Melody Martin

Article Summary
September 14, 2015

In the article Music Education in Crisis, Joseph Pergola gives an educators opinion on
the state of music education, which was published by the Illinois Music Educator in the spring of
2014. Pergola begins his article describing how and why budget cuts are being made in public
schools. The sad estate of the home market has resulted in a drop in property tax, which is the
main source of income for schools. The first thing to go during budget cuts are electives like
music. However, Pergola points out, this a fatal mistake due to all of benefits music gives
students. These benefits include responsibility, a feeling of accomplishment, and the
development of self-discipline. All of these benefits are being lost due to a recent focus on core
subjects and testing. To counteract the sorry state of music education, Pergola calls for all music
supporters to be better advocates of the arts in schools. In an attempt to push people to rise to the
occasion, he ends with It takes years to build a quality music program, but it only takes minutes
for an uneducated school board and a subservient administration to destroy a quality
comprehensive program (77). This leaves the reader with a need to act, as is Pergolas
intentions.