Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Save The Music Programs

I find the commercial to reinstate music classes in schools to be very offensive. Not the idea of it, by any means, but the way in which many of these music-promotion organizations donate money. In order to qualify, a school must be ready to cut their music programs or must have already cut the programs. Usually, a school which is about to cut its music programs has already stripped away the school district of all less experienced teachers and staff (those without the protection of tenure and/or those not at the top of the totem pole). In addition, the cut or to-be-cut program must be reinstated according to certain obligations. There can only be a certain number of students playing each instrument, and among those played, there cannot be more than a few drummers, trumpeters, and guitar players (usually 2 or 3 at most). I don't know about most schools, but in my school of 800-900, there were 9 drummers. That means the competition to play an instrument also goes by seniority, which seems unfair at best. Choral programs and jazz band are also not encouraged through program donations.

So while I support the implementation of more music programs in school, I don't support cutting other things, especially more subject and special education teachers. For the sake of our future, we need to boost funding in ALL aspects of schooling--if we ever hope to become an intelligent, literate nation. The Department of Education's budget needs to be doubled EVERY year from its current amount, and it needs frequent stimulus infusions to create reserve funds for specific districts that may run into financial difficulties on their own, never mind the circumstances everyone is under now that The Great Recession has hit hard.

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