Transforming education through the arts

Brian Caldwell

Schools and school systems around the world face the challenge of maintaining programs in the arts in the face of unrelenting pressure from two directions. One is the justifiable focus on literacy and numeracy, often accompanied by high stakes testing that is exerting pressure on other areas of learning and teaching. The other is cut-backs in public funding with international evidence suggesting that programs in the arts are often the first to suffer. The paradox is that study after study reveals the benefits of student participation in the arts.