The Arts and Children: A Success Story

“Young people who learn the arts do better in every phase of their lives,” says Streep in the 12-minute piece created for the Goals 2000 Arts Education Partnership. The Partnership is a national coalition of business, education, arts and government groups committed to maintaining and enhancing arts education in the nation’s schools. “The Arts and Children: A Success Story is beautifully done and clearly shows why the arts must be part of the education of every child in every school in America,” says Jane Alexander, Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts. “This video powerfully captures the need for quality arts education in our schools,” said United States Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley. “I urge school administrators and school boards across the country to consider its message.” With scenes of elementary and secondary school students engaged in the visual and performing arts, the video uses narrative from business and academic experts who assert that studying the arts increases the intellectual capacity and performance of students.

Numerous other studies also show both the intrinsic value of studying the arts – their unique contributions to human development and achievement – as well as their role in building the skills and commitment for mastering other school subjects. The video is being distributed for the Goals 2000 Arts Education Partnership by the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies (NASAA) and the National Assembly of Local Arts Agencies (NALAA). Included with the video are reproducible handouts that summarize the arts education research used in the video, as well as national policy statements, a list of additional advocacy resources, and tips on how to use the video in a public awareness campaign.