Black Gold School Division

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  • Trustee Column: Yes Virginia, there is a purpose for the arts in education

    Posted on    Posted in BGSD, Board, General

    Happy December! If you are like most people, your social calendar for this month looks quite a bit different than in recent years. Everywhere you turn, there are reminders that ‘tis the season to be jolly—but only with your family or close cohort group! Events that normally bring meaning and joy to the holiday season have been cancelled. In fact, it leads one to wonder, “Is Christmas cancelled this year?”

    A highlight for many Black Gold students, families and schools is the annual Christmas concert or celebration. Sadly, like so many other events, our school Christmas festivities have fallen victim to concerns around the alarming spread of the coronavirus. However, while the talent shows may have been cancelled, music, singing, dancing, acting, drawing, painting, sculpting and poetry are very much alive and well in our schools.

    You may ask, without an audience to enjoy musical, dance or theatre performances, or take in visual art exhibitions, is there a purpose for including the arts in education? The answer is a resounding “Yes!” These disciplines are foundational and contribute a great deal to a child’s development and growth, and lead to more creative thinking, better problem solving, and greater academic success.

    Consider musical notation; learning the language of the dots, stems, and lines on a sheet of music and translating them into sounds and melodies accesses parts of the brain not reached through other mediums. There are countless scientific studies linking music to brain development, enhanced learning, and healing. The brain trained to understand music theory is also a brain that, in many instances, becomes trained to handle complex problems.

    The visual and theatrical arts teach students to use their imagination, think spatially, visualize ideas and bring them to life, and to communicate effectively. These abilities are not ‘frills’ or ‘optional extras’, they are essential to everyday life and work.

    Our schools have a role in nurturing the next generation of Albertans, to help prepare them for the complex demands of the 21st century workplace. There is no crystal ball to show what the future holds for our children. By offering students a well-rounded education that includes the arts, we can provide them a solid foundation to become creative, compassionate, and contributing members of society.

    In How the Arts Develop the Young Brain, author David A. Sousa presents this conclusion: “The arts play an important role in human development, enhancing the growth of cognitive, emotional, and psycho-motor pathways. Schools have an obligation to expose children to the arts at the earliest possible time and to consider the arts as fundamental (not optional) curriculum areas. Finally, learning the arts provides a higher quality of human experience throughout a person’s lifetime.”

    Whether students are learning in the classroom or at home, a well-rounded education includes not only reading, writing and ‘rithmatic, but also music, dancing, art or drama.  The arts help our children recognize and appreciate the beauty and wonder that surrounds them, and enables them to lead more enriching, inspiring and uplifting lives.

    On behalf of the Board of Trustees, may you and yours experience beauty and richness through the sights and sounds (and smells and tastes) of this Christmas season. Please celebrate safely with those you love, and best wishes for a wonderful new year too!

    Esther Eckert,
    Trustee for County East

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