Arts Education Partnership (AEP) Convenes U.S. Leaders to Examine Arts Education in American Schools

On April 12-13, the Arts Education Partnership held its Spring 2012 National Forum, "Are We There Yet?  Arts Evidence and the Road to Student Success," in Washington, D.C. The Forum launched ArtsEdSearch, the nation's first digital clearinghouse of arts education research.  Attendees also examined and discussed two major reports--recently released and addressed here, below--that help sharpen our ability to see a clear picture of arts education in America's schools and communities.  Attendees heard from a variety of top-notch speakers and panelists, including PBS NewHour's education correspondent John Merrow, longtime EdWeek editor Virginia Edwards, and Rachel Goslins, executive director of the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities, among others. 

National Center for Education Statistics Releases Arts Education Survey Findings

The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) has issued findings from the first nationwide arts education survey it has conducted in a decade:  "Arts Education in Public Elementary and Secondary Schools: 1999-2000 and 2009-2010."  The survey documents the state of arts education in U.S. schools. U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan remarks that a "high-quality arts education is critical to providing all students with a world-class education," but goes on to note that there is an increasing "arts opportunity gap" that is disproportionately affecting high-poverty schools.  For more information, visit the report website.

NEA Releases Research Report on Potential Benefits of Arts Education for At-Risk Youth 

The National Endowment for the Arts recently released The Arts and Achievement in At-Risk Youth, which incorporates four longitudinal studies, including three conducted by the U.S. Department of Education, that tracked children, teenagers, and young adults who had experienced different levels of arts coursework, arts extracurricular activities, and out-of-school arts experiences. The study was prepared by James S. Catterall of the University of California Los Angeles, with Susay A. Dumais of Louisiana State University, and Gillen Hampden-Thompson of the University of York, U.K.

National Coalition for Core Arts Standards Adds Media Arts Standards

The National Coalition for Core Arts Standards (NCCAS) has announced that it will be adding national, voluntary media arts standards to the Next Generation Arts Standards Project.  NCCAS cites the increasingly important role that the media arts are playing in public education and plans to create a set of standards that are of equivalent rigor, breadth, and depth as the existing standards for dance, music, theatre, and the visual arts.  Be sure to read the NCCAS press release about the creation of the media arts standards. 

ArtsFest 2012 at Penn State University: July 12-15 Workshop Opportunity

The Pennsylvania State University will be hosting its annual ArtsFest week at University Park from July 12-15, 2012.  As part of the arts festival, Penn State will be offering an Arts Workshop opportunity for arts educators. The workshop will give educators an opportunity to tour the Palmer Museum of Art at Penn State, and to learn how to incorporate contemporary art into the classroom via a presentation by Dr. Dana Carlisle Kletchka, curator of education at the museum, and Dotty Ford, museum docent and retired art teacher.  Act 48 credit is available.  Interested?  Download a registration brochure at: ArtsFest Workshop.  Space is limited to 50 participants.

Philadelphia Museum of Art Hosts Art Futures Reception and Award Ceremony: April 30, 2012

The Philadelphia Museum of Art will be hosting a reception and award ceremony for students in the Art Futures program on April 30, 2012.  The accompanying Art Futures exhibition will feature works by area high school students and be on view at the museum from April 18 to May 13 in the Museum Education Corridor on the ground level, which can be accessed free of charge during normal museum hours.