A publicly provided musical education is necessary

With a reported national average by Hill Strategies Surveys of only thirty-eight percent of elementary school music teachers having a musical background, it is not difficult to recognize that many aspects of musical education are being reduced and cut due to tight government funding across Canada. Through extensive research and with experience of over thirteen years of musical education and lessons, a list of the largest benefits that music can provide to children and youth has been compiled along with some unbelievable statistics about the state of music programs in Canada. Included in these benefits are the subjects of increased intelligence, teamwork, and emotional development among other intriguing points.

Due to funding not keeping pace with the demand for musical programs in schools, not all students are receiving the countless benefits that music should deliver to people’s lives. P.W. Academy of Theatre and Performing Arts identifies that music develops both sides of a child’s brain, making it important for the academic, emotional, physical, and spiritual development for young people. This development of both sides of the brain is unique to a select few activities and is responsible for higher intelligence found in younger children. With a study conducted in 2011 by Hill Strategies, Ontario was identified as the location with the worst music programming within Canada. In Ontario, fifteen percent of schools charge fees for students to participate in any musical courses offered by the school. Students that miss out on the benefits of music will grow up without an increased memory and attention, a lower IQ score, non-advanced performance on standardized tests, average level motor coordination and information processing, and lower grades in high school compared to their musically talented peers. As well, musical students tend to have higher self esteem and are better at coping with anxiety compared to non-musical students. Music creates a bond between fellow musicians which enhances teamwork skills; benefiting these students for a lifetime. In addition to teaching children about other cultures and creating discipline, music is also capable of pushing kids to work hard, to take responsible risks and to conquer their fears. With a never-ending list of positive effects that musical education has on children and youth, the decision to reduce funding in these programs compared to others is an unexplainable mystery and definitely a huge mistake.

In order to resolve the issue of constant cutbacks to musical programming in Canadian schools, the school as a whole must fight back and demonstrate just how meaningful these programs are to them. More students need to be entering the music courses and extracurriculars so that the arts are well represented in our school. If nobody bothers to show up to classes or practices, there will be no educational benefits and the program will be forced to downsize even more. On this note, non-musical students need to start showing their support for the events put on by the arts department. Just as the student body appreciates sports games, it is crucial to the survival of music education programs that activities put on by these musical groups are well attended. It is not fair to the arts programs of all schools that athletic departments get more participation because of mandatory courses while musical courses are almost all optional. While it is heavily publicized that athletics courses are beneficial to physical health, more people must be informed of the positive effects music has on mental health in order to keep attendance and popularity levels elevated. With overwhelming numbers, there will be more pressure on the government to provide financial aid to the areas in need.

If schools were better represented by music students, there would be a larger amount of students with exceptional marks, positive attitudes, and most everyone would work together better while supporting others. Even if there was still a large population of non-musicians in schools, with all students supporting both the athletics and music departments, a much more positive school environment would be created, which would result in a higher quality school experience for all students. In the event that the government were to decide that music should be mandatory for several years just as physical education is now, all students would be able to benefit mentally from all the experiences they would go through in a music program, even if a person were to be opposed to the idea based on a first impression.

Overall, schools in Canada need to be provided with enough financial aid so that they can continue to change the lives of students that decide to participate in musical courses and extracurriculars. To ensure that quality programming remains in our schools, supporting these programs as a representative of the student body is extremely appreciated. Thank you for listening to the many benefits of music programs and for the support you contribute to our school’s music department.