Out of all the subjects that a student has in his or her academic lifetime, which one needs to have the most attention placed on it or which subject needs to be pushed to the highest degree?

Although I feel that many subjects taught in school are more important than other, if I had to pick one to be the MOST important it would have to be reading. I feel a society without reading wouldn't be able to do anything. To be able to do the other subjects (aka math, history, science, language arts, etc...) a person needs to be able to read.

I strongly believe that all of the different academic subjects are equally important. In fact, often times, you have to understand one subject to understand another subject, for example, you have to know Math in order to do Physics! However, if I were to pick one subject as the most important I would have to agree that literacy would be the most important, reading and writing. In studying of the importance of literacy in another class, I have found that it is a struggle for a person to survive in a society/culture if they are illiterate. If children are not literate, how will they be able to learn about science if they can not read from a science book? Throughout the years, children will probably develop their own favorite subjects and which ones they feel are important. However, as educators, I do not believe that we should encourage that one subject is more important over another.

I think that basic reading and writing is essential to success in school and life. However, I also think that our society puts too much emphasis on focusing on "core" subjects.

Every subject is important. They honestly go hand in hand with each other. And yes, I think this is true for the arts as well. *I'm speaking from an educator perspective, not just a music educator perspective.*

While the "core" subjects such as reading, writing, science, or math are all intricate in teaching a student basic knowledge that they need to use in life, it is the arts that is teaching a child how to feel and live. It's kind of the situation that reading, writing, and arithmetic focus on the brain, but the arts focuses on the soul of the individual.

When we discuss the order of importance of learning 'subjects', we need to address the level at which the students are learning. At the basic level, reading plays a huge role in furthering a persons education-it is critical.
However, if we look beyond reading, we can discuss differences in direction and focus in ones life (not to mention differences in cultures). If a person aspires to be a tradesman, the importance may lie in an understanding of math. If a person aspires to be a lawyer, the importance may be writing....
I believe that we need to reach out and guide our students towards their interests and their stregnths, whatever those may be, and they will then be able to use that focus to make connections in the subjects that are more difficult for them.
The order of importance is individual in an ideal world...I just wish that would be true in our educational system.

I would just like to say that as teachers we should value all subjects and they should be thought as equal. It is the impression that we give that makes students vaule one subject over another.

I agree with Brandon, as educators we need to place the same value on all subjects. If we value all subjects equally, students will learn to value all subjects.

I think that all subjects are important and that they all need to be stressed. To be a well rounded person you need to be educated in as much as possible. All subjects should be shown to children as important.

Like everyone else, I agree that all subjects are of great importance. If I were to pick one subject, I would pick reading. Without the skill of reading it would be impossible to function in society.

I agree that all subjects are important. Yet, I am human and therefore, biased. I think reading and writing (as well as other forms of communicating) are the most important skills we can teach kids. If they can read well and communicate well, then they can teach themselves and others. These skills are not limited to English; they can be taught in any discipline. That's why I am in favor of Reading/Writing across the curriculum.

However, as a result of my background, I believe the class such as p.e., art, and music are some of the most important because they all give each student a better look at the things that are happening in everyday life in sports, musical artists and styles, plus the everchanging world of art. Without p.e., most students will never have a true understanding of what it takes to be any type of athlet, whether it be a weekend warrior playing basketball or Lebron James playing in the NBA. I do contend that teachers should play an equal bias on every subject (yes, even grammar and history), but since we are all only human, we will all put our own personal spin on each subject we are attached with throughout our teaching careers.

If all topics are to be stressed, to what degree should they be stressed. For instance, should history and science be given more of an emphasis than say mathematics or music?

Travis:
I feel that each subject area should be stressed in equal amounts. I think as we have all been in college we have realized that the paths we are placed on, with different subjects such as history and math, we are to be shaped into well-rounded individuals. In order for us as teachers to create well-rounded people we need to stress each subject equally.

I also could not choose a subject. In fact I'd love to see a more interdisciplinary approach to it all. I loved when Melissa brought up that we should consider using our art teachers more in our schools. I thought that was such an outstanding suggestion. I really think that if anything we should include MORE variety instead of trying to zero our focus down to one or just a few classes.