21st CENTURY EDUCATION

What can education learn from the arts about the practice of education? The distinctive forms of thinking needed to create artistically crafted work are relevant not only to what students do, they are relevant to virtually all aspects of what we do, from the design of curricula, to the practice of teaching, to the features of the environment in which students and teachers live. Thoughtful educators are not simply interested in achieving known effects; they are interested as much in surprise, in discovery, in the imaginative side of life and its development as in hitting predefined targets achieved through routine procedures. In some sense our aim ought to be to convert the school from an academic institution into an intellectual one. That shift in the culture of schooling would represent a profound shift in emphasis and in direction.

Artistry, subsequently, can serve as a regulative ideal for education, a vision of what really matters in schools. To conceive of students as artists who do their art in science, in the arts, or the humanities, is, after all, both a daunting and a profound aspiration. It may be that by shifting the paradigm of education reform and teaching from one modeled after the clocklike character of the assembly line into one that is closer to the studio or innovative science laboratory might provide us with a vision that better suits the capacities and the futures of the students we teach. It is in this sense, I believe, that the field of education has much to learn from the arts about the practice of education.

The future belongs to a very different kind of person with a very different kind of mind – creators and empathizers, pattern recognizers, and meaning makers. These people – artists, inventors, designers, storytellers, caregivers, consolers, big picture thinkers – will reap society’s richest rewards and share its greatest joys. We are moving from an economy and a society built on the logical, linear, computer-like capabilities of the Information Age to an economy and a society built on the inventive, empathetic, big-picture capabilities of what’s rising in its place, the Conceptual Age.

These initiatives generally focus on the need for greater emphasis on creativity, innovation, communication, collaboration and technology for a thorough education. Rigorous study of the arts promotes creativity and innovative thinking, helps develop character, and promotes responsibility and leadership – all are qualities that will be needed to meet the demands of a 21st-century education. Learning through the arts can provide an alternative for talented students who underperform in learning environments that emphasize verbal and math skills. Research shows that participation in the arts can improve attendance and reduce dropout rates by engaging students in activities that promote community interaction.

The Partnership for 21^st Century Skills brings together the business community, education leaders, and policymakers to define a powerful vision for 21^st century education and to ensure that students emerge from our schools with the skills needed to be effective citizens, workers, and leaders. The arts are included as core subjects within the Partnership’s Framework for 21^st Century Learning as well as in Federal law.

Dance, music, theatre, and visual art each have their own unique set of knowledge, skills, and processes, but they share common characteristics that make arts education powerful preparation for college and career and help to produce globally responsible citizens who are prepared for future success. Many of the 21^st Century learning skills are taught compellingly and effectively through the arts, as illustrated below.

The Partnership for 21st Century Skills has developed maps to provide examples of how 21st century skills can be integrated into core subjects.

download a copy of the Arts Map

view the animated film Above and Beyond: The Story of the 4Cs