This petition is to ask that the board of Governors at Strode's College hold a re-vote on the issue of the cancellation of A-level music and provide an opportunity for a presentation to be given to the board informing them of all the facts so they can make a truly informed decision.

The key points we are trying to raise awareness of are:

1. Why Music is a vital subject to study at A-level and how it helps produce well-rounded students

2. Why this is a short sighted decision and will have numerous negative effects for Strode's College

3. Why Music should be made available to all young people regardless of wealth or background.

 Throughout history music has played a vital role in many peoples lives: in everything from religion to the military, music has been central to society. This is as true today as it ever was, and it is for this reason that I believe the study of music is so important.

However, studying Music provides so much more to students than just a musical education. There is a large body of research supporting the fact that music stimulates all forms of intelligence, with the result that Children’s academic achievement, concentration, and sense of self worth are all improved. This is to say nothing of the sense of time, history, geography, and place that studying music provides. (1)

For many years, those who set education policy have been struggling to imbed the non-academic ‘social’ skills – self- discipline, awareness of others, teamwork etc – into a generation of young people whose family backgrounds are often chaotic. In other words, to ensure that schools are places where people care about each other and work well together, and where there is a culture of good behaviour and aspiration to learn. There is ample research to support the notion that music, arts, drama and sport promote a sense of ‘belonging’. (2) Perhaps if successive governments had recognised the importance of these disciplines, there would be no need for separate ‘citizenship’ lessons and the like.

I know from personal experience that students from more privileged backgrounds who attend private schools are given far better opportunities when it comes to a musical education. I strongly believe in the state school system and believe that Music should not go the way of Latin, only available to the wealthy, and a good Musical education should be available to all young people, regardless of wealth or background.

I understand that all factors must be taken into consideration and that due to low numbers of students taking A-level music funding is difficult to find. However, I do not believe that the music department has been given sufficient opportunity to recruit more students in an effective way and I believe that given just one more year of study the class of September 2016 would be sufficiently larger and more economically viable.

I believe that this decision is extremely short sighted and ill informed. The cancellation of Music-A level will have numerous knock on effects for other subjects at Strode’s. The most notable of which would be music tech (which requires a far larger budget by far than any other arts department). Without A-level music, Music technology will not attract sufficient numbers of musically talented students and as a result will not achieve as high grades or as high numbers of students enrolled in the course as have been seen in recent years. Other subjects will also be affected, as many drama, dance, art students will be put off from attending Strode’s even if they do not wish to study A-level music themselves.

(1) Multiple Intelligences in the 21st Century, Howard Gardner, 1985 & 1999; over 200 separate pieces of academic research between 1980 and 2011.

(2) Interpersonal relationships, cohesion and sense of belonging, Centre for the Use of Research and Evidence in Education, 2011; Constructing relationships for learning, Peters, Le Cornu, Collins, 2003; The Psychological Sense of School Membership among Adolescents, Goodenow, 1993.