High school students are expected to make choices about which subjects they study. These choices are not completely open; however, they are steered by what is on offer, previous achievement and conversations with teachers, family and friends; choices are patterned by class, gender, able-ness and race. We offer the perspective of subject choice as…

The purpose of this study was to understand the contextual, school-level factors associated with the availability of arts education courses in the high schools of the United States. In the study, course offerings for a nationally representative sample of N = 940 high schools that were part of the National Center for Education Statistics High…

In this report, students were grouped into three distinct categories for analysis, based on patterns that emerged in arts participation during high school, which we named spartans, explorers, and deep divers. The patterns in arts participation represent not just the students, but also the opportunities and barriers they encountered. We found that…

In this brief report, students were grouped into three distinct categories for analysis, based on patterns that emerged in arts participation during high school, which we named spartans, explorers, and deep divers. The patterns in arts participation represent not just the students, but also the opportunities and barriers they encountered. We found…

Having a large-scale national assessment in the arts makes an important statement about the need for all children in our country to obtain the special benefits of learning that only the arts provide. In recognition of the importance of the arts in education, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), also known as The Nation's Report…

This white paper presents a selection of model schools who all have, to some degree, fostered deeper learning. Schools were selected by internet search, or through references in "deeper learning" reports and documents. It should be noted that information in these reviews is based on information from school web-sites, in some cases the…

National standards for student achievement have been developed in the arts in a process that paralleled the standards discussions being held in mathematics, language arts, science, history, and other areas. The standards process, while demanding, has generated important discussion and debate about which art forms, what kind of knowledge, and what…

In West Virginia one arts credit is required for graduation. This study examined whether participation in arts instruction beyond the one-credit minimum correlated with improved academic proficiency. Method of study: We studied a cohort of 14,653 public high school students who stayed at grade level during the 4-year period from 2007 through 2010.…

A visual and theatrical exercise anchored in the Grades 11 and 12 Ontario Curriculum for Media Arts and Interdisciplinary Studies was enacted and recorded as individual experiences of each participant. The event was re-mastered in a graphic representation that depicts the forces, pushes and pulls of curriculum and students' needs which educators…

There is renewed interest in the role of arts education in the curriculum of U.S. public schools not only because of the intrinsic value of the arts and its believed impact on achievement, but because cultivating creativity is thought to promote innovation and fuel economic growth. Still, we know little about basic access to arts education. Using…

For most students, classes in the arts are more than just a means of gathering credits, they are about getting involved in what the students like, at least for a period. They feel that the classes are a healthy escape, a time to recuperate and do what they do well. In the art classrooms, music studios, and video labs, students feel they are part…

In this article, the author discusses how students create their arts projects by responding to Samuel Taylor Coleridge's "Rime of the Ancient Mariner." In creating their arts projects, students incorporate film, painting, performance, and other arts in their imaginative and innovative responses to Coleridge's classic work. The author discusses…

InnerSpark is a residential summer arts training program for high school students established by the California State Legislature (California Education Code sections 8950-8957) in order to make it possible for "artistically gifted and talented students, broadly representative of the socioeconomic and ethnic diversity of the state, to receive…

The evaluation and professional development of teachers and administrators are two sides of the same coin. Both are the essential currency schools have to improve teachers' practice and students' learning, but schools often spend this currency unwisely. Too often, evaluations are a source of tension and conflict, even a necessary evil.…

This publication contains Arizona public schools' updated academic standards for high school. The contents of this document contain: (1) The Arts Standard 2006--High School; (2) Comprehensive Health Education/Physical Activity Standards 1997--Proficiency and Distinction (Grades 9-12); (3) Foreign and Native Language Standards 1997--Proficiency and…