Klarinet Archive - Posting 000425.txt from 1997/04

From: "David B. Stevens" <dstevens@-----.net>
Subj: Re: ammo for music teachers
Date: Thu, 17 Apr 1997 08:58:56 -0400

Hi Michael,

That is absoultely right you must address the economics of the
situation.... to those that are analyitical, the educational
benefits.... to those who really care, and the wonderful warm
fuzzies.... to those who are emmotional. There did I leave anyone out?

I also firmly believe that you can get to the economic issues through
the educational benefits. How?

Well let's try this way:

There are many reasons for you to continue the rebuild of the arts and
in particular music in our school system. In the folders provided to
you, this evening, you will find a copy of an article titled "Readin',
Writin', Rhythm" from the April 14, 1997 issue of Newsweek, along with
that article you will find two pages that just scratch the surface on
the needs of the music program of our school system, you will also find
a copy of this year's music budget and the proposed FY98 music budget as
provided to me by our school systems Director of Finance. I will leave
it to you to reconcile the needs with the resources.

Please see the following accounts in the budget, my copy of which is
dated 03/07/97, the accounts are on page 6. The accounts are:

1116 Reading Consultant in the amount of $385,705, 1124 Psychological
Examiner in the amount of $182,666, 1125 Psychologist in the amount of
$50,311, 1126 Social Worker in the amount of $665,915 for a total of
$1,284,594. I would like you to look at the reasons why these line
items appear in your budget, the Newsweek article in the folders, and a
little story that I'm about to tell you.

One of the most vexing problems facing education is the drop in
literacy, there is a long story behind what has occurred, however, the
National Institutes of Health has provided us with an answer.

I now launched into a brief description of the problem and the results
of the NIH studies, I then tied that study to one done much earlier
related to music.

Another vexing problem faced by our school system is disipline problems,
there are many reasons why these problems have increased.

Same tactic as for the reading problems.

Now the punch line:

Now where are we on the budget, oh yes, those accounts on page 6
totaling $1,284,597 do you think that maybe a bit more money spent on
the arts might lower the need for such a large amount of expenditures in
those accounts? You folks don't have to answer that question, however
you might want to discuss it amongst yourselves. (The floor was open for
comment only, so I was out of order in asking a question, I didn't want
to get called on it and didn't)

What was the result well right now it is too early to tell. These
things take time, and we have already had several issues addressed.

I did have several school committee members come up and ask me questions
after the meeting. I'm not sure that they were happy with some of my
answers. But that is a story for another day.

My counterpart from the other high school went down the warm fuzzy path
and also had several school committee members come up and ask her
questions after the meeting. I'm not sure that they were happy with
some of her answers either.

If you look in the budget you will find lots of areas that are impacted
by the fallout of the lack of strong arts programs. By all means use
the economic arguements as part of your endeavor. Use all valid
arguements, don't leave any out.

I'm not a music educator, just a parent and TAXPAYER, tell the stories
to those who pay the bills. Let them do the persuading.

Regards,

Dave

Michael D. Moors wrote:
>
> MENC has a video out called Reverse Economics by John Benham. The video is
> great because it takes the following approach:
>
> 1. If there are 75 kids in a given band class, the school was cutting band
> to save money. How does it is save money when it takes two additional
> teachers to handle the cutback? This theory is using a 30 to 1 ratio.
> 2. If your district is planning on cutting elementary band because it is a
> pull-out program. It makes no sense because the enrollment they create at
> the secondary program pays for itself.
>
> The most effective tool I have seen.. You don't reason with administrators
> talking motor skills, increasing reading and math skills and developing
> teamwork. They don't seem particularly impressed when you show them that
> music student get better SAT scores. You can tell them that band increases
> concentration skills untill you are blue in the face. You have to talk
> dollars. Lorne G. Buick had a great article and I agree with everything in
> it but this is what I found in my district.
>
> Learned from Experience,
>
> Mike Moors
>
> At 04:18 PM 4/11/97 -0500, you wrote:
> >On Fri, 11 Apr 1997, Lorne G. Buick wrote:
> >
> >> Here's a tidbit that someone might be able to use in the fight against
> >> cutbacks, or to encourage someone who's debating where to spend limited
> $$$:
> > * i read this article too. sounds promising for us future music
> >educators.
> >> [From the Globe and Mail (Canada's "National" Newspaper), Fri. April 11,
> p A20]
> >>
> >> **************
> >>
> >> Musical Benefits
> >>
> >> The piano keyboard beat the computer keyboard in a study of preschoolers.
> >> Frances Rauscher of the U. of California, Irvine, and her team of
> >> researchers selected 100 children and divided them into three groups: those
> >> to be trained on a computer for 15 minutes twice a week, those to get the
> >> equivalent training on a piano nad those getting no special training. After
> >> eight months, an IQ test showed the music group scored significantly
> >> higher on skills essential in math, science, engineering and games like
> >> chess. When youngsters study piano, researchers said, concepts such as
> >> forward and back, up and down, loud and soft become easier to understand.
> > *concepts such as addition and subtraction (from note durations) and
> >patterns (from scales, sequences, form, etc) were easier for the children
> >to comprehend as well. so, guess what?: we musicians are smart people
> >because of our music &!! this proves that music is beneficial and almost
> >crucial. yea!! :-)
> >i just had to give my two cents. -kim = UNT
> >> ****************
> >> > Information is not Knowledge. Knowledge is not Understanding.
> >> Understanding is not Wisdom. Wisdom is not Truth.
> >> Truth is not Beauty. Beauty is not Music.
> >> Music is best. -Frank Zappa
> >>
> >
> >
> >
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> / O | mdmoors@-----.us
> http://edcen.ehhs.cmich.edu/~mmoors/