Scales, flats and sharps are not types of shoes or medieval tools, but rather some of the instruments used in the classroom of Miramar High School music educator Alvin Davis. Mr. Davis was recently selected as a finalist for the DOE/Macy’s Teacher of the Year award, and understands the correlation between participating in fine arts classes and achieving academic success. In fact, a study of 2007-08 12th Grade cohort of 188,859 students found a strong correlation between participating in fine arts classes and academics. Whether it’s music, dance, theater or visual arts – the more art classes taken, the higher the academic achievement.
Taking music education a bit further, Broward County’s Teacher of the Year emphasizes academics, discipline and musicality in all of his lessons.
Each student in the Miramar High School Soldier Band from Patriot Land gets one-on-one counseling with band staff, mentoring and tutoring. Mr. Davis also reviews copies of everyone’s report cards and requires his seniors to provide proof of secondary education applications and ACT/SAT testing. It is obvious he truly means it when he says, “It is not enough to just teach music, but I believe it is also my duty to reinforce the skills learned in other classes.”
From learning musical rhythms and vocabulary to reinforcing time management and responsibility, students benefit from being a part of art and extracurricular activities. Mr. Davis is proof of this, and we are proud to honor him as one of the finalists for the DOE/Macy’s Teacher of the Year Award.
Is your child in a fine arts class? Do they participate in extracurricular activities? Do you think these activities better prepare them for school and future careers?
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