"My child is not going to be a music major in college. Why should I keep supporting him to take lessons in high school? Would the student have time to study other classes and keep all of the grades up ?
I believe in liberal arts education. The students should receive a well-rounded education, and music is an awesome tool to help students reach their full potential as a learner. Learning music is about learning disciplines such as patience and confidence in the face of the academic challenges, learning effectiveness, and time management. The latter one is the number one issue for college freshmen, based on my experience after 13 years of college teaching. The student can develop and refine the skill of time management in high school via spending time wisely among ensembles, marching band, solos, sports and other academic courses. Learning music is not contradicted by any other learning interests. If the student is learning music well, I believe he or she is also good at learning other subjects. So the excuse that learning music would “ruin” the grades for other classes is simply not true. Staying in the band and developing advanced skills through lessons will give students more confidence in this competitive environment and prepare them for the future--even beyond their college years.
In the past, I have many successful students who went to elite universities and colleges ( such as Harvard, Yale to name few) as non-music major students because of their wonderful music experiences at CSRA and their high schools.
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