Music and universal curricular value

Attribution

National Association of Secondary School Principals

Excerpt from “Economy and Improvement of Extra-Curriculum Activities in Secondary Schools” by Elbert K. Fretwell, Professor of Education, Teachers College, Columbia University. Paper presented at the 1933 NASSP Annual Convention in Minneapolis, MN. Printed in Volume 17 of the NASSP Bulletin. © NASSP. [With apologies to algebra teachers everywhere.]

Item Text

In a 1933 presentation, Elbert Fretwell, one of the founders of the student activities movement in schools in the 1930s, reviewed ways in which schools could economize during tough economic times. He presented a series of 13 suggestions about school elements that should be kept or made more meaningful, including Music. His comments ring true in 2009.

 “Music. In a curriculum and in an extra-curriculum way, music, at least on the appreciative side, is of value to everyone. In school, church, social life, or in any popular national movement, if we need morale, we utilize music. We cannot sing away an unbalanced budget nor can we sing out of existence a discordant banking system. However, when we need that people hold steady, or unite for cooperative action in times of emotional stress, we use music. Even aside from happiness or any doctrine of catharsis, it may be that music is worth more to the individual than all the second year algebra that has been taught or forced on students since the beginning of recorded time.”

Links

www.nassp.org

Submitter Information

• Name: MENC Staff
• Email: advocacy@menc.org