Schools, Education, Arts, and Prisons

The following are excerpted from New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer’s report on the significant disparities in art education.  (Bold emphasis is ours.)

“Over a decade of myopic education policies that began with No Child Left Behind and today’s Common Core mandate have doubled-down on standardized testing. Policy makers and school administrators are have readily wielded the axe on the arts budget to make room for more tutoring and testing. The arts are seen largely as a fringe subject in school with no real significance for youth. Nothing could be further from the truth.”

“… at-risk youth are five times more likely to drop-out from high school if they do not have arts education.”

“More arts education means fewer high school drop-outs. Fewer high school drop-outs means higher rates of college enrollment. More college graduates means more sustainable human capital out of prisons, off of welfare, and joining the workforce. The fear-driven, insular mentality of testing and more testing has unfortunately led to the channeling our tax dollars to support more prisons and national ‘security’ that our own children in America.”

Victor Hugo (1802-1895) said as much over a century ago.  The line from the 1955 song “When will they ever learn?” from a Pete Seeger song comes to mind.  Hmm…makes you wonder if the policy makers are slow learners, in denial, out of touch with reality (they probably don’t live in those neighborhoods or their kids don’t go to school there).