Change

If what we have seen in terms of change to our schools

during the last few years is not enough to convince us that we

as choral directors will be faced with a tremendous shift in the way we will look at our

jobs ...

……consider the following.

Did you know?

If you are one in a million in China,

…there are 1,300 people just like you.

In India, there are 1,100 people just like you.

The 25% of the population in China with the highest IQs…

…is greater than the total population of North America.

In India, it’s the top 28%.

What does that mean to a teacher?

China and India have more honors kids…….

……… than we have kids.

Did you know?

If you took every single job in the US today and shipped

them all to China…

…..China would still have a labor surplus.

During the next eight minutes…

• 60 babies will be born in the U.S.60 babies will be born in the U.S.

• 244 babies will be born in China244 babies will be born in China

• 351 babies will be born in India351 babies will be born in India

The U. S. Department of Labor estimates that today’s learner

will have 10-14 jobs...

…by the age of 38.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor……

……1 out of 4 workers today is employed by a company where they have been working for less

than a year.

More than 1 out of 2 are working for a company for which they have worked for less than 5 years.

According to former U.S. Secretary of Education, Richard Riley…..

…the top 10 in-demand jobs for 2010 did not exist in 2004.

We are currently preparing students for jobs that do not yet exist…

…using technologies that have not been invented…

…in order to solve problems we don’t even know are problems yet.

Name this country……

• Richest in the world

• Largest military

• Center of world business and finance

• Strongest education system

• World center of innovation and invention

• Currency the world standard of value

• Highest standard of living

England

……..in 1900…..

……just 107 years ago.

Change

Did you know?

(Luxembourg just passed us).

The U.S. is 20th in the world in broadband Internet

penetration.

In one year alone, 2002, Nintendo invested more than $140 million in research and

development.

The U.S. Federal Government spent less than half as much on research and innovation.

1 out of every 8 couples married in the U.S. last year….

……..met online.

As of last August, there were 100 million registered users of

MySpace.com

The average MySpace page is visited 30 times a day.

Did you know?

We are living in exponential times.

There are 2.7 billion searches performed on Google each

month.

To whom were these questions addressed B.G.?

(Before Google)

The number of text messages sent and received every day

exceeds the population of the planet.

It’s estimated that a week’s worth of the

New York Times…

…contains more information than a person was likely to come across in a lifetime in

the 18th century.

It’s estimated that 1.5 exabytes (that’s 1.5 x 1018) of unique

new information will be generated worldwide this year.

That’s estimated to be more than in the previous 5,000

years.

The amount of new technical information is doubling every

two years.

That means for a student starting a 4-year technical or college

degree…

…after only two years of study, half of what they learned could

be outdated.

Third generation fiber optics has recently been separately tested

by NEC and Alcatel…

…that pushes 10 trillion bits per second down one strand of fiber.

That is equal to 1,900 CDs or 150 million simultaneous phone calls

every second.

The fiber is already in place.

The switches just have to be perfected.

This means that the marginal cost for these improvements is

minimal.

This technology is currently tripling about every 6 months and is expected to do so for at

least the next 20 years.

Predictions are that e-paper will be cheaper than real paper.

47 million laptops were shipped worldwide last year.

Predictions are that by 2013 a supercomputer will be built that

exceeds the capacity of the Human Brain.

By 2023, a $1000 computer will exceed the capabilities of the

Human Brain.

In 2023, second-grader Abby will be 23 years old and beginning her (first)

career…

…and while technical predictions farther than about 15 years in the future are

hard to make…

…predictions are that by 2049, when Abby is 49 years old, a $1000 computer will exceed the computational capacity

of the human race.

What does it all mean?

Can we assume that music education can continue to

function in the same manner as in the last 75 years?

Florida Shift: Music and the Arts

Middle School: Total ArtsMiddle School: Total Arts(% of student population)

1985 55.84%

2001 38.15%

2005 37.66%37.66%

Florida Shift: Music and the Arts

High School: Total ArtsHigh School: Total Arts(% of student population)

1985 39.45%

2001 38.08%

2005 31.88%31.88%

Florida Shift: Music and the Arts

Middle School Middle School MusicMusic (% of student population)

1985 34.86 %

2001 23.98%

2005 22.55%22.55%

Florida Shift: Music and the Arts

High School High School MusicMusic (% of student population)

1985 16.45%

2001 14.32%

2005 11.67%11.67%

Conclusion?We better figure out ways to

start adapting to the new landscape of education

reform, as well as enlarging the percentage of students

involved in music education.

2007-2008 Florida Legislature: High School Reform

• New graduation requirements:

– 4 years of Language Arts4 years of Language Arts

– 4 years of Mathematics4 years of Mathematics

– 3 years of Science3 years of Science

– 3 years of Social Studies3 years of Social Studies

– 1 year of Physical Education1 year of Physical Education

–1 year of Fine Arts1 year of Fine Arts

What do we know about the What do we know about the required one credit of Fine Arts?required one credit of Fine Arts?

• All freshman entering in 2007-08 must have All freshman entering in 2007-08 must have a year of Fine Artsa year of Fine Arts

– – there are no substitutions!!!there are no substitutions!!!

• Fine Arts is defined as art, music, theatre or Fine Arts is defined as art, music, theatre or dance.dance.

• This will give arts educators an opportunity This will give arts educators an opportunity to show the relevance of the arts to the to show the relevance of the arts to the “other” 70%+ of the student population.“other” 70%+ of the student population.

Florida’s Music Course Selection Florida’s Music Course Selection Percentages in 2004-2005Percentages in 2004-2005

Music Theory 3.37% Sound Engineering

.27%

Music Composition

.67% Instrumental Music

44.91%

Music Theatre

2.73% Vocal Vocal MusicMusic

28.33%28.33%

IB Music .33% Electronic Music

.84%

Guitar I-IV 9.53% Eurhythmics 3.42%

Keyboard I-IV 5.58%

CREATIVITY:

According to the latest research, I.Q. accounts for

what portion of career success?

c. 23 to 29 percent?

b. 35 to 45 percent?

d. 15 to 20 percent?

a. 50 to 60 percent?

Actually…..

between 4 and 10 percent. e.

Daniel GolemanThe Hay Group and author of Emotional Intelligence

PerceptiveI.Q.

“the ability to make big leaps of thought – resides in people with wide backgrounds, multidisciplinary minds, and a broad spectrum of experiences.” Nicolas Negroponte - MIT

While left-brain abilities will remain vital, the ability to be creative, to make use of our

right-brain capabilities, will be invaluable in those who

originate break-through ideas, make big leaps.

We are passing from the Information Age and moving quickly into what has been

described as the Conceptual Age…..

……with its 3 “A’s”:

1. Abundance

We live in a country no longer worried about survival. We have such an excess

that the storage business – a place to keep our extra stuff - is a $17 billon

industry, larger than the motion picture industry.

……with its 3 “A’s”:

2. AsiaWhite-collar jobs such as accountants,

engineers, computer programmers, medical imaging interpreters that start at $70,000 in the United States can be outsourced to Asia

where the quality of work is just as good, maybe even better, for what a counter jockey

at Taco Bell earns. It is estimated that the United Kingdom will lose 25,000 IT jobs and

as many as 30,000 financial positions to India.

……with its 3 “A’s”:

3. Automation

Computers and machines can perform faster, are stronger and don’t get

headaches. Computers can write their own programs, make medical diagnosis,

handle basic legal matters, and many other tasks that humans now do.

Abundance

Asia

Automation

We are forced to meet the challenges created when high-tech jobs are being

outsourced to Asia.

As music educators we can help students “develop their abilities to create artistic and

emotional beauty, detect patterns and opportunities and combine seemingly unrelated ideas into novel invention.”

We can help accomplish this by making available courses that

offer creativity, artistry and play.

Music educators make these courses available every day.

Many business leaders feel that the MFA –

Master of Fine Arts – will replace the MBA as the

degree of choice for tomorrow’s corporate world.

If this is true, and the data seems to indicate that it is, what are we doing to reach more of our students with music or other fine arts?

Our students will have to ask themselves the following

questions when choosing their careers in the 21st century:

Can someone overseas do it cheaper?

Can a computer do it faster?

Will what I will have to offer, after training, be in demand

in an age of abundance?

We have to figure out how we are going to help more

of our students be successful in an

increasingly competitive world.

There will be a need for creativity in building new

music classes.

It may be necessary for music educators to learn

new music skills.

In addition to our traditional performance

groups, what can we do to bring more music to our

students?

What can we do to expand the music to those who do

not want to sing in our choirs?

To meet the requirements for the new fine arts credit,

classes such as guitar, class piano, steel drums, general

music education, sound engineering and classes we have yet to invent, will be a

part of our music curriculum.

There will be a need for more teachers, perhaps in

innovative scheduling models, and schools utilizing non-

traditional instructors.

What have we done - music educators - to prepare for the number of students who will

need the new fine arts credit?

Are we relying on someone else to explore new music possibilities at our school?

Who better to do this than you?

What would it hurt to talk to your principal about offering

one new music class in 2008 – or maybe even this fall?

Overcoming challenges to bringing more music to our

students must be the focus of FVA in the future.

Continuously visiting our purpose and goals and being willing to change is the only

long-term way for FVA to continue to be relevant in a

shifting educational environment.

We, teachers and the FVA, must be able to articulate why we are relevant – not only in a aesthetic sense – but also in terms of how we will enhance

our country’s ability to compete worldwide.

Change:

Coming soon to a school near you.

Have you heard much about the new required fine arts credit at your school?

Do principals and guidance counselors know about the

credit?

Have they calculated what it is going to take to meet

the requirement?

Many administrators know a great deal about the

credit.

Many are working through their lobbyists to do away with the fine arts credit.

Our hard-earned credit is not safe.

The proposed middle school fine arts credit was defeated in the legislature

last year.

FMEA continues to lobby less-than-receptive

legislators for the credit.

We are threatened by a proposed new P.E.

requirement for our middle schools which has the

backing of our governor.

“The wealth of nations and the well-being of individuals now depend on having artists in

the room.” (Daniel Pink, “A Whole New Mind”)

The Florida Vocal Association and each of its members are poised to reach more of our schools’ students than ever

before.

“In a world enriched by abundance but disrupted by

the automation and outsourcing of white-collar

work, everyone, regardless of profession, must cultivate an

artistic sensibility.”

It is a time of change.

Choral directors have to view themselves agents of change

at their schools.

The primary purpose of the Florida Vocal Association is to promote and develop interest in choral and general music in

our schools.

Something to think about:

Perhaps, as an organization, we should look to expand our

purpose and set our major goals higher than just

administering all-state and mpas.

Maybe we need to start thinking about being an

association that helps our member schools do as much

as they can to reach all of their students with music.

Change is the key.

If we can change our thinking, even a small amount, maybe

we can give our students tools for the Conceptual Age.

In the process we may save our place in

American education.

There will be organizations looking to fill the need for

“imagination, joyfulness and social dexterity” -

characteristics valuable in the new workplace.

With change there will be problems to solve.

If we starve the problem – “change in our schools and

association will be very hard ….”

….and find the solution… “there are things I can do to bring music to more students every year

at my school”

Then change will come.

And so will the students…...…who need what we have to

offer them.

We – you have been tasked to provide a full year of Arts

education to 100% of the Class of 2011.

What do you think you can do to contribute to these

students who will live a world where the future can only be

imagined?

What will I do to survive and prosper as a music educator

in a world of change?

Change is coming.Change is here.