Needs Of Students Served By Art/Music Block Grant
...Education in California Public Schools documents for the first time the impact of budget cuts, high-stakes testing, and the implementation of the No Child Left Behind Act on actual student participation in music education programs. The report used the actual California Department of Education CBEDS data, increases or decreases in student participation, overall student “share”, and increases or decreases in the teaching population in a subject area. (Music for All Foundation, 2004)
With the assistance and support of many organizations including: the California Alliance for Arts Education, California Music Educators Association, California Department of Education the American Music Conference, MENC, the Recording Academy, NAMM, and Americans for the Arts, documented for the first time specific reductions to music programs in California schools. The report has served as a catalyst and rallying point for advocates including the California Teachers Association, the California PTA, the California Arts Council and the California Alliance for Arts Education. The report revealed startling revelations regarding the status of music education programs in California. Time and again the report was cited in the media and in magazine articles as a clear sign that cutbacks had gone too far and action was needed to reverse this trend.
The report was prepared during a five-year period from the 1999-2000 academic school year through the 2003-2004 academic school year. The report was able to determine the following results: Student participation in music courses, the overall percentage of students involved in music courses, and the number of teachers teaching music courses in California have declined dramatically over the past 5 years. The decline has been so significant that music education has suffered the greatest losses in percentage enrollment, actual student...
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