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PRELUDE, FUGUE News for Friends of Leonard Bernstein RIFFS Spring/Summer 2004 The Leonard Bernstein School Improvement Model: More Findings Along the Way by Dr. Richard Benjamin THE GRAMMY® FOUNDATION eonard Bernstein is cele­ brated as an artist, a CENTER FOP LEAR ll I IJ G teacher, and a scholar. His Lbook Findings expresses the joy he found in lifelong learning, and expounds his belief that the use of the arts in all aspects of education would instill that same joy in others. The Young People's Concerts were but one example of his teaching and scholarship. One of those concerts was devoted to celebrating teachers and the teaching profession. He said: "Teaching is probably the noblest profession in the world - the most unselfish, difficult, and hon­ orable profession. But it is also the most unappreciated, underrat­ Los Angeles. Devoted to improv­ There was an entrepreneurial ed, underpaid, and under-praised ing schools through the use of dimension from the start, with profession in the world." the arts, and driven by teacher each school using a few core leadership, the Center seeks to principles and local teachers Just before his death, Bernstein build the capacity in teachers and designing and customizing their established the Leonard Bernstein students to be a combination of local applications. That spirit Center for Learning Through the artist, teacher, and scholar. remains today. School teams went Arts, then in Nashville Tennessee. The early days in Nashville, their own way, collaborating That Center, and its incarnations were, from an educator's point of internally as well as with their along the way, has led to what is view, a splendid blend of rigorous own communities, to create better now a major educational reform research and talented expertise, schools using the "best practices" model, located within the with a solid reliance on teacher from within and from elsewhere. GRAMMY Foundation based in professionalism and leadership. (continued on page 2) Inside ... 3-6 Success Stories 8 Wonderful Town 13 Calendar of Events 7 WEST SIDE STORY 10 In the News 16 Looking Ahead The Leonard Bernstein School Improvement Model, continued To Our Readers THE GRAMMY® leaders, Boards of Education, and FOUNDATION a few serious friends of the arts, hen I was a kid, I attended a /,,.,,,.,J;; l.~1-/.:':; 1111 to embark on a longer-term Wfancy-pants private school. CENTER FOR LEARNING n vision embracing broader educa­ B tional goals. The Bernstein I later taught at a fancy-pants pri­ model encourages the kind of vate school. And I must say that (continued from page 1) solid community involvement and the faculties, administrators and The model features the skillful support that make long-term trustees of those schools could and pervasive use of the arts, not only in the education of students, goals achievable. have learned plenty from the but also in the continuing educa­ Leonard Bernstein, with his teachers, principals, superintend­ tion of teachers and other school spirit of lifelong learning and his ents and school-board members leaders. There is also a firm desire to honor the teaching that are working now with the commitment not only to raise profession, would certainly be Leonard Bernstein Center. under-performing students, but proud of this continuing work. At the Leadership Institute that Hundreds of teachers and thou­ took place in Los Angeles in sands of students learn about his It takes courageous legacy, and his devotion to using February, a truly amazing group of the arts to instill "joy" in learn­ education leaders from California, teachers, school leaders, ing. He set in motion a powerful Iowa, Georgia and Illinois met for Boards of education, force that is being sustained by a weekend of sharing what they his son Alexander, who continues know and how to understand and a few serious friends to inspire and encourage the what they do. They asked diffi­ teachers as they instill joy of cult questions. (Assessment? of the arts, to embark learning in their students. • Standards? Trailing indicators? - this stuff will give you a brain on a long-term vision Dr. Richard Benjamin was Super­ intendent of Schools in Nashville, cramp if you're not careful.) They embracing broader TN when the family of Leonard created new perspectives and Bernstein located the Leonard deeper understandings of their educational goals. Bernstein Center for Education work. Sharing, asking, creating. Through The Arts in Nashville. Teachers, scholars, artists. It is also to challenge and engage Benjamin is semi-retired, and the wonderful tension between high-performing ones. In addi­ now serves as Executive in these elements that is at the core tion to knowledge-skills, the pro­ Residence at Kennesaw State of the Artful Learning Model. gram also addresses character University and as a senior con­ sultant to the Leonard Bernstein It was an honor to spend the and moral development. There are specific provisions to serve Center for Learning at the weekend with these remarkable English Language Learners and GRAMMY Foundation. people. The Leonard Bernstein Special Education populations, Center staff, and their director, always with the arts playing a Patrick Bolek, are beyond terrific powerful role. These days, few .., in their commitment, inventiveness school systems can support the iil and sheer love of the program. arts. Other models - more pre­ i: a. All of this was made possible, of scriptive, less open to teacher !D.,, C course, by the Grammy Foundation leadership and more focused on IQ C short-term educational objectives II> and its new, fine, fearless leader I!<' ' - seem to be more in fashion. It :,:, Kristen Madsen. ai takes courageous teachers, school V, The weekend was inspiring. -g. ::, co The program is working and vi C growing. LB would be weeping 3 3 with joy. ~ N 0 0 Alexander Bernstein • .i,. 0 Moffett Elementary School recitation of a great historic speech Shown with in the principal's office; parents Alexander engaged in a class read-along; a string instrument class taught by Bernstein, members of the LA Philharmonic; Educators from or students singing mathematic functions or equations fluently in the Moffett English and Spanish. Elementary The LBC approach has pro­ pelled teachers to new heights School: JoAnn about what is possible for them lsken, Dr. Bruce to do as professionals when edu­ cating children. One teacher McDaniel and exclaimed, "Until the Bernstein Patrick Bolek of program, teachers did not think they had time to teach science the LB Center and social studies. I rarely by Franklin Campbell Jones, Leonard Bernstein Center (LBC) cracked open the books. I am Maria D. Fernandez, April Artful Learning school reform happy to report that the teachers Mosby and Fernanaco Vigil model. This model allows stu­ at my school are teaching more dents to engage in the study of math and science than they have offett Elementary is a large mathematics, science, social ever done, due to the way the inner-city school located in science, and English Language M Bernstein units facilitate our the Los Angeles Metropolitan area. Arts through the experience of a teaching of standards." In 1999, the California Attorney selected artistic masterwork. Teachers and administrators General's office cited the school's Upon cultivating their learning are not the only ones motivated neighborhood as the most gang­ through inquiry investigation, to get involved at Moffett. infested in the state. Fifty-three students develop an original cre­ Parents roll up their sleeves and percent of Moffett's parents have ation. This is followed with par­ join the extravaganza of learning. resided in the United States less ticipation in reflective processes They take courses in computer than five years; of those, 85% are and activities such as writing technology, arts and crafts, solely Spanish speaking. Over journals, doing orations or Spanish literacy, nutrition, sewing, the years, Moffett's student giving presentations. guitar, folkloric dance, aerobics, achievement data were consis­ It has been well documented and English literacy. One parent tently below the 25th quartile on that participation in the arts posi­ offers the following testimony: standardized assessment measures. tively influences brain perform­ "When my kids first came home With achievement scores in a ance. It is also known that bore­ from school, they did their home­ downward spiral, Moffett was dom can thin the brains and the work at the kitchen table. All of identified as an underperforming lives of adults as well as children. a sudden they started singing and school by the state of California Bernstein Model educators are not dancing in the middle of the in 1999. mindless workers on a teaching floor. When my wife and I first Recently however, Moffett has assembly line inserting knowl­ heard this, we got after them and taken a turn for the better. In edge factoids into the brains of told them to do their homework 2001, their Academic Performance their students. Nor are they just and stop singing and dancing. Index (API) score jumped 30 implementers of ideas created by But they said to us, 'We are tired. points. The following year in others far from their classrooms. Singing and dancing for a little 2002 the API increased another These teachers engage in the while helps rest our brain cells 40 p~ints, 23 more than expected. exciting dynamic of reciprocal so we can study more and learn .., In 2003, Moffett's score soared learning. In other words, as stu­ iil better.' So now, we sing and c 64 points above the state target dents benefit from the enriching Q. dance with them." • for student improvement. learning environment provided !I>..., C IC Moffett's API base in 2000 was through the arts, so do teachers, C Franklin Campbell Jones is asso­ ID 417.

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