Read the Original Article Here!
The article, “The Importance of Art in Child Development,” establishes several popular reasons an Arts education is important during the early years of life.
Prior to my review, I’d like to establish that this article only speaks of the pros of an Arts education. It does not discriminate against the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Math) subjects, nor does it discuss the cons of an Arts education.
First, the article begins with the idea that, “Some may consider an Arts education a luxury.”
For the topic of the article and from an artistic perspective, I cannot tell you how true this statement is, even though it is slightly insulting that some treat the arts as if they are not “real” subjects compared to STEM subjects.
As a Multimedia major myself, I’ve had countless students from other schools and majors say, “You shouldn’t be complaining, all you do is design stuff,” or “Designing stuff is easy, you have easy art classes. I wish I could just sit and draw all day.” In reality, most don’t understand the efforts it takes to design projects.
Next, the article outlines the following pros of the Arts in Child Development:
- Motor Skills
- Language Development
- Visual Learning
- Inventiveness
- Cultural Awareness
- Improved Academic Performance
Motor skills: As outlined in the article, art techniques help with the development of fine motor skills, like using safety scissors or drawing a circle by the age of 3 years old. The importance of these skills are that they are the very basic, fundamental skills to the later developed writing abilities. I found that those who have had an early arts introduction have an easier time with writing and detail-orientated tasks, while those who had no interest have a hard time with proper handwriting skills and focusing on meticulous tasks.
Language Development: The creation of art leads to the development of descriptive vocabulary and color words used to describe the work. Giving children the opportunity to create gives a child the motivation to learn more words that can be used to describe colors, shapes, form, line and other elements of the arts. Personally, my art classes always had class critiques, where other students could offer their opinions and thoughts about the art presented. This, starting from a young age, has given me and other students a better grasp on forming clear and concise explanations on why we created what we created.
Visual Learning: The importance of art also contributes to a child’s development of spatial skills. As stated in the article, children need to be able to decipher “graphic symbolism” such as marketing logos, and be able to make a decision based on what they inferred from the visual elements. The Arts offers a less-concrete way of interpreting visual elements, and helps an individual to decipher sometimes-deceitful marketing ploys.
Inventiveness: Also outlined in the article, an early Arts education leads to innovative thinking. Interestingly enough, the article claims the real world needs forward thinkers, “not people who follow directions.” I think this is a key concept to the importance of the Arts. The Arts promote the creative thinking and an “out-of-the-box” perspective that cannot be replicated within the STEM subjects. Students with an Art education have a better chance of finding a solution to difficult tasks, then STEM students, who are taught a very linear way of thinking.
Cultural Awareness: Going through an early Arts education helps an individual to understand the designer’s or artist’s way of thinking. For Example, the article describes a situation where a toy is deemed sexist or racist. Children can discern the visual elements of why that toy has been disgraced. This is very important for later development, as children need to be able to notice visual social cues from others.
Improved Academic Performance: Finally, the article discusses how participants are more likely to step-up to math/science fairs or are more likely to be recognized for English or poetry abilities. This is significant because the Arts assist children in other STEM subjects that may not be as creative.
Overall, I can say I agree with the topics discussed. Though some children may grow out of their artistic interests as they grow older, the initial few years of an Art’s education develops the fundamental basis for later life skills.