Research that Helps Move Us Closer to a World Where Each Child Thrives

Schools are curtailing programs in arts, physical exercise, and play to devote more time and resources to academic instruction. Yet doing that may impede academic success, rather than aid it. Correlational and retrospective studies, personal accounts, case studies, and theoretical arguments suggest that the arts (e.g., music, dance, and theatre) and/or physical activities (e.g., sports, martial arts, and youth circus) can transform kids' lives. Do they? Causal studies are lacking. There's enough suggestive evidence; the time is ripe for rigorous research on real-world arts and physical activity programs that permit conclusions about causality to be drawn and that investigate what characteristics of programs account for benefits. Granting agencies should be more open to funding such research.