Patriot Editors and Staff,

I was pleased to see your current edition on the Arts; however, it painted a shallow picture for students who may have been interested in taking classes within my department. I found it unfortunate that expert sources were not consulted, data was presented in confusing or inaccurate fashions for the fields, and any advocacy present was weakly supported.

First, not a single visual or performing arts educator (within or outside of South), professional in arts administration (museum, arts councils, or other advocacy work), or professional artist was consulted. When advocating for the arts, consult those who are in the field.

Second, the graphics and statistics were mislabeled or misleading. On page 8, the different kinds of arts labeled as “Visual” and “Physical” should have been labeled as “Two Dimensional” and “Three Dimensional.” Drawing is labeled as “visual” but is also physical. Ceramics are labeled as “physical” but are also visual. No university or professional would label them as such. Also, the categories should have had a colon after them making them read “Visual: Drawing, Photography, Video” versus reading “Visual Drawing, Photography, Video,” leading readers to question, “What is Visual Drawing? Is there Auditory Drawing? Oral Drawing?” On pages 16 and 17, all the categories of unemployment with in the arts would have been less skewed to have a comparison of average unemployment, regardless of field. Second, each category listed overlapped with the other categories (for example: “Studio Art” is “Fine Art” is “Visual Art”).

Lastly, the staff editorial lacks depth and understanding of why the arts are important. “Creativity” is a fluff answer without definition to back it up. Visual Arts are important because they foster more than creativity. Visual arts train your hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills in addition to boosting your achievement in other subjects. Studies from the University of California, Los Angeles, have found that involvement in the arts was associated with higher levels of attainment in high school and college (AND this effect was even greater when looking at students from low-income backgrounds). Lisa Phillips, from the Washington Post discusses in her article “Top 10 Skills Children Learn from the Arts” how both Performing and Visual Arts teach student perseverance, focus, and creative problem solving. Any class that can teach students that there is not one right answer, but a multitude of possibilities can only lead to innovation. Innovation and problem solving are one of the top skills current employers are seeking in college graduates, according to the American Association of Colleges and Universities.  Art classes, especially Visual Arts, focus on the highest level on Blooms Taxonomy: Create. Six levels above “Understanding” which is what many “Academic” classes are focused on. In art you learn to innovate, create, and make judgment calls; these skills translate into marketable qualities in any field, anywhere.

I hope that any future editions or articles related to the arts are looked at more precisely. I would not write an article on the importance or unimportance of a field without consulting experts in that area, research on the subject, and using the appropriate jargon for the subject, especially when this may influence a student’s choice in class or career.

Mrs. Jennifer Hudson

Shawnee Mission South Art