Arts for Learning Lessons

Wendy Owen
Sixteen Beaverton schools selected for Arts for Learning Lessons study
http://www.oregonlive.com/beaverton/index.ssf/2011/02/sixteen_beaverton_schools_selected_for_arts_for_learning_lessons_study.html
2/25/2011
Topic: Arts for Learning Lessons

WestEd has chosen 16 Beaverton elementary schools to study over the next three years for their project. Another 16 schools were chosen as the control group, meaning they will not participate in the program. The program will go into implementation next fall and teachers will be attending training in the coming weeks. Intended Audience: Beaverton School district teachers and students, anyone interested in art in schools.

Key points:
The program incorporates drama, music, dance, and drawing into reading and writing lessons for students in grade levels 3 – 5
Artists in residency will visit the schools in May
$4million was awarded to Beaverton to help fund the program, including teacher training
The study will track the program’s effectiveness in the next five years
The school district is targeting high-needs groups for the program

Relevance: I am very curious as to how this program will affect performance in student’s and how the skills learned in this program will hold up as the students transfer to middle school. I think this is great, 1) because hey hey I love art and am passionate about teaching students to be creative and expressive, 2) this will create a great experience for students of that age; when I was in elementary school we did not have art class. We had art literacy, which was fun at times, but kind of boring for the most part. This program sounds like a good way to teach students reading and writing forms in different ways, sparking creativity and genuine interest in students.