Status of Arts Education in Kentucky Schools.

STATUS OF ARTS EDUCATION IN KENTUCKY SCHOOLS. Dennis Horn. Collaborative for Teaching and Learning. 2005. 111 pp. This report was done at the behest of the Kentucky Arts Council which is composed of art educators and professionals, to learn about the status of art education in all the school districts in the state. (They received data from about three-quarters of the districts.)

Findings related to decreased funding, reduction in certified arts specialists, paucity of dance teachers, percentages of districts with certified visual arts and music teachers, number of minutes per week of arts instruction, lack of supervision of arts teachers, use of artists in residency, and utilization of cultural resources. One disturbing finding relates to teachers' negative perceptions about the perceived level of importance of the arts in relationship to other curriculum areas.

Despite the negative tone of some of the findings, the contributors to the report remained optimistic that sharing the results of the research, which is being used as baseline data, will spur educators, organizations, and citizens to advocate for greater inclusion of the arts in the curriculum.

The report is an example of what other states can do to study the condition of arts education in their states so that they can take action to provide more opportunities for citizens. Although the research design was specific to Kentucky, much of the information could be modified for use in other settings.