Earlier this week, The San Diego Union-Tribune published an article about how schools immersed in the arts receive higher test scores.
Sounds like the effects of CYT@school to us! If you are unfamiliar- CYT@school is devoted to introducing performing arts to children, one school at a time, by providing a high-quality experience that is educational and enjoyable.
Here are highlights from the story, written by Pat Flynn:
“North County third-graders who had the arts integrated into their regular curriculum showed remarkable improvement on standardized test scores, researchers announced Thursday.
The Developing Reading Education with Arts Methods, or DREAM, program is in its third year of operation in 10 school districts. It is funded by a nearly $1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education and led by California State University San Marcos and the San Diego County Office of Education.
It trains third- and fourth-grade teachers to integrate the arts into their lessons and sends artists into the classroom to provide weekly coaching.
At an event Thursday, officials announced their findings, including what they described as an ‘astonishing’ 87-point average gain on the state standardized reading test for third-graders in 2010-11.
‘Clearly, using theater to teach literacy is an especially effective tool and one that deserves continued exploration’ said CSUSM President Karen Haynes.
‘Art is just another way to make sense of the world,’ said Laurie Stowell, a professor of literacy education at CSUSM, ‘and that’s what reading and writing is about….When they’re doing theater arts, they’re having to make meaning of the story. They’re doing it. They’re not just looking at words on a page.’
Stowell and others stressed that whether lessons are taught through puppetry, miming, acting, dancing or other arts activities, students are more likely to be engaged and retain what they learn.”
You can read the complete article, here: SCHOOL ARTS = HIGHER SCORES.
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