My research topic is Music Education and funding in public schools.  I chose this topic because it is very meaningful to me for a number of reasons. First of all, I grew up in band starting in the fifth grade, and continued all the way through high school, staying very involved with marching band, concert band, jazz band, and percussion ensemble. The biggest reason I'm passionate about music education can be discovered if you ask me what my major is. I am a music education major with a performance certificate, and I plan on teaching and playing music for the rest of my life. I'm qualified to write about this because it's an area where I have first hand experience and knowledge that a person without my background wouldn't have. I have witnessed with my own eyes the kind of shape that some music programs are in, and I've studied the way that children in these programs act compared to children from other programs of similar and differing levels. By arguing for funding for music, and the arts in general, I not only am helping the youth of America, but I am helping secure a job for myself in the future. 

The question I want to ask in order to explain my research is "Why should schools fund music". I want to start to answer this question by introducing an article written by Sarah McCammon, entitled "Music Education for Creativity, Not A Tool for Test Scores". In this article the author discusses actual situations that exist at various places across the country and uses these examples to show that funding for school music programs has diminished to a level that it never should have, and that funding needs to be restored because music is an integral part of a child's learning and development. A large topic that is covered by this paper is the way that standardized testing is affecting the students and their ability to participate in creative activities. Many schools are facing pressure to improve test scores, and McCammon says that "Backers of music education have responded to that pressure by pointing to the academic benefits of learning music, like better grades and improved attendance" (McCammon 1). All of these benefits are for the children, and the students themselves are the main focus of the article. They are also the biggest benefit of using this article, because being able to give specific examples of actual children and how they are affected by this issue will go lengths in backing the credibility of my argument. The author of this article, Sarah McCammon, is a political news reporter from New Jersey. She has a lot of experience covering both sides of arguments. The information from the article, however, comes from a school principal, and directly portrays the regrets and feeling she has about music at her former school. 

My second article was published by the Huffington Post, and is entitled "Music Hits a High Note in Education -- Finally!". The article was written by Lydia Kontos. Lydia Kontos is Executive Director of Kaufman Music Center, New York City's go-to place for music education and performance. She is directly involved with lobbying for arts funding and very experienced in the education, performance, and business elements of music. The main subject of this article is the new act that has been passed to replace the "No Child Left Behind Act". The new act is called the "Every Student Succeeds Act", or the ESSA. The reason this act is such a big deal for music educators is that for the first time music is included in national legislation in the definition of what comprises a "well-rounded" education ... " (Kontos). The major value in this article is its relation to lawmaking and politics, and the correlation between those things and music itself. 

My final article was written by Lauren Barack, and was published in a magazine directed towards district superintendents. The article discusses problems with many music programs, ways to start or revive a program, and even ways to raise money or earn grants to help provide for a music programs. The article uses specific examples to display these techniques and how they work, to help encourage the leaders of schools that it can and should be done. As a recipient of The Loeb Award for Online Journalism, and a highly accredited writer on the connection between media and education, Lauren Barack is a very credible source when it comes to the topic of this article. The biggest value of this article is the fact that not only does it address the problems involved with music education, but it gives specific examples, facts, and statistics that could help somebody restart, revive, or found a music program. 

My research question is very arguable, because there are many valid points and credentialed professionals on both sides of the argument. There are many passionate opinions on many different topics that effect this situation, and many people do disagree about this topic. Many people argue that core subjects are more important, and that schools should be more focused on areas of need rather than things that they view as extras or add-ons, but there are also many people on the other side that don't believe music is an extra, but that it is an essential part of education and child development. My research question leaves room to discuss all of these topics, and I look forward to investigating the debate further.

