As building-level leaders, school principals play a key role in ensuring every student receives high-quality and equitable arts learning as part of a well-rounded education. Building on the first release of What School Leaders Can Do to Increase Arts Education in 2011, this updated guide offers three concrete actions school leaders can take to increase the arts in education in their schools. Each action is supported by low- or no-cost strategies – outlined in this guide – that school leaders have used and found effective.
Arts Education/Youth
Intertwining Practices of Public Art and Arts Education
Public art and arts education have been intertwined by arts administrators, educators, and artists over many years. This foundational paper explores the intersection between public art and arts education by expanding on the current state of each field, the similarities between the two, and the opportunities currently present for further engagement between them.
ArtScan at a Glance
This summary is updated annually to reflect changes in legislation concerning the arts in education. It includes arts education policies for all 50 states, plus the District of Columbia. Complete results from this review are available in an online searchable database on the Arts Education Partnership website.
Longitudinal Analysis of Music Education on Executive Functions in Primary School Children
The first large-scale, longitudinal study adapted into the regular school curriculum finds that structured music lessons significantly enhance children’s cognitive abilities — including language-based reasoning, short-term memory, planning and inhibition — leading to improved academic performance. Visual arts lessons were also found to significantly improve children’s visual and spatial memory.
50-State Comparison: State Summative Assessments
As a condition of receiving federal funds, the Every Student Succeeds Act requires state education agencies to implement statewide assessments in mathematics and English language arts every year in third through eighth grade and once in ninth through 12th grade. Many states, however, test math and English language arts more than once in high school.
The federal law also requires a science assessment once in each of three grade spans: third through fifth grade, sixth through ninth grade, and 10th through 12th grade. Few states exceed the science testing requirements, and most states test science in fourth or fifth grade, eighth grade and once in high school through an end-of-course assessment in biology.
While states may exceed the minimum federal testing requirements, the information in this resource covers only those assessments that are mandatory – including social studies or additional college and career readiness assessments, when mandated by the state.
Preparing Educators and School Leaders for Effective Arts Integration
This Education Trends report explores successful practices for arts integration, with a focus on educator and school leader professional development, and provides an overview of research that highlights the impact of instructor preparation and professional development on student outcomes.
