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California State PTA Online Newsletter                             March 2009 

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School Board Hearings on the Arts

In response to the new state budget, public hearings will be taking place at school board meetings across the state to determine the future of arts education in our schools.
 
Please let your elected officials know why it is so important to keep the arts in our schools.


Assembly Resolution  Declaring March Arts Education Month

ACR 26 encourages
elected officials to visit their schools during the month.


New Online Arts Education Handbook


Register Now for Arts Education Conference

April 20-21, 2009
Sacramento
The California County Superintendents Educational Services Association and the California Alliance for Arts Education present Arts to the Core: Building a Future for Arts Education in California

Core Subjects for the Creative Mind: California Arts Council

The Benefits of the Study of Music from MENC
 
Quick Facts from Americans for the Arts
 
Resources from the Arts Education Partnership
 
Keep Music Education Strong - Support Music
 


SMARTS is California State PTA's program to encourage arts education. Please spread the word about the benefits of arts education.





March Is Arts Education Month
  Celebrate with the Arts Learning in Action Toolkit

The California State PTA and the California Alliance for Arts Education have developed the Arts Learning In Action Toolkit to help schools and districts bring elected officials into our schools to witness the power of learning in the arts during the month of March.


Why the Arts Are Important for ALL Students


In a time of budget shortfalls, many parents may ask why the arts are important, and why the PTA is so committed to the arts for ALL children at EVERY school.
 
The answer is important:
 
Extensive research shows that the arts help our children do better in school and do better in life.
 

Take a moment to look at some of the research provided by the Arts Education Partnership:

How and Why the Arts Are Critical to Student Achievement and Better Schools

  • "Arts learning directly contributes to the development of students' intellectual and personal capacities.

  • For many students, where school had often been a place of failure and frustration, the experience of success in the arts was a revelation that learning matters - that they matter. As a result, they were more willing to do the hard work of learning.

  • Learning in the arts helped students develop the sense that they can be agents of their own learning and that they can make a positive change in their own lives and in their surroundings. It contributed to their sense of self-efficacy and self-esteem.

  • Improved student behavior and attendance rates were attributed to the schools' arts programs. Students themselves reported that the arts kept them engaged in school.

  • As one high school student noted, "If it wasn't for this program, I wouldn't be in school at this point." Teachers and district officials credited their school's arts programs for the improved scores of students on standardized tests, including improvement in reading and mathematics."


Edutopia provides additional findings of the importance of arts education:

Why Arts Education Is Crucial, and Who's Doing It Best





 
Visit the Smarts Link web page.
 






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