by Shawn Goretsky (8th)

Students who participate in band, orchestra, or chorus are familiar with how the music program currently works at our school. Music classes meet for one trimester and alternate between A and B days, along with a 30-minute rehearsal once—sometimes twice—a week during homeroom. On paper, this seems like a reasonable amount of time. However, when you compare our program to others, you start to see the difference.

Many schools offer music classes every day for the entire year. Some even schedule full band rehearsals during the school day every other day. At the high school level, band meets every other day for the entire year, which gives students far more time to practice and improve. This raises an important question: How can we strengthen our music program at the middle school?

There are several challenges to consider. Our current schedule is not designed to support a year-long music class that meets every day—or even every other day. The only classes that run for the entire year are core classes and language classes. With the addition of health and gym requirements, there is little room to add another 45-minute class block.

At Plymouth Whitemarsh High School, students have more flexibility in choosing their schedules. If they want to take band for the entire year, they can choose it, although it may replace other elective options. In middle school, however, students have far less choice. Over three years, students select only five things: four UA classes that rotate each trimester and one language.

One possible solution might be for students to choose band as all of their UA classes. However, this would create more problems than it solves. First, it would prevent students from participating in other valuable programs like technology, cooking, or art. Unlike in high school, middle school students would not have the chance to take those classes later. Additionally, sixth and seventh graders do not choose their UA classes, meaning only eighth graders would benefit from this option. That would not build a strong, long-term music program.

After thinking about this issue, I considered several possible solutions. For example, students already have weekly small-group instrument lessons during the first and third trimesters. One idea would be to schedule a full band rehearsal once a week during the school day, similar to those lessons. Students could leave class for 45–60 minutes at the beginning or end of the day. However, this approach also creates problems. Missing that much class time each week could interfere with other subjects, and it would be a much larger disruption than individual lessons.

Another possible solution would be to expand after-school music opportunities. While this could help students improve, it also has drawbacks. Not every student is willing or able to stay after school regularly. Requiring after-school participation could actually discourage students from joining music programs. It could also interfere with other activities like sports, theater, clubs, or time needed to complete homework.

After considering these options, I believe there is a better solution. Our school already has a model for this through the gifted program. Students in that program miss a gym or health class once every three weeks, allowing them to participate without losing too much time from other classes.

A similar system could work for music. Every three weeks, music students could attend a longer rehearsal during their UA period instead of their usual UA class. During that time, they would go to band, orchestra, or chorus. This would give music teachers more time to work with students and help them improve, while only minimally affecting other classes. Students could check Canvas to catch up on anything they missed, just as they would if they were absent.

In conclusion, our music program has great potential, but improvements could make it even stronger. Many other schools provide more time and opportunities for students to develop their musical skills, and we should aim to keep up. Music is an important part of education, and with thoughtful planning, we can make it more of a priority without taking too much time away from other classes.