Music is everywhere: on the radio, in cell phones, on the television. There is no need to wonder why educators impress its importance and express the need for its presence in schools. That being said, a fine line exists between the desire for such education and its necessity. While many people believe music education should be a fundamental aspect of students’ lives, I question the extent to which this should be the case. Specifically, I do not believe that music education should be a part of public high schools’ required curriculum. First and foremost, music education provides few or no benefits to students who do not plan on continuing music of any sort beyond their secondary education. While there are a number of students who choose to
…show more content…
Although supporters of its requirement point out all of the benefits that can sometimes result from music education, such as improved grades and test scores, those details are insignificant compared to main purpose: enhancing students’ musical ability and, consequently, preparing them for the application of their skills beyond high school. Simply put, at many schools, music education fails its primary purpose, because “the final product [of musical practice], the performance, is the public face of the music education program in a school [so schools] can neglect the meaningful learning that occurs in the learning process leading up to a performance” (Collins 6). Some schools take the learning process more seriously than others, naturally, but the majority of schools inevitably place their primary focus upon the performance in order to appear musically talented in the presence of other community members. The negligence of learning will only worsen with more students enrolled in music classes because teachers will find it increasingly difficult to walk them all through the learning process. As music professor David E. Myers points out, “producing successful ensemble performances in schools, while a worthy effort in some respects, does not necessarily instil skills and understandings that empower people to fulfil their musical drives and potential over a lifetime” (50). As a result of this, …show more content…
By viewing music education from this standpoint, the futility of requiring it in secondary public schools becomes clear. If anything, it might be helpful requiring music education in elementary or middle schools, simply because of the positive effects music has on developing young minds. Even then, though, educators would continue to confront budget problems, but at least the other issues previously mentioned would, for the most part, be diminished. High school acts as the key point in students’ lives in which they must be able to develop their own decisions about their interests and determine what will benefit them beyond high school and what will not. When students demonstrate the capability of choosing what will truly enhance their lives, whether music education is included in that path or not, our nation is at its
Although supporters of its requirement point out all of the benefits that can sometimes result from music education, such as improved grades and test scores, those details are insignificant compared to main purpose: enhancing students’ musical ability and, consequently, preparing them for the application of their skills beyond high school. Simply put, at many schools, music education fails its primary purpose, because “the final product [of musical practice], the performance, is the public face of the music education program in a school [so schools] can neglect the meaningful learning that occurs in the learning process leading up to a performance” (Collins 6). Some schools take the learning process more seriously than others, naturally, but the majority of schools inevitably place their primary focus upon the performance in order to appear musically talented in the presence of other community members. The negligence of learning will only worsen with more students enrolled in music classes because teachers will find it increasingly difficult to walk them all through the learning process. As music professor David E. Myers points out, “producing successful ensemble performances in schools, while a worthy effort in some respects, does not necessarily instil skills and understandings that empower people to fulfil their musical drives and potential over a lifetime” (50). As a result of this, …show more content…
By viewing music education from this standpoint, the futility of requiring it in secondary public schools becomes clear. If anything, it might be helpful requiring music education in elementary or middle schools, simply because of the positive effects music has on developing young minds. Even then, though, educators would continue to confront budget problems, but at least the other issues previously mentioned would, for the most part, be diminished. High school acts as the key point in students’ lives in which they must be able to develop their own decisions about their interests and determine what will benefit them beyond high school and what will not. When students demonstrate the capability of choosing what will truly enhance their lives, whether music education is included in that path or not, our nation is at its