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Money Down a Rathole? Or, Justifying a Strong Music Program

© Karen Stafford

OK, time to cut the budget!!! Where do we chop first? Hopefully, if it gets to that point in your school district, representatives from the different subject areas will have a chance to defend their subject areas. If you have to get to that point, here's some ammunition that could help save your music program. You know, you don't even have to have a drastic situation. You may have to justify music grades to a parent, especially a parent who has a child that is a behavior problem and doesn't "like" music. (Have any of you had a parent who claimed "Well, I wasn't any good in music, either?" Ouch.)

I like to offer a handout of the value of music education in my beginning of the year newsletter. Justifying our area (as if we really should have to, but we do), begins with those who should be the loudest voices: the parents. Getting parents on our side goes a long way towards getting administrators and school boards on our side. What should go in this handout? You can start by explaining possibly why you liked music enough to make it your career, what music means to you, and possibly, what music has done for your life. Add information on the studies showing the worth of music (don't get into educationese, however, or their eyes will glaze over), especially how it connects with the other subject matters. If you have students with behavior disorders, music might be a connection for them in expressing themselves. Some of my best performers have been BD or ADD kids. The idea is guiding them into channeling their energies in a positive way.

Invite parents, board members, and administrators into your class. If you're bold enough, tell them they don't have to schedule a day, but just have the office buzz when they've arrived and would like to watch. (That way, you can't be accused of staging a "show" just for them). The layperson needs to be shown that music isn't just singing out of a book anymore (at least, I hope that's not what you're doing!). Make them aware of the connections with literature, history, math, and other areas. Let them notice how tickled kids are when they've played that xylophone part or the recorder. When many parents see their kids performing on an instrument, chances are, you'll have a fan.

If you run into the "I wasn't good in music, either" parent, ask them what they had done in music. Show them the variety music holds in the 1990's, as opposed to the probable singing from books that they've done. (Don't get me wrong: I'm not knocking singing; I'm knocking singing out of books as the ONLY method of teaching music. That's not teaching music. That's learning a tune and reading words.) Again, invite them to class sometime. The average person just does not realize what a music teacher actually does. (In fact, many folks in education don't, either).