In the spring of 2009, Quadrant Arts Education Research, on behalf of the Arizona Department of Education and the Arizona Commission on the Arts, began to study the level of access to arts education in Arizona public schools. In 2010 the findings of this study were published in the landmark report, Engaging Students, Supporting Schools, Accessing Arts Education: Highlights from the Arizona Arts Education Census Project.
Four years later, the Arizona Department of Education and the Arizona Commission on the Arts once again teamed with Quadrant Arts Education Research to produce an update to the 2010 report, drawing new data from the Highly Qualified Teacher (HQT) database. This week, the agencies released their updated findings in a new summary publication:Â Arts Education in Arizona Public Schools for the 2012/2013 School Year: An Analysis of the Arizona Highly Qualified Teachers Database.Â
Key findings of the new report include:
- 89 percent  of Arizona’s K-12 students have access to arts education (up from 87 percent  in 2009);
- The percentage of charter students with  access to music or visual arts grew from 42 percent  to 60 percent;
- A greater percentage of students have access to both music and visual arts compared to 2009;
- Students without access to arts education tend to be at the elementary level for district schools and spread across all grade levels for charter schools; and
- Smaller schools are less likely to offer arts education.
In response to the new data, Arizona Commission on the Arts Executive Director Robert Booker said, “The arts teach creativity, teamwork, positive social skills, and entrepreneurship; they keep students engaged in their studies and motivate them to stay in school. This report shows that we are making progress, but it also shows us just how much further we have to go.”
Alongside the summary report, the agencies launched an interactive website which allows users to explore the new data.
“This flexible search engine allows families to consider schools’ arts education programs in order to make a meaningful decision when choosing the right school for their child,” said Superintendent of Public Instruction, John Huppenthal.
On Thursday, Alex Nelson, Director of Arts Learning at the Arizona Commission on the Arts, appeared on the public affairs program Arizona Horizon to discuss the report. Her segment begins at the 18:00 mark.
To learn more about this report, its history and the partnerships that made it possible, click here.
