Policy Options Brief
TO: Carmen Fariña, Chancellor, New York City Department of Education
FROM: Melissa Lazo and Adam Schafer
RE: Arts & Physical Activity in Schools
DATE: March 9, 2016
Problem: Arts & Physical Activities are lacking in our schools
Across the nation, and particularly in our New York City schools, arts and physical education are being cut from school curriculums due to budget constraints. Young children are not actively engaged physically or creatively stimulated making them less healthy and less imaginative as they progress through a sedative school environment. For example, according to the Journal of the American Medical Association, more than 30 percent of American children in 2014 were clinically obese—defined as having a body mass index (BMI) at or above the 95th percentile of the Centers for Disease Control gender- and age-specific growth charts (Ogden, et. al., 2014). This statistic is in direct correlation with increased childhood inactivity resulting from sitting at a desk for hours every day. One may think that arts education and physical education have little in common, but when combined they provide the creative drive and physical exercise that motivates children to excel in school and beyond. Even with limited resources, combining Arts & Physical Activity supports a well-rounded education while challenging our children to achieve their goals both mentally and physically—something that academics alone cannot provide.
Nowhere is the problem of childhood inactivity and its consequences more prevalent than in our New York City public school system, which serves 1.1 million children. According to a report published in May 2015 by the NYC Comptroller Scott Stringer, “more than 26 percent of students aged 5-14 years in Kindergarten through 8th grade (K-8) are obese or severely obese” (NYC Comptroller, Scott M. Stringer. 2015). This statement proves that children do not receive the appropriate amount of physical activity in the school day which is recommended by the U.S. Surgeon General to be 60 minutes most days of the week (Aspen Institute, 2014, pg. 6). Additionally, children are also receiving inadequate arts education according to another Comptroller Stringer report, “State of the Arts, A Plan to Boost Arts Education in New York City Schools.” It states that according to the NYC Department of Education’s 2013-2014 Arts in Schools Report there is a “47 percent decline in spending on arts an cultural vendors, and an 84 percent cut in arts supplies and equipment over the past seven years” (NYC Comptroller, Scott M. Stringer. 2016, I. Executive Summary section, para. 3).
Why did Arts & Physical Activity get cut?
Major federal and statewide education regulations have been enacted during the past 14 years, which had an especially damaging effect during the 2008-09 Great Recession and resulted in significantly decreased funding for Arts & Physical Activity in schools. President George W. Bush’s 2002 No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) emphasized access to education with a high emphasis on core subjects like math and reading (Metla, 2015). The National Assembly of State Arts Agencies (NASAA) report, “Critical Evidence: How the ARTS Benefits Student Achievement” reaffirms the NCLB’s claim that the arts are a “core academic subject” like math and English but, even so, some states report arts instructional time has decreased (Ruppert, 2006). Then in 2010, New York State along with forty-five other states adopted the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) focusing on nationally standardizing teaching and student skills in math and reading (Taylor, 2015). One of the major criticisms of CCSS is that it contributes to emphasizing student test scores and tying teacher evaluations to those scores. The CCSS does not include arts education and, as such, more funds and resources are allocated to other subjects. Since there is no standardized testing for Arts & Physical Activity, these programs are often the first to be eliminated as funding and resources are redirected to focus on CCSS testing that meets state and federal regulations.
Barriers to Arts & Physical Activity
In NYC public schools, Arts & Physical Activity programs have few resources and often fail to meet basic standards—painting a bleak picture in what is otherwise considered a cultural and athletic capital of the world. The lack of useable arts and gym space is a major barrier. More than 400 schools have no “dedicated physical fitness space,” especially at the middle and high school levels (NYC Comptroller, Scott M. Stringer, 2015). In all, this amounts to more than 400,000 NYC public school students being underserved by basic physical education and fitness space and almost half of our public schools violating New York State standards for physical education (NYC Comptroller, Scott M. Stringer, 2015). Along with space, there is only a specific number of hours in a school day. With the implementation of the NCLB and CCSS more school hours are focused on ensuring students pass mandatory testing. A 2013 report by the American Federation of Teachers found that students in grades 3-8 in one school district can spend up to 80 hours—16 full school days—just on preparing for national and state-wide standardized tests, not even including actually taking the tests (Nelson, 2013, pg. 6).
The lack of funding and resources for Arts & Physical Activity is especially detrimental to low-income minority neighborhoods both nationally and locally. When a school’s student body does not perform well on tests and fails to meet certain standards, the school is given a program improvement status (Yee, 2014). Arts & Physical Activity become less of a priority while the school tries to right the ship to state and/or federal stanrdards, and Arts & Physical Activity programs are rarely restored. Meanwhile, the more affluent schools have greater private funding or parents who can afford to enroll their children in Arts & Physical Activity after-school programs (Yee, 2014). To show the disparities among our youth, First Lady Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move! initiative found that almost 40 percent of children in African-American and Hispanic communities are overweight or obese (Let’s Move Initiative, “Learn the Facts,” 2015). The number of young black and Hispanic girls who have an unhealthy BMI (28 percent) is double that of their white female peers, using data from a multi-year study by the National Collaborative on Childhood Obesity Research (“Childhood Obesity in the United States,” 2009)5 The Americans for the Arts organization also shows populations of African-Americans and Hispanics were two times less likely to have access to arts education as compared to their white counterparts (2008).
Minority and low-income neighborhoods in NYC are not able to hire the required staffing due to lack of funding. The neighborhoods of the South Bronx and Central Brooklyn account for more than 42 percent of the NYC schools that lack a full-time or part-time certified arts teacher even though New York State law requires grades 7-12 to be taught by certified arts teachers (NYC Comptroller, Scott M. Stringer, 2016). Physical education is producing a similar trend with more than 500 public schools (most of them elementary schools, and over 32 percent of all schools) not having a full-time, certified physical education teacher on staff (NYC Comptroller, Scott M. Stringer, 2015). Depending on family income, geographic location and school resources, NYC’s children may face one or all of these barriers to Arts & Activity.
Arts & Physical Activity promote children’s development
Arts & Physical Activity help children acquire skills that are critical to their development. The NASAA report, “Critical Evidence: How the ARTS Benefits Student Achievement” provides evidence linking arts education directly to improved academics, basic cognitive skills and social benefits. The arts assist in mastering other subjects like math and reading, and multiple studies show students who take art classes have higher SAT scores than students who do not (Ruppert, 2006). Similarly, a 2012 article published in the journal Child Development found that, out of 6,250 K-5th graders, those who were overweight or obese had lower scores on math tests than their peers (Gardner, 2012). Arts & Physical Activity can bolster the entire curriculum while helping children develop key skills that they will need both in school and beyond.
Arts & Physical Activity also enhance basic cognitive skills like reasoning, creativity and problem-solving skills in addition to improving social skills like self-confidence and social tolerance. The NASAA report references studies showing transference of skills developed in the arts and applied to other fields. In one observation, students were trained to analyze art and developed reasoning skills that ultimately transferred to better analyses of scientific images (Ruppert, 2006). Additionally, a study of students who danced showed higher scores on measures of creative thinking including fluency, originality and abstract thought (Ruppert, 2006). The study of the dance art form—like physical activity—provides a nurturing team environment instilling self-confidence in students. A study, conducted by the not-for-profit Life in Action program and reported on the website PsychCentral.com, found that middle-school children who engaged in regular physical activity were more likely to display leadership qualities, empathy and teamwork skills than their inactive counterparts (Nauret, 2010). In another nationwide study conducted by the University of California at San Diego and sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, K-12 students who were physically active had better attendance rates and fewer problems with drugs, alcohol and violence in school (Trost, 2009). All of these developmental skills that are inherent to Arts & Physical Activity ultimately lead to motivated students who want to learn resulting in a positive school environment. And, the healthy and creative effects do not stop with youth but extend to make more educated and empowered adults.
Inaction is no excuse—there are many successful local, state and federal initiatives to provide Arts & Physical Activity resources to schools across the country. One program, “Active Schools” was developed as part of the First Lady Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move! program to give district administrators and individual school leaders the tools they need to get students active and engaged in physical education throughout the school day and beyond (Let’s Move Initiative, 2015). The program’s goal is to get students active for at least one hour per day using several key areas: physical education classes, promoting physical activities during school, extracurricular physical activities before and after school, as well as family, community and school staff involvement. The program provides a customized “Action Plan” on a per-school basis and identifies potential community partners, development and funding opportunities. This toolkit of ideas and resources is provided at no cost to participating schools (Let’s Move Initiative, “Active Schools,” 2015). Let’s Move! was first launched in 2010 and when enacted in Chicago in 2013, the First Lady noted its importance for America:
“That’s what Let’s Move! Active Schools is all about - it’s about all of us coming together to once again make being active a way of life for our kids. And with today’s announcement [of the Active Schools program], anyone, in any community, can become a champion to bring physical education back to their school (The White House, Office of the First Lady, 2013).
It is time that the NYC Department of Education steps in to be that champion in New York City, to bring back Arts & Physical Activity into our childrens’ daily lives.
Policy Options
Option 1: Teach the Teachers
One option to increase Arts & Physical Activity in our public schools is to provide trained and qualified instructors for our children. Not only is this in the best interest of our children, but State law also requires certified instructors to teach both arts and physical education classes. To fulfill this requirement beginning at the elementary level, the NYCDOE should institute a professional development program during the summer for existing arts and P.E. teachers to expand their knowledge of various art forms, physical fitness and activities, while also providing pathways for new educators to become certified in these critical areas. Such a development program could run within existing summer school programs where certified arts and P.E. teachers could develop up-to-date curricula, share best practices and oversee and evaluate new instructors. If conducted during the summer, the professional development program would not have to compete for space in schools with sports teams and arts groups whose performance seasons usually run during the regular academic year. There would also be a potentially large pool of academic year educators willing to work and learn during the summer to both further their professional careers and to develop new ideas, teaching methods and to share resources for the coming school year. If built into existing offerings, such a professional development program would not cost the NYCDOE much more than it is already paying to run those summer school programs since it already has contracted the space and resources. Finally, this program would help educators hone their skills in real school situations while serving some of the city’s most underrepresented youth populations enrolled in summer school.
Option 2: Ensure Equal Access for All
School co-location, wherein two (or more) schools occupy one building, remains an impediment to providing both arts and physical education in NYC public schools (NYC Comptroller, Scott M. Stringer, 2015). One option to remedy the situation is to combine these classes for all students in co-located schools, especially when one school is lacking appropriately certified instructors or resources such as musical instruments or studio space. Class sizes may be slightly larger when combined, but schools would save money and ensure access for all students through full utilization of their combined arts and physical education spaces and resources. For example, one school could specialize in the arts while another could specialize in athletics, but by coming together to create one cohesive arts and physical education program, they would serve their entire student body in both areas without having to build and maintain separate programs.
Option 3: Create Community Partnerships
New York City is one of the most vibrant cultural capitals of the world, and home to a wide variety of sports teams and Olympic athletes of all disciplines. As such, the NYCDOE can use the arts and athletic resources already found in the city’s neighborhoods to enrich or even provide full-scale programs in local public schools. These partnerships would be conducted similarly to the “New York Thursdays” school lunch program your office implemented for the 2015-2016 school year (see http://www.schoolfoodnyc.org/public1/default.aspx?logout=1). Just as New York State’s farms give our kids fresh, locally grown produce at least once a week, so too could the DOE find talented actors, artists, athletes and coaches to share their expertise on a weekly basis at their local school. Not only would this create jobs for specialized instructors at the neighborhood level, but studios, recreational centers and gyms would also benefit from the increased exposure of their programs to local youth. If art, performance or recreational space is completely unavailable at school, shared space usage agreements could allow students access to community-based facilities for these programs. School arts and P.E. instructors could also benefit from having a working relationship with the city’s talented artists and athletes, while students would have artistic mentors and athletic role models to look up to right in their own communities. Additionally, these partnerships would highlight the diversity of culture and activities that only a city as vibrant as New York can provide for future generations of Bogarts, Basquiats and Michael Jordans.