The performing arts in public schools have generally had mixed reviews as to whether or not they should receive funding or even exist. As a high school graduate with a well-funded theater, band, orchestra, chorus and dance programs, I feel that the performing arts have truly impacted my desire to finish high school and pursue a college degree. I was able to break out of my shell and be more sociable and creative by mastering the art of acting, singing and playing my clarinet. Unfortunately, some schools do not see the positive impact that the performing arts have on students, which is why many schools erase these programs from their curriculum. According to the 2012 Arts Education in Public and Secondary Schools study, 55 percent of high schools and 96 percent of elementary schools were not offering theater as extracurricular programs.
Statistics show how just having performing arts in school allows students to achieve better grades in their other subjects. One of the most important impacts is the dropout rates of students who are exposed to the arts versus those who are not, for multiple studies have shown that performing arts extracurriculars are motivators to keep high-risk dropout students in school. Only 4 percent of students drop out of high school compared to 22 percent of those who do not have an arts program in their school. Also, 61 percent of students with arts programs are more likely to go to college compared to 42 percent.
Performing arts education also goes a long way when it comes to SAT scores. Those who were involved in theatre outperformed those who were not by 65.5 points in the verbal section and 35.5 points in the math section of the SAT. Students who were involved in music performance such as band and orchestra scored 39 points higher overall on the SAT and those who were studying music appreciation scored 62 points higher in the math section of the SAT.
Despite all of these positive impacts on students, unfortunately, the arts are still not receiving the funding that they deserve.
Federal funding for the National Science Foundation consisted of a total of $5 billion dollars, while arts and humanities organizations only received $150 million. This is 90 percent of total federal funding in a year compared to only 10 percent of funding towards the arts. Another reason for the lack of support for the arts is the increasing demand for students to pursue interests in STEM — science, technology, engineering and mathematics. While these fields are well-respected and are some of the highest-paying fields in today’s society, what is unknown to many is that having performing arts as extracurriculars encourages students who are interested in STEM to actually pursue them. Increasing the student’s creativity and critical thinking as a result of being exposed to the performing arts will allow them to excel in their STEM courses and eventually their careers, too.
