Sep, 2008 By H. Alix Gallagher, Ashley Campbell & Katrina Woodworth
Stanford Research Institute
The study’s aim is to provide California policy-makers and educators with examples and lessons from other jurisdictions that have been more successful in providing all students with access to arts education. These examples and lessons are particularly important at this time, when California has made new investments in arts education: In 2006, the state committed an unprecedented amount of funding to arts education, including $500 million in one-time funds for arts and physical education and $105 million in ongoing funding.
Excerpts from the publication:
KEY FINDINGS
Overview of Arts Education in California
89% of California K-12 schools fail to offer a standards-based course of study in all four disciplines—music, visual arts, theatre, and dance—and thus fall short of state goals for arts education.
Methods of delivering arts instruction vary by school level, often resulting in a limited experience at the elementary level and limited participation at the secondary level.
61% of schools do not have even one full-time-equivalent arts specialist, although secondary schools are much more likely than elementary schools to employ specialists.
At the elementary level, arts instruction is often left to regular classroom teachers, who rarely have adequate training.
Arts facilities and materials are lacking in most schools.
Standards alignment, assessment, and accountability practices are uneven in arts education, and often not present at all.
Arts Education in Elementary Schools 90% of elementary schools fail to provide a standards-aligned course of study across all four arts disciplines.
Elementary students who receive arts education in California typically have a limited, less substantial experience than their peers across the country.
Inadequate elementary arts education provides a weak foundation for more advanced arts courses in the upper grades.
Arts Education in Middle and High Schools 96% of California middle schools and 72% of high schools fail to offer standards-aligned courses of study in all four arts disciplines.
Secondary arts education is more intense and substantial than elementary arts education, but participation is limited.
Barriers to Meeting the State’s Arts Education Goals
Inadequate state funding for education is a top barrier to the provision of arts education, and reliance on outside funding sources, such as parent groups, creates inequities.
Pressure to improve test scores in other content areas is another top barrier to arts education.
At the elementary level, lack of instructional time, arts expertise, and materials are also significant barriers to arts education.
Sources of Support for Arts Education
Districts and counties can play a strong role in arts education, but few do.
Schools are increasingly partnering with external organizations, but few partnerships result in increased school capacity to provide sequential, standards-based arts instruction.
RECOMMENDATIONS
State Policy-Makers
Increase and stabilize education funding so that districts can develop and support a standards-based course of study in each of the four arts disciplines.
Strengthen accountability in arts education by requiring districts to report on the arts instruction provided, student learning in the arts, and providers of arts instruction, and by supporting the development of appropriate, standards-aligned assessments for use at the state and district levels.
Rethink instructional time to accommodate the state’s goals for meeting proficiency in English-language arts and math, while still providing access to a broader curriculum that includes the arts.
Improve teacher professional development in arts education, especially at the elementary level, and consider credential reforms.
Provide technical assistance to build districts’ capacity to offer comprehensive, standards based arts programs.
School and District Leaders
Establish the infrastructure needed to support arts programs by developing a long-range strategic plan for arts education, dedicating resources and staff, and providing for the ongoing evaluation of arts programs.
Signal to teachers, parents, and students that the arts are a core subject by providing professional development for teachers and establishing assessment and accountability systems for arts education.
Parents
Ask about student learning and progress in the arts, and participate in school and district efforts to improve and expand arts education.
Advocate for comprehensive arts education at the state and local levels.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
An Unfinished Canvas found that California’s elementary schools face unique challenges in providing all students with sequential, standards-based arts education. In particular, elementary principals identified inadequate funding and insufficient instructional time as significant barriers to the provision of arts education. For this study, we sought to further understand the impact of funding and time on elementary arts education. To do so, we examined the allocation of funding and instructional time in 10 schools across five states (Kentucky, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, and California). Below is a summary of key findings.
KEY FINDINGS
Instructional Time Allocated for Elementary Arts Education Few California elementary schools offer sequential, standards-based instruction in both music and visual arts. Furthermore, many California elementary schools offer arts programs to only a portion of the student body. The exemplar schools offer instruction in both music and visual arts to 100% of their students, beginning in kindergarten. Typical California elementary schools and most of the exemplar schools devote little time to theatre and dance. Schools in other states may have more time for arts instruction because they have longer school days. In other states, elementary classroom teachers’ preparation periods are often used for instruction by arts teachers. A few exemplar schools “save time” by integrating arts instruction with other subject areas―an approach that appears to require ample support to be successful. Funding Allocated for Elementary Arts Education California lags behind the national average on per-pupil educational spending and also appears to spend less per pupil on elementary arts education. In the exemplar schools, the bulk of arts spending goes toward arts teachers’ salaries. In contrast, most California elementary schools do not allocate enough funding to arts education to pay for full-time arts teachers. The recent California allocation for arts education is insufficient to pay for arts teachers’ salaries. Schools in case study states tend to rely on arts teachers as the primary source of arts instruction. Generally, California elementary schools cobble together a wider range of instructors, including parent volunteers and arts professionals. The exemplar schools commonly use outside instructors to supplement the core arts program, whereas many California schools use outside instructors as primary providers of arts instruction. Using classroom teachers to deliver arts instruction can be effective if teachers are provided with adequate professional development and support from arts teachers or other professionals, which can add substantial costs. The exemplar schools rely on general funds to pay for arts teachers’ salaries and other core program elements, institutionalizing funding for the programs. In contrast, only about half of California elementary schools use general funds as the primary funding source for arts education.
Lacking sufficient general funds, California elementary schools with well-developed arts programs frequently rely on outside sources (such as parent donations, parcel taxes, or grants) to fund core program elements. This revenue pattern leads to instability and inequities in arts offerings across California elementary schools. The exemplar schools also take advantage of outside funding sources but not to the same extent. Other Systemic Supports for Elementary Arts Education Formal accountability systems can encourage elementary schools to meet state standards. District-level efforts to plan, review, and oversee arts education programs can also provide important support for sustained arts education. Community expectations can create informal accountability for arts education. This engagement can be systematically fostered in various ways at the local level. For example, performances and exhibitions can increase community awareness of arts education and create a potent group of advocates for arts programs.
IMPLICATIONS FOR POLICY AND PRACTICE
Systemic Reform To meet the state policy goal of having all elementary students receive a sequential, standards-based course of study in all four arts disciplines, significant changes are needed in the overall level of funding for schools and the amount of available instructional time. Local Reform Districts should establish some form of accountability system so that communities are aware of the strengths and weaknesses of the arts programs in their schools. Districts should spend the annual state funding for arts education ($109 million in 2007–08) strategically to plan comprehensive arts programs. School systems should collaborate with local partners to ensure outside instructors support a sequential, standards-based course of study.