The Muses Go to School

January 30, 2012
Inspired by the work of the Stella Adler Outreach Division, one of whose goals is “to bring free actor training to low-income inner-city youth,” this collection of interviews with 10 artists connected with the theater and the responses of 10 educators, all of whom might well be described as reformers and activists involved in “issues of education, justice, and the arts,” is a broad summons to recognize the arts as “central to a good education.” Through recollections of their own discoveries and of students whose lives they saw transformed, they offer diverse experiences except for one thing—that the arts opened new worlds. For Bill T. Jones, it was a drama teacher; for Rosie Perez, a performance of “The Wiz changed my life”; for Frances Lucerna, it was a parish church summer program. Nevertheless, as Oppenheim reports, “the arts have been virtually eliminated from public education throughout the United States.” While Whoopi Goldberg speaks of growing up “in a world with music and art and going to museums,” Diane Ravitch’s response takes note of “the precipitous... decline in spending for arts education services.... in Whoopi’s hometown, the mayor decided to stake his legacy on raising test scores in reading and math.” Into the current debates about the means and ends of public education, these conversations form a softly spoken but urgent argument that as Kohl says, “The arts are not just for people who become artists.”

December 15, 2011
Incensed by recent trends to eliminate arts education from public-school curriculums, co-editors Kohl and Oppenheim present 20 insightful essays in a bid to draw attention to the cultural and developmental significance of the cause. National Book Award winner Kohl (The Herb Kohl Reader, 2011, etc.) is angered by the myth that the arts "are merely frills or embellishments to a meaningful education," while Oppenheim, artistic director of New York City's Stella Adler Studio of Acting (and Adler's grandson) reiterates the social functionality of teaching the arts to less-fortunate youth, "no matter how difficult their circumstances." A live panel discussion in 2008 inspired these insightful essays from a variety of artists in many mediums. Recollecting her dyslexic childhood enlivened by theater, Whoopi Goldberg believes in the nurturing of the "artistic voice." Rosie Perez comments that her current work on the board of a nonprofit arts organization allows her to promote creativity to children in inner-city NYC. Phylicia Rashad testifies to the good fortune of a high-school experience rich in artistic programs and creative encouragement; she pleads for a continuation of arts cultivation in schools, thwarting what she calls a "nation of robots." Heartfelt thoughts from collegiate scholars like Bill Ayers and Deborah Meier lend a necessary urgency to the cause, as does education professor and MacArthur recipient Lisa Delpit, who remarks that "the arts allow us a lens to see gifts that may not be immediately evident." The dedicated work of former professional dancer and artist Frances Lucerna and linguistic anthropologist Shirley Brice Heath offer prime examples of how the arts can be successfully integrated into school curriculums. Uniformly written and passionately considered, the collection brims with ideas, memories and hope for creatively inspired students.

(COPYRIGHT (2011) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

February 15, 2012

Kohl (36 Children) and Oppenheim (artistic director, Stella Adler Studio of Acting) have collected essays from artists and educators in support of arts education. They argue that the arts are not simply "frills or embellishments" to a complete education but rather are necessary to students' development of discipline, critical thinking, teamwork, social engagement, empathy, and more. They also demonstrate that arts education carries over to "serious" academic subjects: dance teaches anatomy; music, fractions; visual arts, concepts related to physics. The book consists of paired essays, one by a well-known artist (e.g., Philip Seymour Hoffman, Rosie Perez, Moises Kaufman) and one by a teacher or administrator. The essays by the artists appeal to the emotions; the educators' essays speak more to the academic, behavioral, and psychological well-being of students in arts education. Together they make compelling arguments for keeping arts education in the schools. VERDICT Although the arguments would be strengthened by cited sources, the book provides a useful starting point for debate. Recommended for parents, educators, politicians, school boards, and supporters of the arts.--Rachel Owens, Daytona State Coll. Lib., FL

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