IMPORTANCE OF ART

"I think that the arts are so close to our psychological and biological core, so close to this biological identity, that rather than think of arts courses as sort of whipped cream or luxury, they must become basic experiences in education."---Abraham Maslow The Visual Arts curriculum in Allen ISD is a comprehensive program that includes drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, weaving, pottery, and art technology. To fully understand how the visual arts enhance education and to incorporate them into the process of changing education, there must be an agreement on what constitutes a high quality visual arts education. As stated by the National Coalition for Education in the Arts, arts education is the process of teaching and learning how to create and produce the visual, and how to understand and evaluate art forms created by others. The arts are to be included within the fundamental curriculum of Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies. Such an arts curriculum is comprised of four basic aspects with the expecatation that students will: * create and perform the arts; * understand the role and importance of the arts in culture and history; * perceive and respond to the qualities of the arts; and * make sound and imformed judgments about the arts. Knowing and practicing the visual arts disciplines are essential to the healthy development of children. The arts are at the very core of the meaning of education: * The arts should be studied for what they are and are to be valued in and of themselves. * An arts education program provides benefits not available through any other means and engages students intellectually, emotionally, and physically. * The arts must be viewed as important for both their intrinsic and educational value. They are a source of human insight and understanding about the world and self. * The arts connect us to the past and help us imagine new possibilities for the future. The arts have served throughout history to connect our imaginations with the realities of human existence. * The arts are utilized to accomplish a variety of important tasks: to present topics and opinions, to instruct or influence, to entertain, to decorate, or to please. Becoming literate in the arts enables students to understand and to grow as a human being. * The arts are a part of everyone's environment. Our personal, social, economic, and cultural surroundings are shaped by the arts. * The arts are sources of enjoyment for the mind's creativity. They foster relationships between ideas and objects and serve as connections between thought and action. * The arts enable students to develop the attitudes, characteristics, and intellectual capacities required to participate effectively in today's society and economy. The arts teach self-discipline, reinforce self-esteem, and foster thinking skills and creativity so valued in the workplace. The arts teach the importance of teamwork and cooperation. * Numerous studies show a direct correlation between arts education and early childhood brain development, student achievement in other academic subjects, and higher scores on standardized tests. The arts demonstrate the direct connection between study, hard work, and high levels of success. The visual arts benefit the student because they cultivate the whole child, gradually developing many types of literacy while enhancing intuition, reasoning, imagination, and dexterity into unique forms of expression and communication. An education in the arts is beneficial because students gain an understanding of human experiences, both past and present. Students learn to respect the ways of others and learn to make decisions in varied and difficult situations. By studying the arts, students cultivate their natural creativity and develop it successfully exist in a complex and competitive society. The visual arts represent multiple forms of intelligence that are not duplicated by other means. In his book, Frames of the Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences, Howard Gardner identifies seven different forms of intelligence: verbal/linguistic, musical/rhythmic, logical/mathematical, visual/spacial, body-kinesthetic, interpersonal, and intrapersonal. American schooling generally emphasizes only two of these intelligences - verbal/linguistic and logical/mathematical - virtually ignoring the other potentials of the mind. Arts education provides a comprehensive approach to learning. The visual arts contribute to the overall school environment. The are effective means of connecting children and enabling them to understand those who preceded them. The arts formulate relationships across the disciplines while connecting ideas, concepts, and patterns. The visual arts provide ways for linking information in Social Studies, Math, Science, and Language Arts. The visual arts lead to many related areas of learning, opening lines of inquiry, revealing that art exists in a complex world not as easily defined in the other subjects. The visual arts contribute to the process of learning and teaching. They can transform the entire culture of a school, and they can create productive partnerships between school and the community. The ever-changing society makes the arts the most powerful tool to bridge cultural differences, and they are essential to an educational system that values diversity. All students should have access to an education in the visual arts, regardless of their background, talents, or disabilities. The visual arts should be an integral part of a program of general education for all students, particularly those students who are "at risk" or with disabilities who can gain great benefit from them. The visual arts can be "POWERFUL." The visual arts can be the vehicle for reaching, motivating, and teaching any given student. The idea that an education in the arts is just for the "talented" and not "regular" students is simply WRONG. An ideal visual arts program is sequential and comprehensive. The instruction is hands-on in that students are continually engaged in the work and practice required for successful performance and creation. Students learn about diverse cultures and are involved with interdisciplinary study with other subject areas. District-wide events will showcase the Allen ISD Visual ARTS programs, and will also provide students and teachers with unique educational and performance opportunities. Collaborative endeavors with community arts organizations engage students with unique educational and performance opportunities. Technology is incorporated as an instructional tool into the visual arts curriculum with emphasis on the relationship between the technical means and the achievement of the desired artistic ends. The curriculum for each Allen ISD Visual ARTS disciplines are challenging, clearly articulated, and alighed with the district, state, and national standards. Rigorous Honors programs and Advanced Placement classes in the visual arts are offered to high school students. The success of our educational system is dependent upon students learning to be both literate and imaginative; both competitieve and creative. That goal is dependent upon providing children with the capabilites of understanding, contributing, and being successful in society. Art Teachers will be the leaders in this endeavor, but only with adequate allocation of resources, access to technology, apporpriate class sizes, facilities that are suitable for practice and performance, and opportunities for professional growth. Successful visual arts education can happen only when students and their learning are at the center of decision making. With this in mind, Allen ISD schools will make opportunities happen in its Visual Arts program for ALL children. BR>]

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