IEA Newsletter for Wednesday, August 8, 2007

Welcome to the Institute for Education and the Arts’ weekly newsletter for August 8, 2007. The newsletter is published each Wednesday to the IEA listserv and is archived here on the IEA blog.

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REPORT
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ECONOMIC IMPACT OF THE ARTS IN MARYLAND
Maryland State Arts Council
“The arts generated $1.05 Billion in economic impact for Maryland in fiscal year 2006, according to a recent study released by the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development (DBED). The study, prepared for the Maryland State Arts Council (MSAC), also showed the arts generated an estimated $37.3 million in state and local taxes, up from $35.1 million In FY2005, and generated 13,762 full- and part-time jobs. In addition, for every dollar of direct spending by audiences attending arts events, another $2.10 was generated on other goods and services.”
Read more: http://msac.org/news.cfm?id=240&sec=News

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RE-EXAMINING THE ARTS/ACADEMICS LINK
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BOOK TACKLES OLD DEBATE: ROLE OF ARTS IN SCHOOLS
Robin Pogrebin, New York Times, 8/4/07
“When two researchers published a study a few years ago concluding that arts classes do not improve students’ overall academic performance, the backlash was bitter. Some scholars argued that the 2000 study’s authors, Ellen Winner and Lois Hetland of Project Zero — an arts-education program at the Harvard Graduate School of Education — had failed to mention some beneficial effects of arts classes that their research had revealed. Others cited findings that reached the opposite conclusion, indicating that students who take high-quality art classes indeed do better in other courses. Some even accused the authors of devaluing arts education and the arts in general. But Ms. Winner, Ms. Hetland and two other collaborators are pushing back. In a new book due out this month, they argue forcefully for the benefits of art education, while still defending their 2000 thesis. In their view art education should be championed for its own sake, not because of a wishful sentiment that classes in painting, dance and music improve pupils’ math and reading skills and standardized test scores … In their new study Ms. Winner, Ms. Hetland and their co-authors, Shirley Veenema and Kimberly Sheridan, focused on the benefits accrued through classes in painting, drawing, sculpture and the other visual arts. The results are to be published in their book, Studio Thinking: The Real Benefits of Visual Arts Education (Teachers College Press).”
Read the article>>
Learn more about the Studio Thinking book>>

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ARTS IN SCHOOLS
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ARTS HELP D SCHOOL TURN IT ALL AROUND:
DAVENPORT SCHOOL OF THE ARTS NOW EARNS HIGH GRADES AND HAS A LONG WAITING LIST
Christine Baker, special to the Orlando Sentinel, 7/29/07
“Weaving arts classes in with traditional academic programs appears to keep kids excited about school and help them retain what they've learned. For instance, encouraging students to explore something as simple as weather terms through poetry, art and movement deepens their understanding and reinforces the lesson -- particularly for children with different learning styles, said Mary Palmer, professor and coordinator of graduate studies in music education at the University of Central Florida. That's the philosophy of the organization behind the new Arts Achieve! Model Schools program that recognizes excellence in arts education statewide. Palmer is an adviser and founder of the Complete Education/Florida Alliance for Arts Education, which designed the program. The Davenport School of the Arts in Polk County was one of 13 schools around Florida selected as a model arts school. Davenport's students in kindergarten through eighth grade get a daily dose of music, dance, theater and visual arts.”
Read more>>

EDITORIAL:
DON’T LEAVE ARTS, SCIENCE BEHIND
READING AND MATH ARE IMPORTANT – BUT SO ARE OTHER SUBJECTS
Minneapolis Star Tribune, 8/1/07
“Since the federal No Child Left Behind rules were passed, educators increasingly lament being forced to "teach to the test." Their concern is that with federal, state and local testing requirements, teachers have to focus on English and math only, while sacrificing instruction in other areas. Now comes evidence from the Center on Education Policy … that indeed many districts are spending more time on math and reading, the only subjects that count under NCLB, and less time on other areas such social studies, art, music and physical education. Researchers surveyed about 350 urban, suburban, and outstate schools across the nation and found that other subjects were losing, on average, 30 minutes a day. This is one of the most worrisome findings about the consequences of NCLB rules. Studies show that students are better served and more likely to stay engaged and do well in school when they receive well-rounded educations that include the arts and other elective areas. That is why districts must find creative ways to provide comprehensive programs, even as they focus on core subjects … It is reasonable to argue that the most academically challenged students need to focus most of their time on the basics. Reading, writing and arithmetic skills provide the foundation necessary to learn other subjects. Yet those same students need exposure to the other subject areas as well. In fact for some, an interest in the creative arts may motivate them to work harder in other areas of education.”
Read more>>

MAYOR, SCHOOLS CHIEF ANNOUNCE INITIATIVES FOR ART INSTRUCTION
Yoav Gonen, Staten Island (NY) Advance, 7/24/07
“Addressing concerns that arts education could be marginalized by new school funding and accountability measures, Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Schools Chancellor Joel Klein announced yesterday several new initiatives designed to ensure that arts instruction will flourish. Those initiatives include creating an annual citywide report of arts spending, staffing and instruction at schools, evaluating principals on their compliance with state arts education requirements, and forming an Arts Education Task Force, staffed in part by members of the cultural community, to help guide arts programming … With school funding and curriculum decisions steadily devolving from a central bureaucracy to individual school principals, some art groups have expressed concern that the pressure on school leaders to bring up scores on standardized tests in core subjects like English and math would lead to a substantial decrease in art-program offerings. That concern was heightened earlier this year when the city announced it no longer would dedicate money specifically toward arts education after 11 years of doing so, effectively killing a program known as Project Arts. Last year, the program earmarked $67 million for the arts, including $3.5 million for Staten Island. Yesterday, Bloomberg said those concerns should be allayed by the fact that principals at about 300 empowerment schools -- who had been given more say on funding and curriculum decisions -- last year demonstrated their commitment to the arts by increasing program funding by $4 million from the previous year.”
Read more>>

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EVENTS
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FORUM FOR NEW IDEAS
Sponsored by the Business Committee for the Arts, 9/20/07
Morgan Stanley Building, New York City
“Learn how to think differently, explore non-traditional ways for business and the arts to work together, and network with some of today's visionaries. Moderator: Annie Bergen, WQXR. Speakers: Ginny B. Baxter, Herman Miller, Inc.; Chuck Hoberman, Hoberman Associates; Jill Medvedow, Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston. Participants will network with innovative business and arts leaders from across the country; have exposure to cutting-edge ideas and techniques that assist in achieving operating goals; learn how to develop effective strategies to build non-traditional business-art alliances, as well as creative workplaces and communities; and gain access to current trends and best practices that lead to a competitive edge.
Register or learn more>>

BREAKING DOWN THE WALLS:
REACHING YOUTH, FAMILIES AND COMMUNITIES THROUGH THE ARTS
Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ, 10/10 – 10/11/07
“The program will aim to educate arts organizations, artists, prevention specialists, social workers, community workers, teachers, and counselors in the utilization of the arts as a tool in a comprehensive prevention strategy and as a positive youth development tool. Accepting proposals for workshops: arts in the community; technology and the arts; arts entrepreneurship. Workshops, discussion, experiential, small roundtable discussions. Scholarship money is available.”
Learn more>>

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SOCIAL AND CIVIC IMPACT OF THE ARTS
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SEEKING EXAMPLE EVALUATIONS OF THE SOCIAL OR CIVIC IMPACT OF ARTS PROJECTS OR PROGRAMS
Americans for the Arts
“Animating Democracy is seeking examples of completed or in-progress evaluation efforts focused to measure and understand the social or civic impact of arts projects or programs. Of particular interest are arts-based civic engagement projects or programs that engage people through the arts in dialogue, participation, and/or action related to clearly defined social or civic issues in community. We would also like to know about organizations whose past arts-based programs or projects have useful documentation and/or evaluation that allow examination of single project impact and/or the cumulative impact of an organization’s project efforts over time. Animating Democracy is especially looking to identify evaluation approaches that apply metrics in order to quantify evidence of social change. Arts organizations, consultants, and funders are invited to share, preferably by August 30, reports, or a brief note to indicate relevant resources or interest in being contacted. Send information to: Pam Korza, pkorza [at] artsusa.org, or call 413-256-1260.” Originally posted to CulturalCommons.org.
Learn more here or here.

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GRANTS, FUNDING, CONTESTS, AND AWARDS
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RECOGNIZING ELEMENTARY TEACHERS USING REFLECTIVE WRITING
International Reading Association
Deadline: 11/1/07
“The Regie Routman Teacher Recognition Award honors an outstanding regular classroom elementary teacher of reading and language arts in grades K–6 (ages 5–12) dedicated to improving teaching and learning through reflective writing about his or her teaching and learning process. The US$1,000 award is supported by a grant from Regie Routman. All applicants must be Association members.”
Learn more>>

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