INTRODUCTION

PREFACE

Arts Education is a collective term that denotes learning and instruction in four separately distinctive subject areas: dance, music, theatre arts and visual arts. Therefore, The North Carolina Arts Education Standard Course of Study (SCS) was developed by four committees representing each of these areas. Once all the documents were in draft form, input was requested from selected representative teachers across the state, school and central office administrators, arts departments in higher education institutions, professional artists, other area consultants and administrators in the Department of Public Instruction, other state agencies, state arts education organizations, and other public individuals interested in providing input into the finished product. The resulting feedback was carefully considered by the committees and modifications were made where they were deemed beneficial. Every effort was made to address current education and curriculum issues.

Use

This SCS is to be used to suggest what is comprised in the study of the four K-12 arts education programs. It has been generated to provide a foundation for teachers and curriculum specialists in each school system to develop classes or courses and instructional strategies.

Features

This SCS features the following:

• There is a strong emphasis on communicating, reading, writing and math throughout each arts curriculum.
  
• Integration of learning both among the four arts areas and among other subject areas is stressed.
  
• Since the ability to do critical and creative thinking as well as complex problem solving and to use intuition are inherent parts of the arts process, importance has been placed upon the development of these abilities throughout the entire study in each arts area.
  
• There is a greater focus on knowing about, understanding and appreciating a variety of world cultures and historic periods.
  
• The ability to use knowledge, skills and processes learned in the arts and apply them to other disciplines and to life beyond school is reinforced.
  
• Where appropriate, concepts such as conflict resolution, teamwork, sensitivity to and tolerance of others and their views, heightened perceptual awareness, synthesis of ideas to arrive at a logical deduction, and work force preparedness are dealt with as integral aspects of the study.

Basis

This SCS is based on the current National Standards for Arts Education developed by the Consortium of National Arts Education Associations. These national standards describe what every young American should know and be able to do in the arts. The standards are the basis upon which a national assessment has been developed as part of the National Assessment of Educational Progress. In this document, the goal statements for each arts area are directly correlated with the national standards. Where applicable, the standards are noted by number in parenthesis under each goal statement. This will enable users to see the relationship between the goals and the national standards document. The National Standards for Arts Education may be purchased from MENC Publications Sales, 1806 Robert Fulton Drive, Reston, Virginia, 22091 (www.menc.org).

Intent

The intent of the National Standards for Arts Education along with the standard courses of study in dance, music, theatre arts and visual arts is that a comprehensive understanding of one or more of the arts be accomplished by each student throughout the K-12 program. The four area sections describe a thirteen-year program in each area that would result from effective instruction during each year from kindergarten to twelfth grade. The fact is that few students are able to have such a consistent and comprehensive experience in any area. It is more likely that individuals may be at different points along this continuum. The section for each arts discipline provides the means to determine students instructional levels and what studies they may need to pursue to achieve an appropriate and quality arts education experience at any given time throughout their tenure in public school.

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