David


 * =Facilitator Reflections=

This has been a wonderful group with which to work. They are passionate about their work and are dedicated to their students and school communities. It is sad to me that they are confronted with such daunting obstacles the most obvious of which is time with their students.

I would recommend and encourage the CIG members to do a follow-up study. Identify best practice programs throughout the state. Survey the teachers in those programs as to how much time they have with their students. Search the professional literature and see what it has to say about the issue of time on task in relation to student learning and retention in arts education. Review research studies and collect findings and data related to the issue. Collect and document this information and make recommendations to administrators and other stakeholders. We know that there is a body of scholarly research that proves that prime time for learning foreign language and music is between the ages of three and ten. Yet arts educators in the region are limited to 35 minutes with students once a week. This is unbelievable!

I have learned that there are some areas in the region that provide some cultural opportunities. Uniontown, Washington and Greensburg are examples of such places. There are however many places where any kind of arts opportunities are nil. This is more than an educational issue. It is a quality-of life issue.

The investigation conducted by this CIG has produced mixed results that can be seen elsewhere in participant documentations. To me the notion that informing students and parents about career opportunities in the arts as a means to improving pupil motivation and community support seemed problematic. I wondered if anything would change and if it did how long that change would last. These wonderings can only be resolved in the future far beyond the duration of this project.