Post date: Oct 04, 2017 2:6:40 AM
We are excited to share that Media Arts will be included in the upcoming revision of California’s K12 Visual and Performing Arts Standards, to begin this spring! You may have the expertise needed to apply, or we need your help in recruiting writing team members.
To recap this recent history, after media arts was excluded from the VAPA standards revision legislation (AB 2862) last year, the supporting community rallied and gained the attention and support of State Superintendent of Instruction Tom Torlakson. Because he immediately recognized the unique and promising qualities of media arts for 21st century education and in California's "Creative Economy", Torlakson committed to working with the legislature for its explicit inclusion in the standards revision.
The result was AB 37, sponsored by Assemblymember Patrick O’Donnell, which was easily passed by the legislature, and signed by Governor Brown on July 24, 2017. The bill had the support of a broad community, including the California Alliance for Arts Education, the California Art Education Association, California Dance Education Association, California Music Educators Association, California State PTA, Los Angeles Unified School District, California Teachers Association, and California School Boards Association.
This K12 arts standards development work is about to begin, so please help spread the word that the California Dept of Education needs team writers with media arts expertise, including teachers; district and county administrators; arts faculty in universities or community colleges; or representatives from the professional arts or arts policy and advocacy organizations. See the attached recruitment letter for details. The online application is posted here:
http://www.cde.ca.gov/be/st/ss/vapacontentstds.asp
Despite this major advance, Media Arts Education still has a couple of big steps to become fully established in California schools. If the newly drafted standards are adopted by the Board of Education, teachers may voluntarily access them for instruction, but media arts will still not have a distinct credential or UCOP approved A-G courses in districts. Districts are not hiring media arts teachers because there is no institutional box, and thus no recognized need. The discipline cannot grow or develop to its full potential without these items.
Fortunately, at the national level, course codes for several Media Arts courses have been established by the National Center for Educational Statistics. We believe this list will soon be expanded, perhaps to the full range of Media Arts courses. This provides the data-based pathway for courses to be developed in states.
Also at the national level, 23 states have adopted or adapted Media Arts Standards, or are in that process, so far!
California is not far behind, but we urge you to continue to recruit others to join the Media Arts Education Coalition by signing on at the link below. We now have nearly 100 members. The active support of a broad and diverse community is essential for this discipline to gain full establishment in California schools. We will also be forming a California Media Arts Education Association, specifically to support K12 teachers.
To that end, we have formed a group on the "mobile" platform at this link. Media arts educators of all persuasions are encouraged to join!
https://california-media-arts-education-association.mobilize.io/registrations/groups/16124