“A Well-Rounded Education is not just a nicety, it’s a necessity”
– U.S. Secretary of Education, John King
On Wednesday, July 13th, Secretary King held a conference call announcing a Dear Colleague letter focused on the arts and Humanities and providing examples on how the federal funding streams and programs associated with the No Child Left Behind authorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act as well as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and the Perkins Career and Technical Education Act can be used to support students learning in the arts and Humanities. The letter can be found here.
While the conference call focused mainly on the Humanities, including connections to the National Council for the Social Studies and iCivics, arts integration was featured in a brief presentation by Megan Beyer, Executive Director for the President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities focused on the Turnaround Arts program.
Christopher Woodside, Deputy Executive Director for the National Association for Music Education, asked about how this guidance and federal education dollars in general, can support high quality arts education programs in our nation’s schools, such as those offered by our members – not just arts integration programs where the arts serve as the entry point for learning in other subjects. Dr. King replied in the affirmative that the guidance itself and federal education dollars overall can support high quality music and arts education programs, stating, that, under ESSA, the new version of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act:
Photo: U.S. Department of Education
“States and schools have significant flexibility. Each state will create a plan with indicators as well as interventions to pursue with schools that are struggling. You can imagine a state that would include access to advanced coursework and student success in those advanced courses, and that could include advanced courses in a specific discipline or integrate across disciplines. You can also include a state commitment to seeing a stronger arts education program in schools as a school improvement strategy that would be evidence based – that is important within the law. There is a lot of room here for state and local flexibility and leadership. We are going to need educators including educators certified in the arts to be an active part of the conversation. This letter today is about highlighting the importance of the humanities and arts instruction as part of a well-rounded education and we will continue to make that case.”
Stay connected to NAfME’s work in making certain music educators are connected to the opportunities found within ESSA by visiting our Everything ESSA page and our new Grassroots Advocacy Center for ways you can be involved with the legislative process.
Secretary King ended the call by stating, “a well- rounded education is for ALL students – regardless of zip code, regardless of race, regardless of immigration status.A Well-Rounded Education is not just a nicety, it’s a necessity.”
Christopher M. Johnson, Professor of Music Education and Music Therapy, is currently the Chair of the Music Education and Music Therapy Department and Director of the Music Research Institute at the University of Kansas. Johnson earned his Ph.D. from the Florida State University.
Since his arrival at The University of Kansas, Johnson has taught courses in Instrumental Conducting, Teaching Instrumental Music, Managing Behaviors in the Music Environment, Psychology and Acoustics of Music, and Research Methods in Music Education and Music Therapy. Johnson served two terms as the editor of the International Journal of Music Education: Research, the research publication of the International Society for Music Education. He is currently serving his second term on the National Association for Music Educations Executive Committee of the Society for Research in Music Education. He also served on the editorial board of the Journal of Research in Music Education, and one earlier term as the Chair for the MENC Executive Committee of the Society for Research in Music Education. Johnson also served as the Chair for the Research Commission of the International Society for Music Education.
Johnson’s research interests include applied research in music education, and basic research in all aspects of the psychology of music. He has published articles in many journals including the Journal of Research in Music Education, the International Journal of Music Education, the Journal of Music Therapy, Journal of Band Research, Contributions to Music Education, and the Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education, among others. Johnson has also been an active member and contributor to the Research Seminar of the International Society for Music Education and World Alliance for Arts Education.
Johnson received a university teaching award – the Ned N. Fleming Award for Excellence in Teaching and received the recognition for Graduate Teaching Achievement from the Center for Teaching Excellence. Johnson was also awarded a lecturing & research award as a J. William Fulbright Scholar and recently received the Ella Scoble Opperman Citation for Distinguished Achievement from the Florida State University College of Music.
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