Schools Launch Program to Integrate Art in Curriculm

From the PGCPS website:

Prince George’s County Public Schools announces its new Arts Integration pilot program for the 2014-2015 school year.

Arts Integration is a teaching strategy that fuses the arts curriculum – dance, music, theater, and visual arts – with the standard curricula for core subjects, such as English Language Arts, social studies, science, and writing.

When there is a natural connection between the two curriculums, Arts Integration provides engaging context and enhances the learning experience. For example, a science teacher may instruct students to create a dance to demonstrate what happens when water freezes in a pipe when it’s cold. Through Arts Integration, students explore the different states of matter through dance.

During the pilot program, teachers will participate in a variety of professional development aimed at increasing their ability to utilize Arts Integration strategies in daily classroom instruction. The pilot period will also allow PGCPS to expand its list of cultural community partners.

The PGCPS Arts Integration program is currently partnered with Prince George’s County African American Museum and Cultural Center, Young Audiences of Maryland, Joe’s Movement Emporium, and the Prince George’s Arts Council. These organizations support arts in residence programs for students and professional development for staff. Arts in residence programs allows teaching artists to provide high-quality arts experiences to all students by empowering the academic content they’ve been exposed to in class.

“Arts Integration is an effective and creative way to build connections and increase student engagement and achievement,” said John Ceschini, Arts Integration Officer for PGCPS. “The 21 century skills of collaboration, communication, critical thinking, and cross-cultural understanding are enhanced by Arts Integration instruction. It allows students with diverse learning styles to access the curriculum, and whether they are visual learners, kinesthetic learners, or auditory learners, the arts provides effective instructional strategies.”

According to a summary of recent studies by the National Arts Education Partnership, Arts Integration has several proven benefits, including improved comprehension and long-term retention. It has also been proven to help close the achievement gap.

“Integrating the arts with an existing curriculum has proven to be very valuable,” said Dr. Kevin M. Maxwell, CEO of PGCPS. “It is helping students across the U.S. reach the rigorous national standards currently in place. Implementing ArtsIntegration is just one of the steps we are taking to enhance our educational system and meet the academic needs of our students.”

Fifteen PGCPS elementary, middle, and high schools have been selected for the pilot program. Participating schools currently have a creative arts program, or have a strong interest in Arts Integration. The 15 PGCPS schools selected for the Arts Integration program include:

· Ardmore Elementary School

· Edward M. Felegy Elementary School

· Francis Scott Key Elementary School

· Northview Elementary School

· Oaklands Elementary School

· Rockledge Elementary School

· William Paca Elementary School

· Hyattsville Middle School

· Nicholas Orem Middle School

· Oxon Hill Middle School

· Beltsville Academy

· Benjamin Foulois Creative and Performing Arts Academy

· Thomas Pullen Creative and Performing Arts Academy

· Northwestern High School

· Suitland High School

The Arts Integration program will be fully implemented during the 2015-2016 school year in all schools.