Why Art Education Isn’t Optional
Ask a group of adults which school subjects were “extra” or “unnecessary,” and many will point to art class. It’s often seen as a break from the “real” work—less essential than math, science, or reading. Some schools even treat it like a reward. But that’s a mistake. Art isn’t a luxury. It’s not fluff. It’s a core human skill—and cutting it from education does more damage than most people realize.
Art teaches us how to think—not just how to follow instructions, but how to explore, question, and create. Where science helps us understand how things work, art asks what they mean. That’s not being poetic—it’s practical. A society that doesn't know how to question, reflect, or imagine different possibilities is a society that gets stuck. Art gives us the ability to move forward.
Think about it: art trains people to approach problems with creativity and to live with uncertainty—skills that matter in every field, from medicine to engineering to business. In art, there are rarely clear answers. That’s the point. Making something from nothing, revising on the fly, imagining new paths—this is what innovation actually looks like. And it often starts with drawing, dancing, painting, or performing—especially as children.
But art does more than sharpen minds—it broadens our perspective. When you experience a powerful piece of music, a play, or a painting, you’re stepping into another world. You’re encountering an artist’s thoughts and feelings, while noticing and developing your own. That’s empathy in action. And in a world so full of division, that kind of emotional intelligence isn’t optional. It’s essential.
Art also gives us a way to process life when words fail us. Grief, joy, anger, injustice—these aren’t always things we can explain. But we can draw them, sing them, sculpt them, and film them. We can explore how line, shape, color, and form make us feel. That’s a visual vocabulary, and it’s one of the oldest ways humans have made sense of their lives. Every culture on every continent in every age has made art. It’s how we know of the civilizations that came before us. Art isn’t some new invention—it’s how we’ve always connected with each other.
And let’s be honest—kids need this now more than ever. Between rising anxiety, social media overload, and the narrow, test-driven way we define success, students are under enormous pressure. The effects show up in classrooms, in news headlines, and across communities. Art gives them space to breathe, explore, and even fail without punishment. It engages their minds and their bodies in a way few other subjects do.
This doesn’t mean we stop prioritizing math or science. Those are critical. But it’s time we stop pretending that art is something less. The best education is a full education—one that builds thinkers, feelers, makers, and dreamers. The kind of people who can handle a complicated world—and maybe even make it better. So let’s stop calling art “extra.” It doesn’t belong in the corner. It belongs at the center. And if we want students—and society—to thrive, we need to make sure art has a permanent seat at the table.
