[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 8]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 10888-10889]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



 EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING BENEFITS OF MUSIC EDUCATION

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                       HON. STEPHANIE TUBBS JONES

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 13, 2000

  Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of music 
education. Recently, I had an opportunity to speak at the commencement 
exercises of the Cleveland School of the Arts in the Eleventh 
Congressional District of Ohio. Those graduates were a wonderful 
example of the beneficial effects of music education and of the arts in 
general.
  The arts are inseparable from education throughout a young person's 
life. Brain research is now showing that stimuli provided by music--
song, movement, play acting--are essential for the young child to 
develop to the fullest potential. These activities are the 
``languages'' of children, which help them to understand and interpret 
the world. Active use of music also paves the way for children to use 
verbal language, to read and to write.

[[Page 10889]]

  Quantifiable research has also shown the value of arts education for 
older children. The University of California at Los Angeles has 
analyzed the school records of 25,000 students as they moved from 
grades 8 to 10. Students who studied the arts had higher grades, scored 
better on standardized tests, had better attendance records and were 
more involved in community affairs than other students. Students from 
low-income families who studied the arts improved their school 
performance more rapidly than all other students.
  The U.S. Department of Education in its YouthARTS study has also 
found that the arts improve academic performance, reduce delinquency, 
and increase the skills of communication, conflict resolution, 
completion of challenging tasks, and teamwork.
  The College Board, which administers the SAT, has reported that 
college-bound students who have had arts education have higher SAT 
scores than other students.
  In closing, I would add that the discipline and human connection of 
music can remind us that there is a form of human achievement that is 
unarguably and profoundly true. Music requires collaboration in which 
diverse groups of people can come together to create an entity in which 
they all care deeply. This builds bridges of understanding and 
communication. So let us support music education because music is 
essential. And let us commend music teachers across the country for the 
key roles they play in helping our children succeed in school and 
throughout life.

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