May 23, 2006
Take Action on No Child Left Behind

Your help is urgently needed to inform Congress about No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and the importance of the arts in every child's education. Your action today will help to ensure the place of the arts in your schools tomorrow.

The Commission on No Child Left Behind is accepting comments through an online portal on their Web site. This bipartisan commission will make formal recommendations to Congress in early 2007. As such, this is a key opportunity for teachers, parents, and community members to offer constructive feedback on the importance of the arts in any kind of education legislation, and specifically NCLB.

Follow these five easy steps and join arts educators and supporters around the country in submitting comments about the importance of arts education:

1. Review the “talking points” included at the end of this message.
2. Incorporate some or all of them into your own personal letter. Include positive anecdotes or experiences about the importance of arts education.
3. Submit your letter via this Web portal:

www.aspeninstitute

4. Paste your letter into the “Comment” section and click “Submit.”

Share this message with parents and community supporters. Encourage them to submit their own letters about the importance of arts education in NCLB and every child's education.

With your action, the Commission will report to Congress that teachers, parents, and advocates around the country are insisting on a stronger place for the arts in NCLB and every child's education. Thanks for your help. Take action today!

TALKING POINTS

1. A child’s education is not complete unless it includes the arts.

2. No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) lists the arts among the core academic subjects, requiring schools to enable all students to reap the full benefits of a comprehensive arts education. However, a recent report from the Center for Education Policy concludes that, since the enactment of NCLB, instructional time for music and art in schools has been reduced by 22 percent.

 3. The federal commitment to arts education must be strengthened so that the arts are implemented as a part of the core curriculum of our nation's schools and are an integral part of every child’s development.

4. A comprehensive strategy for a complete education for all students includes high-quality, sequential arts instruction in the classroom, as well as participation and learning in available community-based arts programs.

5. Comprehensive arts education for all helps students meet the ever growing demands of the global economy. Students gain skills essential to succeeding in the ever changing information age.

6. Recent studies show that schools with large number of impoverished students are aided and transformed into vibrant learning environments when the arts are infused into their culture and curricula.

7. Teacher retention and recruitment continues to be a daunting challenge for schools. However, when schools embrace the arts and become havens for innovation and creativity, they become places where teachers want to teach, and subsequently, students want to learn.

8. Public schools have the responsibility for providing a complete education for all children. The federal government must exercise leadership to ensure schools meet the arts commitment put forth in NCLB.

9. More research supporting the importance of arts education for every child is available at http://www.supportmusic.com.

Source: "MENC News" <news@menc.org>

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