfer of cognitive benefits” as well as quantifiable alterations in brain activity. “…findings demonstrate a causal relationship between music training and improvements in language and executive function…” Such research suggests cutting music education to concentrate on “the basics” is based on a misunderstanding of the way young minds work. [6]
“So how can you increase the chances your son or daughter will excel at algebra? A new study provides a surprising answer: Have them learn a musical instrument.” A study revealed that music education allowed middle school students to achieve considerably greater success than their peers in algebra. Students receiving choral instruction achieved greater success on algebra tests than those receiving no music training at all; however, students receiving formal instrumental training achieved significantly greater success on algebra tests. “The primary effect is a matter of enhanced brain development. Middle-school music instruction ‘takes place during a time (age 10-12) in which a proliferation of new synapses occurs in the developing brain.’” Furthermore, and adding fuel to the argument that the availability of music and arts education is a civil rights matter, the study exposed that the gap between students receiving and those not receiving music education considerably widened among African American students. Rather than abandoning our music education programs, we must enthusiastically support them, not only in elementary school, but in middle school and high school as a means to narrow the current achievement gap. [7]
Yet another recent study “provides evidence that a musical beat ‘both synchronizes and facilitates concurrent stimulus processing.’” Suggesting that rhythm assists the brain process with visual perception, the study focuses on this evolutionarily critical life skill which assists in quickly distinguishing whether an object is a rock or a bear. “Its advantages multiply if you and your hunting partners come to such crucial realizations simultaneously.” The study indicated that when music was playing, in comparison to silence, students reacted faster when identifying images. When images appeared on the beat of the music, students reacted even faster. The belief that music and more significantly, musical rhythm, sharpens cognition is based on the supposition that physiological arousal which leads to heightened attention, is enhanced by auditory rhythms. “Alternatively, an insistent rhythm may trigger ‘changes in attention allocation policies,’ alerting the brain to focus its limited resources on the matter at hand. Either way, ‘musical rhythm appears to be a powerful modulator of human cognitive processes, enhancing their efficiency and allowing synchronization across a group of individuals.’” “Through this synchronization, individuals collectively experience their environment and are able to feel, think, and act as one.” [8]
And, finally, a recent study focuses on the spiritual aspect of classical music training. “For young Chinese…studying classical music is a way of embodying…deep cultural values while simultaneously signaling one’s ‘modernity and individual creativity.’” These deep cultural values are reflected in the philosophies of Confucius, who’s “…vision of music’s role is that it serves to create a harmonious union between heaven and earth.” “Performing beautiful sounds on an instrument is believed to demonstrate personal virtue; developing artistic skill and sensibility is essential to becoming an ethical human being.” “This offers opportunities not only to master technique, but also to become imbued with the spirit of the music.” An ethical human being imbued with the spirit of music with a lifelong connection to pure emotion. What more would we want for humanity’s children? [9]
“To cut the arts from the schools is to say that we're satisfied to focus on automated behavior for the majority of our children and to treat mediated behavior as a privileged skill, requiring special opportunity and access.” [10] It is to say that we are satisfied that the majority of American children will lack the education and skills required to succeed as a human being, leaving them robotic, unimaginative and uninspired. Focusing only on automated, testable behavior and treating mediated behavior as a lesson of privilege requiring special opportunity and access is, simply, a foolish mistake. More accurately, it is an American tragedy. “That is why access to arts education is a civil rights issue. It's about freedom of thought, about giving every c hild the opportunity to thrive with the full measure of human capabilities. We need to train the whole brain. We need communities of richly mediated minds. Our future as a thriving, productive society - and species - depends upon it.” [11]
[1] Anthony Brandt: “For Sake of Society, Young Minds Need Art,” Chron.com,
[4] see [1]
[10] see [1]
[11] Ibid
Personal photo taken @ Austin, TX
