Arts Education: Sink or Swim

Expanded Learning Time: A Way to
Keep Balance?

Tuesday, October 14, 8:00 am – 9:30 am
Juniper, M2/International Ballroom Level

Organized by Moy Eng, performing arts program director, and Julie Fry, program officer, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. Facilitated by Frances Phillips, senior program officer, Walter and Elise Haas Fund. Presented by Moy Eng; Julie Fry; Katrina R. Woodworth, Senior Researcher, SRI International; Jennifer Davis, president, Massachusetts 2020 Foundation; and Dr. Beverly L. Hall, superintendent, Atlanta Public Schools.

California elementary schoolchildren spend less time in school than the national average, according to a recent study by SRI, commissioned by the Hewlett Foundation. Findings in Allocating Funding and Instructional Time for Elementary Arts Education indicate that there is a correlation between the length of the school day and access to arts instruction. A pilot program in Massachusetts, the Expanded Learning Time Initiative, has allowed 26 elementary and middle schools to lengthen the school day by nearly two hours, providing more time for core subjects and art and enrichment programs often lost in a shorter school day. This session will look at the benefits of engaging kids for more minutes in the classroom, and the challenges faced by educators in extending learning time.

Suggested link:

An Unfinished Canvas: Allocating Funding and Instructional Time for Elementary Arts Education