We all know about the ongoing issue of Common Core, the unsustainable cost and indebtedness of obtaining a college education and recently the problem of young ladies being molested and worse on college campuses.
The future may well change much in the education system as these modern times have done in so many areas. It could level the playing field and allow for equal opportunity for all which no doubt is needed.
The following is an article from the September edition of Strings Magazine.
Khan Academy, a free educational website that reaches 10 million students per month in 200 countries, has launched a music-education program from music director Gerard Schwarz, the Seattle-Symphony conductor laureate, and the All-Star Orchestra, the multi-Emmy Award-winning ensemble comprised of top players from the symphony orchestras across America.
The collaboration brings, for the first time, classical music to the groundbreaking website that teaches math, science, economics, humanities, and many other subjects.
The initial music-education offerings cover three topics. The first, Music Basics; Notes and Rhythm, includes individual lessons about fundamental music structure; the second; Masterpieces Old and New, has commentaries and analyses of standard classical repertoire such as Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, Dvorak’s “New World” Symphony, Stravinsky’s Firebird and Ravel’s Daphnis et Chloe, as well as new works by composers such as Agusta Read Thomas and Bernard Rands; and the third topic is instruments of the orchestra with demonstrations of each instrument in the orchestra presented by principal players. All musical examples are providid by the Emmy Award-winning All Star Orchestra, with video footage taken from the nationally broadcast public television series and from ancullary footage made during the original recording sessions. Further tutorials to be added in the coming months include more expositions of classical and contemporary works, and additional lessons in the Music Basic series.
“As an artist I care deeply about the future of music, and I hope for a growing and knowledgeable audience for classical music,” Schwarz said in a written statement. “Khan Academy is such an important force for education, and to have the All-Star Orchestra contribute to Khan Academy’s mission is of great importance to all of us who believe that music education is a core subject that has a resonance far beyond the study of music. I look forward to this collaboration for many years to come.”
Khan Academy, started by New Orleans-born Bengali-American Salman Khan in 2008, is a nonprofit with a mission to provide a free world-class education for anyone, anywhere. Khan is one of Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People. His instructional You-Tube videos have attracted 1.7 million subscribers and have been viewed 444 million times.
I would like to add that I have been considering for some time that from an early age, all should learn what I wish to call ‘Earth Science’ so as to understand the physical world in which we live. The simple times of the past are long gone. It can be summed up quite well as chemistry, electricity (along with electronics) and magnetic fields.
These three are inseparable. I would add things of a vibratory nature such as sound waves, heat, light and the various rays.
I also can happily say that any time I want to know something about a subject, I type it in and it is on the internet. It is amazing how much work has been done.
Charles Samek
Mineola
