Art, Culture, And Education

The essence of Global Minded Parents is rooted in our mission to share wisdom from different cultures and celebrate our differences. Who we are, collectively, is enriched by our diverse traditions, thoughts, and wisdom. In short, our differences unite us and allow us to learn from one another. Nothing gives us more joy than to delve into the creative ways parents and institutions across the globe are nurturing and celebrating their cultures.

The City of Tokyo is keeping traditions alive through Arts by providing programming directly to their children. The Japan Times reports that “The Tokyo Metropolitan Government and Arts Council Tokyo have teamed up with the Geidankyo (Japan Council of Performers Rights & Performing Arts Organizations) to offer children classes with some of the city’s finest professional musicians and performers” and the result is soul-filling.

“Nurturing respect for cultural traditions is a daunting challenge these days, when kids are glued to cellphones and game apps. So what does a country with centuries of carefully polished artistry do to preserve its heritage? Drop a curtain on the whole show? Not in Tokyo”, the report continued.

Infusing the Arts into our children’s educational disciplines or providing Arts programs through the community is a great way to nurture traditions, promote meaningful collaboration between the arts and science, foster creative problem solving skills and create a forum for sharing and appreciating visual and performing arts across cultures.

As many schools strive to advance academics and the race to ensure schools have the STEM designation continues at full speed, it is time to pause and reflect on where that leaves the Arts. Is there room for the integration of the Arts into the educational disciplines? Many school districts, with support from parents and local governments are advocating for an expansion of the STEM designation to include Arts, with the primary goal of strengthening the existing facets of STEM and incorporating the Arts. The result is encouraging. Many school districts are encouraging the incorporation of visual and performing Arts into their K-12 education system. The new designation, STEAM, (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) is rapidly gaining momentum. Schools that seek the STEAM designation must meet rigorous requirements by submitting proofs and/or artifacts that quantify STEAM efforts and teachers are incorporating the rubric contents in the classrooms. Educators hope to nfluence employers to hire artists and designers to drive innovation. Art can not only fit into the math and engineering arena but that it can also enhance our children’s learning and promote a sense of community.

To quote the inspirational Mahatma Gandhi: