Art in Education

I really enjoyed reading Maxine Greene's piece about how art should be used in education. Greene makes some very compelling points about how literature, music, and art can not only enhance a student's education but it can also foster moments of great self reflection. When we read novels from great authors or listen to music from infamous composers we learn something about those people, but more importantly we learn something about ourselves and who we are. Greene rightly points out that when a person is able to make a connection with a piece of art then it becomes meaningful to them. Further, we may all find different meanings in the same piece, which incidentally is one of the principles of constructivist learning.

I am a big believer in the value of self reflection. So many times I have read or listened to something that has stirred me to think deeply about myself and even the world. I also find it interesting when Greene talks about the value of examining works from different cultures and also that it is important to understand how different cultures perceive our works. I have echoed this very sentiment when I have traveled to different countries. It is clear to me that people perceive us differently than how we perceive ourselves.

I like how Greene embraces the idea of multiculturalism because I too feel that it is very important to teach our children about different cultures. Using various art forms would be a wonderful way to incorporate multiculturalism into our schools. The bottom line is that art enriches life and that is the business we are in.

The Role of Government in Education

I agree with the concept of the "neighborhood effect," our neighborhoods, and society as a whole, benefit from our citizens being educated. We all benefit from having educated neighbors so we should all pay school taxes; not having children should not exclude anyone from contributing to the school tax.

In terms of denationalizing schools, I do not think it is a good or viable idea. It seems that the point of denationalization is to create better schools through greater competition. It is not clear, however, if doing so would address the critical problem of disparity in our schools. Perhaps revision of our existing system would be a more appropriate solution to such problems?

We should begin reform by rewarding the schools and teachers that perform well, and we should improve the way we assess performance. Teacher incentive could go a long way in increasing competition and overall school performance. In addition, to bridge the disparity gap in our schools we should by revising our tax system to ensure that all of our children receive a fair and equal education. There are many ways that we can improve our system. It just seems that change is often resisted and very difficult to implement.