In 1996, University of Wyoming Professor Fred Homer brought a team of two teaching assistants to our summer conference at Grand Island. Their task:

“Design constructive strategies for teaching large groups of college students who would normally be taught exclusively through lecture.”

We take pride in the large percentage of participants who report to us, often years later, of follow-through on tasks undertaken at our conferences. Therefore, it was with pride and pleasure that I read Fred’s recent update. Fred makes it clear that the experiences at the 1996 constructivist conference have a continuing impact on instructors and students. Here is Professor Homer’s report on how the paradigm for teaching political science at UW is changing due to the ripples set off at that ‘96 conference:

“Time passes quickly. The course we developed (at the ‘96 conference) is still in operation. In the fall it serves as the introduction to Political Science for the honors’ students and in the spring there is usually a sprinkling of honors’ students along with self-selected undergraduates. It has served as a training ground for teachers.

“The experience at Grand Island has been an unqualified success both for the students and the student teachers.

“We have been able to limit the students to fewer than 50 in these classes and through several techniques, minimize lectures. As I read in one newsletter, lecture is not antithetical to the constructivist approach, but we do use it sparingly. A few major points are made and as they are presented, they become the basis for extended discussion. Mostly the materials come across through discussion. The students prepare by reading the materials before class and handing in typed questions and commentaries on the readings. These, in turn, provide the text and context for the discussion.

“The projects they have to do are usually collaborative. For example, in the unit on the presidency, students are asked to take a special role the president fulfills and to advise the president of his specific responsibilities. These are divided up and written up by all the students in the class and then the instructor plays the role of the president and the students the role of the advisor.

“All this changed from the standard - read the texts and answer multiple choice questions. What my student interns got out of the conference was the plan and the confidence to radically restructure the way that introductory political science could be taught. I have two TA's in each class and always the veteran takes the lead the first semester while the newcomer learns the method of teaching. Both do share fully in the teaching, but one is clearly in the mentor role.

“When they have gone on to teach their own courses they have adapted techniques from the course to keep it as interactive as possible. Even when they have gone to large lecture sections, they have managed to keep the atmosphere intimate. In addition, as I mentioned to you, after they finish with the course, they can say that they have fully run sessions of courses and not the difficult and demoralizing "discussion sections" that are traditional in introductory courses. Those are so difficult because the students know that discussion is purely peripheral to memorizing facts to score highly on multiple choice questions.

“What helped a great deal was to come to Grand Island with the semblance of a plan and several preliminary meetings. Then we were able to ask specific questions of the resource people at the conference and not have to get organized and ask questions like what is this all about and what are we doing. Our questions were more like we are trying to accomplish this and how might we do a better job. In a real sense, we were into constructivist learning from the beginning because we were going to take a very active role in starting with a focus and with many ideas of how to get there.

“If you come to the conference with the idea that people there will tell you what to do and what constructivist learning is all about, all the participants are doing is to set up an atmosphere for traditional learning.”

I mentioned that the course has become a training ground for teachers. Here is a synopsis of what has become of the interns I brought to Grand Island and some of the people they have taught:

“Brian Farmer, one of those who came to Grand Island with me, got his law degree, works with students using his legal training and still teaches Political Science 1000 at UW. John Peacock was the departmental advisor for several years and taught pols 1000. He is depicted in the HBO movie the Laramie Project, they use his name. He was the advisor to Mathew Shepard. He took a job in Ohio and is working in city government.

“One of their successors, Derek Reiners is working on his Phd at IU and has been teaching his own courses almost from the beginning. He was given the responsibility because of his experience at UW. Another, Letitia Aguirre, is teaching in a community college in the Denver area. Another, Scott Wilson came to us with a great deal of teaching experience and he is the only one not teaching now. He works for one of our congressional delegation. One about to graduate, Sarah Hunter, will probably be teaching a large section of Pols 1000 for the department in the fall.
 

The author welcomes comments, feedback, reactions of any kind to the thoughts expressed (above).

Please feel free to forward this message to a friend or colleague. If
you know someone who would like to be put on the list, please send a
message to Don Mesibov at dmesibov@twcny.rr.com.

Copyright (c) 2002, Institute for Learning Centered Education. All
rights reserved.

Most of this newsletter will be a repeat of what was suggested a year ago about the importance of exposing students in majority populations to the traditions and behaviors of those in the minorities. First, however, I want to share an idea I picked up from Gary Buehler, Joan Johnson and the Gouverneur school district in the early 1990s:

Each district employee received a Holiday Greeting card signed, jointly, by the superintendent, union presidents, and the presidents of the board of education and the parent organization.

What a wonderful symbol of the oft repeated adage “It takes the whole village to raise a child.” Think of the message that was received!

Here is what I suggested a year ago:

This is the time of year that educators make decisions on what holidays should be reflected in displays, and in songs that are selected for winter concerts. Despite the separation of church and state, certain cultures and religions will be prominently on display much more than others.

If we are sensitive to issues of diversity, we should, primarily, sympathize with the minorities whose culture and/or religion is ignored, right?

Wrong! I think we should feel sympathy for the students in the majority whose culture or religion is prominently on display, to the exclusion of others.

Schools that provide representation for the rituals and traditions of minority students in their populations are, primarily, being sensitive to the needs of their minority students. Right?

Wrong. While their intention may be to show sensitivity to their minority students, they are, in fact, providing a benefit to all students.

Let me explain.

Six years ago, I heard a highly educated individual indicate that people in Northern New York didn’t have to be as concerned about issues of diversity as people in Niagara Falls because, in this person’s words, “There is not as much diversity in the North Country of New York.”

Let’s ignore the fact that this statement may not be true. If we assume it is true and there is little diversity in the North Country, I submit it is equally important, not less important, to address issues of diversity in the North Country.

Why?

When schools prepare for the holidays, some educators will be sensitive to the existence, within their population, of minorities, and may include decorations, displays, and songs that reflect the heritage of minority students and teachers. Many will not, or will give token recognition. But even those who do include meaningful representation for minority group traditions will do it for a reason that, in my opinion, is less important than what should be the real reason. They will do it out of sensitivity toward the minority population.

This is good as far as it goes. While many of us who are in minority populations appreciate it when a school recognizes our religion, heritage, or cultural background, often we don’t need it. We have been forced to prepare our children for life in the minority. Sometimes being in a minority is an advantage because we are forced to be sure that our children understand their heritage and take pride in it – we can’t rely on the outside world to do our teaching for us.

My concern is with the majority. Students in the majority in your school may not always live and work in an area where they are the majority. This becomes truer with every generation. How will a student who has been brought up surrounded by people who believe, celebrate, and pray as she does handle the situation if her first exposure to certain minorities occurs when the “minority” is in the majority and she is not?

As you plan your displays, the agenda for the school concert, the announcements on the loud speaker, class lessons, and other activities that will connect students to the holidays, please think of the majority. Think of the disservice you do them if you limit displays, music, etc. to only that with which they are already familiar.

Several years ago, I walked through the lobby of the Clifton Fine School District and, I saw student created displays reflecting at least half a dozen different religions, traditions, and/or heritages. It occurred to me that it must give a wonderful feeling to a child of a minority persuasion to see his or her own traditions on display.”

Some of the displays were of practices by minorities in the Clifton-Fine District, and some were of practices and traditions of people not represented in the Clifton-Fine student or faculty population. “What a wonderful example this is,” I thought to myself, “for the majority of Clifton-Fine students who are learning about practices of races and religions that they will not experience in their own community. What wonderful preparation this is for the world that may await them. What wonderful preparation it is for them, even if they remain in the local area, for interacting with people from diverse cultures who may come to their community. And what a loud and clear message is being sent by the school district when it gives equal space and attention to people and events of diverse origin.”

What I have never seen, but would love to, is a December concert in which every single song reflected the heritage or culture of a different people, whether those people were represented in the community, at the time, or not. Is this a pipe dream? Does anyone know of such an event? Has it happened? What a wonderful experience this would be for the children who are in the majority population. They will experience their own music, and traditions as they walk through town, turn on the radio, and reside in their homes. School should afford students the opportunity for new learning experiences, not simply exposure to what they already know.

Ed. note: Following publication of this newsletter, a year ago, I did hear from someone in the Syracuse area who indicated there is a CD, from a school concert, which includes songs from a variety of traditions around the world. Hooray!

The author welcomes comments, feedback, reactions of any kind to the thoughts expressed (above).

Please feel free to forward this message to a friend or colleague. If
you know someone who would like to be put on the list, please send a
message to Don Mesibov at dmesibov@twcny.rr.com.

Copyright (c) 2002, Institute for Learning Centered Education. All
rights reserved.

Larry Byrd (the human relations expert) is a beloved colleague to many of us and Larry often says that teachers and staff developers need to give their audiences “Hooks to hang their thoughts on.”

EXAMPLE # 1:
Last weekend, a radio “fix-it” show host was promoting a contest for a wall cleaner and he announced, “The person who can send in the best example of a dirty, marked up . . .” then he interrupted himself, “that should be we’ll award a prize to the person who can send in the WORST example of a dirty, marked up household wall.”

As a former English teacher, I was challenged to reflect on his switch from “best” to “worst”. Was the grammatically correct word “best” or worst”? Did he want the “best example” or the “worst example” of a dirty wall? I concluded he was correct the first time. He really wanted the “best example” of a messed up wall. The “worst” example of a messed up wall would be a wall that was not messed up at all.

My next thought was of how I used to teach good, better, best and bad, worse, worst. I didn’t give my students hooks to hang their thoughts on. Instead, I had them take notes on some of the rules to apply and I gave them examples. My more highly motivated students were able to remember and apply the rules, but too many students found the topic boring and, throughout the school year, demonstrated little retention.

Perhaps, I could have given them “hooks” for their thoughts by challenging them to listen to (or read) the statement from the radio announcer and to decide whether he really wanted a “best example” or “worst example.” A lively discussion analyzing which kind of example the announcer really intended might have set the stage for improved student application of the rules to apply when selecting among good, better, and best. I could have challenged the students, in groups of two or three, to decide which word the announcer should have used, and then I could have opened up the discussion to the whole class by asking some probing questions after each group had reported its response.

ANOTHER EXAMPLE – WITH A TURKEY

Last Thursday, I showed my St. Lawrence University students the opening scene from the movie “Boyz N the Hood.” A “traditional” classroom teacher is attempting to share the meaning of Thanksgiving with a Los Angeles high school class. “Now class,” she asks,” who can tell us the name of the people who came over on the Mayflower?”

After one student correctly identifies “the pilgrims,” another student wisecracks, “It was the penguins. Yeah, it was the penguins.”

This is where the teacher, in my opinion, blew it. The student was a little out of line and was not being serious, and the teacher reprimanded him, moved on, and continued a lesson that obviously was not going to accomplish much student learning.

What if she had reacted with a lighter touch and played with the alliteration – pilgrims and penguins. Had she turned the student’s joke into a class joke, she would have given many of her students a hook for remembering the word “pilgrim.” By building the lesson from that beginning, a great deal of learning might have been accomplished.

Perhaps, you disagree and feel the teacher should not have shown any tolerance for the wise guy who blurted out “penguin.” I can accept that. My point is simply that we have to look for strategies to help students remember and apply that which we want them to know. If the teacher felt it would be inappropriate to gloss over the “penguin” remark, maybe she could have looked elsewhere for a hook. This is why project-based learning is so valuable. When a student becomes invested in a project, the memory of that engagement provides hooks that sometimes last a lifetime for remembering the lessons that were learned through engagement in the project.

I’m sure many of you have been at a workshop where you have been asked to recall a memorable learning experience, whether or not it occurred within a school setting. No matter how many people are in attendance, invariably almost everyone recalls a learning experience where there was:

· Active engagement

· Interaction with others

· Conflict or challenge

·Reflection

As adults, when we want to remember something, don’t we create a strategy ranging from word association, to a string on the finger, or some other tactic designed to give us a hook on which to hang our thought? As teachers and staff developers, don’t we need to help people design their own “hooks” (i.e. create their own strategies for learning)?

The author welcomes comments, feedback, reactions of any kind to the thoughts expressed (above).

Please feel free to forward this message to a friend or colleague. If
you know someone who would like to be put on the list, please send a
message to Don Mesibov at dmesibov@twcny.rr.com.

Copyright (c) 2002, Institute for Learning Centered Education. All
rights reserved.

New York State’s mandate for education students of 100 hours of field experience is one of the best things ever done by the State to support the growth of future teachers. Instead of student teaching being an initial exposure to the real classroom, it can now be a culminating event.

I can see the positive results as my undergraduate students (mostly sophomores) at St. Lawrence University attain their 15 hours of experience as part of the requirements of my course. Each semester, I find new ways to generate student reflection, in class, on their field experiences in the world of real teachers and real students.

Recently, I wanted to challenge my students to think about their field experiences and to share perceptions with their peers. Like most teachers, I’ve learned that if I throw a question to the whole class, such as “Who would like to share something about their field experience?” I will be inviting one of three reactions:

· No hands at all as I stand their praying for someone to respond before giving up and moving on.

· The same old, same old hands.

· One or two responses that ramble on, take far more time than is justified, and do not accomplish much in terms of class involvement or learning.

Therefore, abandoning the “ask a question to the whole class” approach, I arbitrarily assigned everyone to a group of four, and asked each student to share with the other three people in the group one thing he/she had learned from a field experience. After allowing eight minutes (and frequently announcing “only two minutes per person during the sharing,”) I then asked each group to take five minutes to agree on one common denominator about their four shared experiences that someone could report to the entire class.

After allowing five minutes, I asked for a reporter from each group to share the common denominator from the field experiences shared in each group. Here are the responses:

Group One: “The first thing a teacher needs to think about is how to motivate students.”

Group Two: “Teaching is not all fun; there are times of frustration.”

Group Three: “When the kids are interactive, they seem to be learning so much more.”

Group Four: “The teacher’s personality determines whether students get involved in discussions.”

As you read the above, keep in mind these are the reflections of college students, many of them future teachers, who have observed students and teachers in classroom settings.

The author welcomes comments, feedback, reactions of any kind to the thoughts expressed (above).

Please feel free to forward this message to a friend or colleague. If
you know someone who would like to be put on the list, please send a
message to Don Mesibov at dmesibov@twcny.rr.com.

Copyright (c) 2002, Institute for Learning Centered Education. All
rights reserved.

If students can be given “ownership” of the questions or topic that drives a learning experience, the job of the teacher is much easier. Recently, I observed how this can be accomplished as I had the privilege to observe Dr. Paul Vermette of Niagara University teach five classes at the Malone Middle School on Friday, November 15.

Dr. V’s visit to Malone was an example of professional development in the classroom and it occurred as part of a half million dollar three-year CSR grant awarded to the school, with the Institute for Learning Centered Education as the provider. We feel we are responding to a question posed by Dr. Linda Darling Hammond in a Kappan article in the 1990s when she defined a new paradigm for professional development and invited schools to create concrete models. Here is a concrete model of professional development in the classroom:

Five teachers invited Dr. Vermette to teach their classes while, in each class, the teacher and three or four colleagues observed. (It should be noted that the teachers who invited Dr. Vermette to model cooperative strategies in their classrooms are outstanding teachers who are on the continuous improvement cycle that motivates all good professionals.)

Each teacher informed Dr. V. of the learning objectives and content to cover and he designed lessons that challenged students to think critically, work in groups and utilize a variety of intelligences. By the end of the day, Dr. V. had taught classes in French, social studies, developmental reading (two different classes), and home and careers.

As former middle school principal Ted Werner, currently an instructor at Niagara University, and I, observed, we noted how effectively Dr. V. relied on the principle of student “ownership.” I have recommended, in this space, that EVERY LESSON should begin with student engagement. This, Dr. Vermette did. He would begin his lessons with a brief observation, usually something humerous or interesting to let the class know something about himself and to motivate the students to pay attention. Then he would either:

· Ask students to write something, “brief,” that would access prior knowledge

· Or, put students in pairs or small groups and ask them to engage in an activity that would access prior knowledge and involve everyone.

How did Dr. Vermette generate student ownership? He generated ownership by using the students’ responses to drive the remainder of the lesson. For instance, here is a social studies lesson on Egypt taught by Dr. Vermette. Keep in mind, as you read this, that the goal of the teacher was not social studies content. The teacher’s learning objective was to provide students with “a reading-in-the-content strategy particularly for weaker readers.” Learning social studies content (about Egypt) was a by product of this lesson.

· Dr. V. put eight key vocabulary words on the board (which were also highlighted in their textbooks). “I want you to repeat each of these words after me, as you look at them in your textbook: Dynasty, Pharaoh, Edict, Hieroglyphics, Papyrus, Pyramid, Mummy, and Peasant.

“Who knows any of these words?” Three students each identified and defined a different word.

· “In a moment you are going to work in pairs. You don’t have to like the person you are going to work with, but you have to work with him and respect him.” Extending his hand toward one student in the front row, and shaking hands with the student, Dr. V. said, “I don’t have to like you, but I have to work with you and respect you. Now say that to me.” The student repeated these words as the rest of the class exhibited some curious smiles, but paid close attention.

“Now I want you to partner with the person next to you, shake hands and repeat what you just heard us say.”

· “Now I want you to look at the illustrations in chapter 3 (on Egypt) and pick out three things from an illustration you and your partner agree on – any three things that interest you. Write them down.” (Within three minutes every pair had completed reviewing two or more pictures.) Dr. Vermette then asked one student to share the three things selected by her and her partner. Then he told the students “You now have three minutes to share your three things with some other pairs. See what they have that you don’t.”

· Students were given new partners as Dr. Vermette randomly paired every fourth student. “With your partner, write a sentence using any three of your vocabulary words. Show it to me when you are done, because if time remains you could write another one.” (Then Dr. V. suggested to the teacher “Maybe you could type these up and distribute them tomorrow.”)

· “After you have completed two sentences, draw an illustration to go with it.”

· “Now I want you and your partner to agree on three questions someone might have about Egypt.” (One student asked “Is it OK for us to have more than three questions?”) Dr. V. allowed about five minutes for this task.

· “Now I am asking you to plan a brochure we could give to people about Egypt. Use your sentences and questions and illustrations as references. You can look at chapter three in your textbook. You don’t have to actually do the brochure, just plan it. What would go in it? Where?”

As the students worked, Dr. Vermette said to the teachers who were observing: “The students may do the brochure from work already done. When new information from the textbook shows up in the brochure it indicates the students have read and comprehended.

Student “ownership” was developed by building the lesson around the sentences the students wrote, the questions they posed, and the discoveries they made as they looked at illustrations in chapter 3. In each of the five lessons taught by Dr. V., he began by having students create something and then he built the lesson around their creation.

At the conclusion of the lesson on Egypt, Dr. Vermette filled out a “Reflective Form,” each of the students was asked to complete their own “Reflective Form” and each of several teachers who were observing had their form to complete. Part of the reason for the forms was for our own assessment of our efforts at professional development in the classroom; part of the reason was to cause all the participants to reflect upon and process what they had learned.

By day’s end, more than 15 teachers had been involved in the professional development, no class time had been lost, and teachers had the opportunity to observe strategies being implemented with their own students. One teacher, commenting on what was learned by observing Dr. V, said, “It was clear from watching him that students have to have a purpose for reading. We don’t always help students find a purpose for what we ask them to read.”

One teacher who observed Dr. Vermette teaching her class, first period, was going to try to implement the same lesson in succeeding classes throughout the day. This is meaningful professional development – the opportunity to observe a strategy, and then to go right into the classroom and try it out, several times.

The author welcomes comments, feedback, reactions of any kind to the thoughts expressed (above).

Please feel free to forward this message to a friend or colleague. If
you know someone who would like to be put on the list, please send a
message to Don Mesibov at dmesibov@twcny.rr.com.

Copyright (c) 2002, Institute for Learning Centered Education. All
rights reserved.

Staff Developer Anne DeFiglio e-mailed some wonderful ideas for structuring group work to generate student dialogue and sharing. I am going to use several of Anne’s ideas in my university teaching and I wanted to share them with you.

Recently I described an activity for generating student dialogue: place students in groups of four, have them address a specific question, and then have a reporter in each group share the responses as opposed to simply asking, in front of the entire class, “Who can answer this question?” Anne’s ideas were forwarded in a response to my article:

"Dear Don,

I'd like to add to your wonderful invitation to all of your college students to reflect on their classroom observations using teams of four. Your rationale for avoiding "Who can tell me the answer?" is dead on, and it reminds me of the explanation that Spencer Kagan gives to a roomful of teachers in defense of using "Numbered Heads Together" (an interactive structure) to engage ALL students in the learning activity. His explanation is told with great classroom humor, and he really makes the point clearly. This explanation is evident in the short video that the Kagans produced called "Numbered Heads Together." If you get a chance to see it (or order it), I highly recommend it for evidence of BOTH theory AND practice!"

The comments I'd like to make regarding your classroom task are intended as refinements of the directive to the groups of four to "share with the other three people in the group one thing he/she had learned from a field experience." Here are some refinements intended to increase the safety net for all AND to ratchet up the probability that there will be equal participation and no "hitchhikers."

First, set up teams of four people.

Second, using post-it notes (“Post-It Note Brainstorming”) - ask each team member to silently write one observation per post-it note, trying to record as many observations as possible in a certain teacher-designated time frame (1 minute? 2 minutes? whatever seems appropriate). At the end of the time period, call "Time."

Third, ask each team to read and cluster all post-it notes with similar themes. (That's why post-its work so well - they can be attached to each other.)

Now, there are several options that a teacher could choose with the information available.

OPTION ONE:

Ask each team to rank order (put in a prioritized list from most important to least important) which of the observations will increase the likelihood that students will learn. THEN, ask each team to share what they consider to be THE MOST IMPORTANT factor contributing to student learning. [Obviously, whatever they choose is not as important as the richness of the conversations leading to a choice.]

OPTION TWO:

Using the clusters of information, ask each team to generate a list of observations (synthesizing long lists into generalized statements for each concept). Then use the Kagan structure called "Team Stand 'N Share."

Everyone stands. The list and a pencil are passed to one person on each team.

The teacher calls on one team member to share ONE thing on that team's list. The person shares. If the item appears on another team's list, the person who has the list checks the item off. If the item does not appear and it is a valuable item, the other team people ADD the item to the list.

THEN, in each team, the list and the pencil are passed to the next person. Someone else is asked to share one item from the list, and the process continues.

WHEN A TEAM has exhausted all of the items on their list (all items have been checked off), the teammates sit down. This is a great management tool for the teacher to know that that particular team has nothing else to add. It is also a great management tool to assess the depth of a team's thinking if, for example, the whole team sits down after ONE item is shared. HOWEVER, after the team does sit down, the list and the pencil still rotate within a seated team because standing teams have more information to offer.

The process continues until ALL teams are seated.

This could be followed with team discussion of the added items or with a whole class discussion.

OPTION THREE:

The clustered lists of observations could be attached to a sheet of flip-chart paper that is hung near each team. Then each team (with note-pad in hand) could do a Carousel Review (each team walks from chart to chart, reading the information that is clustered in the post-its, and taking notes on pieces that need to be added to the home team's list). When the teams return to the home base, a team discussion could follow, summarized with a general discussion.

ONE MORE MANAGEMENT PIECE: You stated, "After allowing eight minutes (and frequently announcing "only two minutes per person during the sharing,")

A tip to save you the constant "two minute warning." There are two clocks on the market that are WONDERFUL for teams to self-monitor time. One is called a "TeachTimer." It is used on an overhead projector and digitally counts down minutes and seconds in BIG numbers that are easily seen. It does a lot of other stuff, too, but this use is GREAT. I use it in all of my workshops, and it is one of the first things teachers ask about, "WHERE can I get one?" It is available through the Kagan catalog at www.kaganonline.com. It is about $45.

The other clock was designed by the mother of a special ed student. This student struggled with the sense" of "15 minutes to go." Digital clocks didn't help. This clock is available in 3 sizes. It is rectangular and stands up on a base. It has a bright, white face. When the front of the clock is pulled down (like a kitchen timer) to set for "15 minutes," the interior of the face is BRIGHT RED. The student can literally SEE time shrinking. This clock is called a "Timetimer" and is available at www.timetimer.com.

Anne DeFiglio is in the process of leaving employment with WSWHE BOCES to take a position as Program Director for the non-profit Comprehensive School Reform (CSR) model “Association for Effective Schools.”"

The author welcomes comments, feedback, reactions of any kind to the thoughts expressed (above).

Please feel free to forward this message to a friend or colleague. If
you know someone who would like to be put on the list, please send a
message to Don Mesibov at dmesibov@twcny.rr.com.

Copyright (c) 2002, Institute for Learning Centered Education. All
rights reserved.

Maybe, we old folks (yes, you and me) need to be out of education, with another generation running things before we’ll really see educators focus on what research tells us about how children learn. Maybe we are not capable of truly breaking out of the paradigms that have structured our thinking for so many years.

The research is clear: early and continued exposure to arts education, including music, makes students better readers, better in math, and better on standardized assessments of student achievement. Since assessments in math, science, and social studies increasingly measure reading comprehension as much as subject content, it is clear (if we truly believe in letting data drive decision making) that schools must drastically increase their focus on the arts if they want to improve student achievement. Let’s take a look at some of the research, much of it culled from a recent NPR series on “Gray Matters: The Arts and the Brain,” which aired in October, 2002.

Researchers at the University of California, Irvine have found that preschoolers taught simple concepts, like the difference between one and many, or given very basic piano or singing lessons do better in math. The same benefits extend to reading. Studies show that children who have learned how to listen to music and how to pick out melodies read faster and better than children without this experience.

As “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star,” repeats itself in the background, with increasingly complex melodies, the announcer of the NPR broadcast informs us that “For the young listener, just being exposed to this tune and how it is getting more complex is beneficial for brain development. But for the player who tries to master all of these elements of a performance, that is where the real benefits kick in.”

Dr. Norman Weinberger explains that, “There is vision, there’s touch, there’s hearing, there’s symbolic interpretation, there’s motor planning, motor execution, and there’s comparison of what you intended with what you get out of it. Playing music seems to be about the ultimate form of brain exercise,” concludes Dr. Weinberger, a brain researcher at the University of California and the father of seven.

A landmark study conducted by Columbia University in dozens of schools across the country came up with another subtle, yet astonishing, benefit of using arts, including music, in childhood education. According to Dr. Weinberger: “They found that students who were involved in music were much more tolerant of other people’s ideas, they were much more flexible in their approach toward solving problems, they were much more willing to take intellectual risks, and to have new experiences in school, and, this study from Columbia showed collateral benefits that are way beyond music itself. I‘ve even seen evidence in literature of increased trust of others, increased self confidence and increased ability with self expression.

“So we’re talking about something that spills over to lots of life,” Dr. Weinberger added, “I think, probably, most of life.”

Mary Jo Thompson, a Minnesota art teacher, is Project Director for a U.S. Department of Education Program in Minneapolis and New York City. Ms. Thompson informs us that “Researchers find children remember most when they are encouraged to participate and connect. The brain only has memory when there is meaning.”

She explains, “It’s about a deeper level of understanding that we want the kids to get to, and the arts can help us teach that.”

Is current leadership in education capable of implementing changes that truly reflect the significance of this research? I doubt it. It would require “restructuring” in the true sense of the word, not major tinkering. More likely this research will be referenced to bolster arguments to retain programs in the arts during tight money times, but that’s not the same as restructuring educational systems to be driven by this data.

It should also be noted, that the significance of this research (and much more like it) extends beyond an argument for increasing the requirements for arts education. This research begs for integrating the arts and music into all of the so-called “Academic” areas. For many students whose strengths lie elsewhere than in linguistic or mathematical-logical intelligences, allowing them to demonstrate understanding and competency in “academic” subjects through use of artistic, including musical, vehicles can be a strong motivator. Some of the students we label shy, silent, reticent, dumb, or worse are really quite bright, but they will never shine in a classroom that values linguistic and/or mathematical intelligences to the exclusion of all else. However, allow them the opportunity to utilize their artistic, musical, and other intelligences, and they can become the centers of an activity.

If you saw the movie Music from the Heart, you may recall these words which appeared on screen as a prologue:

Music is not just an art, but a science as well.

The author welcomes comments, feedback, reactions of any kind to the thoughts expressed (above).

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