I propose to make it mandatory for every school to teach their students how to create an MFF in after-school programs. The after-school programs will be financed by the sale of the many MFF through public auctions at art exhibits held on school grounds. These fund-raising functions will be sponsored by philanthropists, art collectors, foundations and corporations. Schools in need of money to finance other activities could use the combination of bake sales, cutting grass, washing cars, selling candy or raffle tickets from door to door to advertise the upcoming fund-raising art exhibition of MFF.Once children learn how to make a MFF they can teach their parents, and while the children are at school, the homebound parents can create them for their children to decorate. This parent-child interaction will strengthen their bond and elevate the self-esteem of parents who might feel inadequate to help their children with their academic studies, financially, intellectually or otherwise. After graduating high school, students in need of tuition money to further their education or pay for student loans, can teach grade school students how to create MFFs and sell their own through their high school or alma mater. Their school in turn will auction these MFFs, pay the cost of the student’s tuition or loan and use the rest for the maintenance and improvement of the MFF program.
During the time I volunteered as an art teacher for various non-profit organizations, I conducted several experiments to find a way of keeping the attention of unruly teenagers. The answer was money - instant gratification. Offer money to a teenager and they won’t even ask what they have to do to get it. This is the advantage that the criminal element has over us. They provide kids with the opportunity to make lots of easy money. I implemented a summer program where kids got paid to come and learn how to manufacture MFFs to sell and this way fund the program. As they learned how to create a MFF I taught them manners, how to lose the fear of criticism, how to express themselves through art, the importance of freedom of expression, the folly of self-censorship, how to enrich their vocabulary, conceptual thinking, discipline, graphic design, philosophy, music, comedy, self-esteem, tolerance, anger management, and the destructive aspects of drug and alcohol abuse. Just about any subject that they brought into the room was discussed at length while they learned how to create these sculptures in a safe and friendly atmosphere. Since the creation of an MFF doesn’t require concentration or undivided attention, they can be made while interacting. Creating an MFF is a social activity that will spark the desire to remain in school, thus lowering the drop-out rate.
They were paid to come and learn to create something that could be sold and, at th
e same time, learn how to exchange ideas, social skills, how to lose the fear of communicating private feelings and frustrations. Sharing experiences revealed to them that their problems were not as unique as they thought. I was their moderator, not their teacher or their boss. I was neither an authority figure nor a disciplinarian. I was learning as much from them as they were learning from me. There were no tests, no judgments, no threats, no punishments; they were paid to learn. The only requirement to stay in the program was to finish a MFF without my assistance. After that, it was up to them to start a new one or quit the program; none of them quit. My program’s slogan was, “Better to pay for their education than to pay for their incarceration.”This program was designed to provide a skill that is ignored by the current system of education. Every time that the government feels the need to balance the budget, the first casualties are the after-school programs and art education. This tragic mistake might just be why there are so many kids who lose interest in graduating. There is very little in our schools that are geared toward sustaining their attention long enough for them to graduate. There is only physical education and an academic curriculum. If neither one interests the student, the attention span is gone.
