Teacher professional development is a chief concern of states, districts, and schools in the wake of high-stakes accountability measures such as No Child Left Behind (NCLB). The goals and practices of professional development are often disconnected, and this misalignment affects art teachers in unique ways. Art teachers are often "left…

Dr. Robert F. Sabol, professor of visual and performing arts at Purdue University says that art education has suffered some serious setbacks since No Child Left Behind--the landmark federal education law that put a greater emphasis on high-stakes testing. Since No Child Left Behind became law in 2002, school systems--under increased pressure to…

Pressures are great upon public school teachers and administrators in secondary school systems to insure their students perform well on state and national achievement tests. The No Child Left Behind Act of 2002 (NCLB) puts an extreme amount of emphasis on students' performance on subject area tests. NCLB (2002) requires that at least 95% of the…

Scope and Method of Study: This descriptive exploratory study utilizes a survey and interviews for collecting data pertinent to the demographics, views, attitudes and perspectives of art educators as they experience No Child Left Behind initiatives in their classrooms. Questionnaires were analyzed with Qualtrics software for statistical…

By integrating and infusing computer learning technologies wisely into student-centered or social constructivist art learning environments, art educators can improve student learning and at the same time provide a creative, substantive model for how schools can and should be reformed. By doing this, art educators have an opportunity to demonstrate…

This article describes Nilaja Sun's groundbreaking one-woman show about a TA, her students, and her school, and includes interviews with the author/performer, an excerpt of the work, and a discussion of the organization behind it.

This article addresses dimensions of contemporary policy that are influencing art teaching and learning. In the light of recent policy, and its challenges to creativity, art educators have been placed in the position where we need to make trouble through a re-definition and extension of professional responsibility. In response to negative impacts…

The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), signed into law on January 8, 2002, states that its primary purpose is "to close the achievement gap through accountability, research-based instruction, flexibility and options for parents, so that no child is left behind." The goals of NCLB, according to the U.S. Department of Education, include…

In this article, I portray the status of visual art education in United States public elementary schools between 1997 and 2004. I report on trends in state policies and interpret data from a national survey of elementary principals, visual art specialists, and classroom teachers. I also provide information on public opinion about arts education,…

"Alabama Education News" is published monthly except for June, July, and December by the Alabama Department of Education. This publication, authorized by Section 16-2-4 of the "Code of Alabama", as recompiled in 1975, is a public service of the Alabama Department of Education designed to inform citizens and educators about…