We urge Wisconsin Legislators to:
Consider the implementation of a Fine Arts requirement for high school graduation in Wisconsin.
Talking Points:
- As numerous school-based programs have repeatedly reported around the country, study of the arts helps students think and integrate learning across traditional disciplinary lines. In the fine arts, they learn how to work cooperatively, pose and solve problems, and forge the vital link between individual (or group) effort and quality of result. These skills and attitudes, not incidentally, are vital for success in the 21st century workplace. Sequential arts education also contributes to building technological competencies. It imparts academic discipline and teaches such higher level thinking skills as analyzing, synthesizing, and evaluating both personal experience and objective data. Finally, research findings indicate that arts education enhances students’ respect for the cultures, belief systems, and values of their fellow learners.
- The Arts offer a competitive advantage for Wisconsin as a state looking to attract new employers. Studies have shown that employers and potential job seekers look for communities where the Arts are thriving as a place to locate their company and families. Wisconsin has such a thriving arts community, we could become a draw for the economy.
- If we want to maintain and grow the Arts industries in Wisconsin, investment must come through our educational system where the seeds of future professional musicians and dynamic artists are planted.
- As a state legislator, what are your thoughts on the implementation of 1 credit in the Fine Arts at the High School level that would be required for graduation?
Background:
As of 2007, 37 states in the United States have a fine arts requirement for high school graduation.
Of nearly 95 medical schools in the U.S. and Canada with documented curricula, 28 have incorporated medical humanities (music and arts classes) into their programs, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges. In an annual 2006 survey of 125 U.S. medical schools, 94 require medical humanities. This number is growing. Doctors say exposure to the arts teaches students compassion, communication and observation skills – all things they’ll need to be successful in their practices.
