How did Jose Antonio Abreus Sistema transform the lives of c

How did Jose Antonio Abreu\'s Sistema transform the lives of children in Venezuela? Would such a music and social project work in countries with which you are familiar?

Solution

Jose Antonio Abreu was an economist, a musician and an activist from Venezuela who started a simple initiative by the name of El Sistema, to help better the lives of children in Venezuela. The idea that Jose had was to bring about social change through the proper use of music. A routine after-school not only helped instil a sense of discipline and responsibility among children, but also taught them how to work together as a team and celebrate team spirit.

The whole society was working toward one goal of achieving musical excellence, which was common to all. This kept idle minds at bay and engaged young minds to do productive work which also helped in lowering crime rates in Venezuela. Self-discipline of all the young children started to escalate. They were not limited to textual knowledge and in the process of working in an orchestra team, learned both how to manage the team if necessary and also duly follow the instructions of a leader. These attributes are ones that come through the learning of organizational behaviour.

El Sistema helped transform Venezuela at many levels. Engaging the future of Venezuela in productive and cultural environments helped develop the overall health of the society. It also generate large amounts of employment wherein these Venezuelan children became famous artists working in different parts of the world. Therefore, not only did Venezuela experience growth with an increase in income, but also experienced development in its truest sense as it scored high on the happiness index meter as well.

This kind of a music and social program would work wonders in a country like India. It is important to remember that children are the future of every country and the proper development and shaping of those children is what will determine the health of the country in the years to come. It is not always necessary to confine children to textual knowledge only. Rather, very little can be achieved through textual knowledge. A better understanding to life and living is achieved through practical training such as music or cultural drives like these. The need of the hour is to employ the unemployed youth, many of who lack educational qualifications. The best way to tackle these issues is through vocational training as a part of social programs or cultural training that will not only help the young get jobs, but also will channelize their energy for good and productive purposes. Crime rates and poverty will go down if such trainings can be sustained, and the overall health of the economy will also improve remarkably with time.