Sustained involvement in particular art forms - music and theater - are highly correlated with success in mathematics and reading.
Learning in the arts has significant effects on learning in other domains.
The arts regularly engage multiple skills and abilities.
The arts reach students who are not otherwise being reached.
The arts connect students to themselves and each other.
The arts transform the environment for learning.
The arts provide learning opportunities for the adults in the lives of young people.
The arts provide new challenges for those students already considered successful.
The arts connect learning experiences to the world of real work.
Source: Champions of Change, 1999
Arts Education Partnership
The Partnership is a coalition of over 140 national organizations and is dedicated to demonstrating and promoting "the essential role of the arts in the learning and development of every child and in the improvement of America's schools." The site is a very rich and deep resource for many aspects of arts advocacy, arts programs, and funding and provides hundreds of valuable links. http://aep-arts.org
Champions of Change: The Impact of the Arts on Learning
This report released in 1999 compiles 7 major studies that provide new evidence of the links between enhanced learning and academic achievement and exposure to arts experiences. Hosted on the Kennedy Center's ArtsEdge Web site this report delivers compelling reasons why the arts belong in every curriculum and why the arts are far more than a fun "extra" in education. Be sure to read the findings and the executive summary. http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/champions/index.html
National Arts Education Public Awareness Campaign
Americans for the Arts is a national organization devoted to advancing the arts in America has created an extensive public awareness campaign which offers ample information about research studies, how to get involved, resources and much more. http://www.americansforthearts.org/public_awareness/
