For the past year or so I was a member of an Arts Education Task Force established by the New York City Department of Education. The Task Force looked at two particular areas: quality and data. Quality was about defining and ensuring "high quality" arts education; data was about providing feedback and advice to the Annual Arts in the Schools Report. The Task Force had … [Read more...] about The Four Questions of Arts Education
NCLB: Heavyweights Debate
If you care about K-12 arts education, not to mention public education, not to mention children, well then it's impossible to get out from under NCLB. It may just be the greatest cause for education handwringing since Brown versus Board of Education in 1954.There is a terrific online discussion hosted by Newtalk, with some true heavyweights in the education field. It was a … [Read more...] about NCLB: Heavyweights Debate
Wallace/RAND Study
In case you missed it, The Wallace Foundation commissioned Susan J. Bodilly, et al., from RAND to write a report entitled "Revitalzing Arts Education Through Community-Wide Coordination." This report was released in June.There's lots here to chew on here and I am guessing that this won't be my last post on this report.While there are areas that appear weak, most … [Read more...] about Wallace/RAND Study
Daddy, don’t you have some baby music?
What a terrific piece in New York Magazine by Justin Davidson. A must read, with lots to consider around the issue of "bequeathing musical taste." Justin sees this as a parent's job, which is true, of course. However, for the many parents who work two jobs or who are simply not up to that particular job, it falls to the public (and private) schools to provide what Justin … [Read more...] about Daddy, don’t you have some baby music?
The Culture of Testing Doesn’t Make the Grade
I am a little bit behind in my posts, as I am on vacation this week. Actually, it's a "stay-cation," as I am just hanging around home, going to local beaches, etc.Testing, testing, testing. It's practically all you hear about thanks to the school reform zeitgeist. We are hearing a lot about how effective the testing is, and of course, all the prep time for the tests doesn't … [Read more...] about The Culture of Testing Doesn’t Make the Grade