INDIANAPOLIS -- Sixth-grader Camarry Hall adjusted her sheet music, waited for her teacher to give the go-ahead and then started belting out low notes on a bass clarinet nearly as big as she is.
Camarry is one of about a dozen students in an after-school music program at Indianapolis Public School 70, an arts magnet that has partnered with the city's Butler University to provide more arts instruction to youngsters in one of Indianapolis' poorest districts.
"We have a lot of fun playing notes and different songs," Camarry said before the group broke into small ensembles with Butler students to rehearse for a concert.
Arts have long been a part of education, but advocates say such classes are often first on the chopping block as schools face tight budgets and pressure to perform on academic tests. A Center on Education Policy poll released this year showed that more than 40% of the districts surveyed have cut time in elementary schools for non-tested subjects, including art and music.
Such moves have forced schools in cities such as Indianapolis, Los Angeles and Dallas to find creative ways to squeeze arts into the day -- such as partnering with arts groups, nonprofit organizations and universities to bring more cultural experiences to students.
"I think we're seeing a resurgence of the arts," said Mary Fulton, a policy analyst for the Education Commission of the States. "There's been a push-back by parents and others who want to keep the arts in schools and want their children to have a well-rounded education."
The National Assn. for Music Education says skills learned through the discipline of music transfer well into study skills, cognitive abilities and improved communication that are useful in other subjects. Studies have shown that students in high-quality music programs score higher than students in schools with deficient music programs on standardized tests, regardless of the school's socioeconomic factors.
Yet the No Child Left Behind education reform act, which requires schools to meet annual progress goals or face sanctions that include reorganization, has in many cases shifted the focus from musical scores to test scores.
The Center on Education Policy survey found that U.S. students have been spending more time on math and reading and less on other subjects since 2001. The 2007 report, which examined how No Child Left Behind had affected curriculum and instructional time, showed that 16% of districts surveyed had reduced class time for art and music.
