Fighting the CREATIVTY CRISIS In Our Schools

BELOW: a powerful page from Project Art. BUT... while I admire this program's dedication, mission, and effort; I have mixed feelings about all After School Programs. Yes, it's great that Art can be shoe horned into the school experience we offer our young people by extending the length of the school day. However, by doing so, it relegates Art to what is perceived as the realm of The Trivial... Worse, it evades the fight to right the wrong of excluding Art in the first place. In effect, such programs are  magnificent bandaids. And in the end, we will have to fight that fight - the fight to re-examine our understanding of Education and re-target and re-direct it to reflect more informed and humane goals and methods!!! Until that fight begins, though, I'll be a fan of Project Art and similar efforts!

Mark

CREATIVITY CRISIS
Visit this page at its source: http://projectart.org/crisis-2/

Today, over 4 million elementary school students do not get any arts instruction. If you were born into a family of low socio-economic status, these are two possible pathways on how access to arts education can affect your life. These are based on findings from research institutions.

                                                SOURCES FOR DATA CITED

Improved Academic Performance for Students with High Levels of Arts Involvement, Americans for the Arts (2013)
The Arts and Achievement in At-Risk Youth, National Endowment for the Arts (2012)
College-Bound Seniors: Total Group Profile Report, The College Board (2005)
Survey of Business Owners, Census Bureau (2007)
Arts and Crafts: Critical to Economic Innovation, Economic Development Quarterly, Michigan State University (2013)
Research Talking Points on Dropout Statistics, National Education Association (2006)
The Silent Epidemic: Perspectives of High School Dropouts, Civic Enterprises in association with Peter D. Hart Research Associates for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (2006)