Arts and Humanities for Every Student (AHFES) Terms and Definitions

Arts and Humanities for Every Student (AHFES)- DC Collaborative program that is comprised of experiential opportunities offered by members. 

Website- Home to all of the work that DC Collaborative is doing. Provides an overview of what DC Collaborative is and its mission, members, school partners, and programs offered. Can learn about upcoming events as well as read about the impact DC Collaborative is making in the community. 

Catalogue- Place for teachers to find a program offered by one of our members. Located on the website. 

Ex. A teacher is looking for a yoga program and goes to the catalogue to find that Create Calm offers a program.

Database- A virtual learning portal for our Arts and Humanities for Every Student (AHFES) Program. Through this database, you may access a compilation of asynchronous and synchronous learning resources, programs, and experiences for students, teachers, and families. 

Access Form- A form teachers fill out to request a program. Found on our database.  

Registration/Lottery Cycle- An allotted time period where teachers/key communicators have access to the Catalogue to register to receive programs provided by our member organizations and practitioners. The registration/lottery cycle happens 3 times a year during the months specified below.

• Fall: October - December

• Winter: January - March

• Spring: April - June

Administrator- DCPS Central Office Staff, Principal, Teacher Leader, Arts Department Lead, or Arts Integration Coordinator. 

Key Communicator- School Staff member who is the main point of contact for the Arts and Humanities for Every Student (AHFES) program with the DC Collaborative. This staff member often shares key dates and registration information regarding AHFES with educators at their school.

Accessibility- is giving equitable opportunity to ensure participation and representation of everyone along the continuum of human ability and experience. Accessibility encompasses the broader meanings of compliance and refers to how organizations make space for the characteristics that each person brings (adapted from American Alliance of Museums).

• This includes, but is not limited to:

  • Adjustable Volume 

  • Large Print Font 

  • Closed Captioning

Accommodations for Students with learning/developmental disabilities:

• Scaffolding the lesson 

• Modifying use of language 

• Incorporating different sensory modalities

Minutes of Instruction- How the school system measures instructional time devoted to student education.

Program- An engagement that contains educational and assessment objectives and is organized by the member. 

• The database houses these programs. Can find the programs through the catalogue. 

Resource- Educational tools used to enhance a lesson or learning experience

Synchronous- Programming, including audio and visual, that is accessed/delivered simultaneously at a set date and time. Synchronous programming is a full lesson plan with engaging educational and built-in assessment components. 

Asynchronous- Virtual programming that is available at any time and students/teachers can access the resource when convenient. This resource contains the same educational components as a synchronous program and requires little preparation from the educator. Asynchronous programming is inclusive of formats such as: pre-recorded videos, PDF handouts/ activities/ lesson plans, etc to allow for “on-demand” access.

Program/Resource Type- The method in which the content area and arts/humanities practice is delivered to the students.

Teacher/Educator Guide- Facilitation information for both the teacher and the students. 

Student Guide- Activities, objectives, and resources for students to follow and complete. 

Who is leading the activity?

• Member Led

• Teacher Led

• Student Led

Filmed tour- exploring a physical space or location through film

Filmed performance- recorded artistic performance

Downloadable Materials- pdfs or word documents 

Ex. coloring pages, informational handouts, reflections, etc

Other Types: 

• Online/Printable Lesson Plan 

• Online/Printable Resource 

• Interactive Distance Learning Activity

• Recorded Discussion/Q&A

Assessment- Gathering, summarizing, and interpreting data to provide useful feedback for the improvement of teaching and learning. Assessment is feedback from the student to the instructor about the student’s learning. (Source: https://www.gadoe.org/ and  https://www.unl.edu/gradstudies/connections/assessment-vs-evaluation)

• Administered through the lens of a reflection 

Evaluation- Uses methods and measures to judge student learning and

understanding of the material for purposes of grading and reporting. Evaluation is

feedback from the instructor to the student about the student’s learning. / Program evaluation involves methods and analysis that answer questions to inform programmatic improvement. (https://www.gadoe.org/)

Assessment vs. Evaluation (Iowa State University)

Data- Units of information collected, interpreted, and presented in order to improve arts education reach and quality. Data includes qualitative and quantitative information, and can be collected directly through AGC’s evaluative work (primary data) as well as through the work of partner (e.g. DCPS; Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation) and like-minded organizations (e.g. other AGC communities) (secondary data).

Youth-centered Programming- Programming geared towards positive outcomes for youth, such as: positive academic, social emotional, social justice, student engagement competencies. Youth-centered programs should involve youth in developing and evaluating the experience.

Community-based- is used to describe programming / organizations / educators that do not originate from within the school system.

School-based- is used to describe programming / organizations / educators that originate from DCPS or DC Public Charter Schools.

In-school Time- programming that takes place during the school day (field-trips, workshops or in-school programs). 

In-school Programming:

• Assembly- One time in school visits where teaching artists visit schools to perform. Assemblies typically include large groups of students or multiple classrooms/grade bands. 

• Short term Residency- Two - three sequential in-school workshop visits. 

• Long term Residency- Four or more sequential in-school workshop visits. 

• Pre and Post Workshops- One time lessons led by the educator or teaching artist to help prepare students for the program, and help students reflect upon the program.

Out-of-school Time- programming that takes place before or after school, weekends, or during the summer and holiday breaks. 

Field-trips- One time arts/ humanities learning experiences outside of the classroom during the school day. 

Museum visit- industry-wide term utilized by museums and often used by Smithsonian Units. Synonymous with field trips except this language can refer to experiences that take place during in-school or out-of-school time.

Arts Integration- Utilizing the arts to instruct and enhance other subject areas (outside of the arts classroom). 

Arts education- is a comprehensive experience inclusive of high-quality arts learning in the classroom, meaningful arts experiences outside the classroom, and strategic arts integration in and through the curriculum. 

Learning Standards- Written objectives for each grade level and subject on what students should know by the end of the year. 

• DCPS Elementary School Standards

• DCPS Middle School Standards

• DCPS High School Standards

• Spanish Language Standards

• Special Education 

Curriculum- Follows the learning standards and outlines what students will do to learn about the subject or do to complete a task. 

Content Area- The academic subject area that connects to the program or resource. 

Ex. Students are going to see the production of Hamilton, so the content area is history or social studies. 

Discipline- The arts or humanities practice that the program or resource is administered through.  

Some examples: 

• Writing/Reading/Journalism

• Historic Site Visit

• Artifact or Object Exploration

• Visual Arts

• Digital Media (Film/Photography, Graphic Design)

• Dance

• Music/ Music Production

• Hands-On/Lab/Tactile

• Theatre

• Performance Art

• Spoken Word/Slam Poetry

Grade Level- The academic year a student is in at the time. 

Appropriate grade level- the curriculum and learning standards focused upon align with the academic and development level of the students in the grade selected

Family Cornerstone- Accessible learning resources for DCPS schools and families. Found on our database.

Professional Development Workshop- One-time education program, four hours or fewer, geared towards school- and community-based educators.

Professional Development Institute- One-time education program for school- or community-based educators lasting a full day or more with sequential programming.