BPCS’ Revolutionary Integrated School Arts Curriculum

My contention is that creativity now is as important in education as literacy, and we should treat it with the same status.- Sir Ken Robinson (TED Lecture, 2006)

 

Research and contemporary understandings of education understand the power of the Arts, not only to enhance and consolidate learning, but more importantly to engage students in learning that is vital to the development of the whole child.

In recognition of BPCS’ dedication to the students and honouring the image of the child and the teaching role as researchers, BPCS Leadership Team considered the place of the Arts in the school curriculum through discussion with artists, writers, arts academics, parents, staff and students.  From this BPCS engaged a team of Focus Teaching Staff to support the students and staff with specific skills that will provide the opportunity to acknowledge the ‘languages’ of the child and invite them to explore many of these languages as they journey through their school years.  This also provides an opportunity for teaching staff to engage in crea tive domains and to increase their confidence to integrate creativity in the classroom.

The Arts, in particular, can release our imaginations to open up new perspectives, identify alternatives. The vistas that might open, the connections that might be made, are experiential phenomena; our encounters with the world become newl y informed - Robin Ewing (Australian Education Review, 2005).

Currently the BPCS Integrated Arts  Program is led by a team of talented and passionate educators who have personal and professional experience in their disciplines as well as a love of fostering and nurturing the artists in students.

Visual Arts      Kitchen Garden      Italian Culture      Music   Dance       Drama      Media

As part of the BPCS Philosophy we believe it is imperative to work collaboratively as a team to nurture our students in an authentic way. We encourage all of the Arts disciplines to work together. We want to share the value we have of the Arts as important areas of learning.

An education rich in creative arts maximises opportunities for learners to engage with innovative thinkers and leaders, and to experience the Arts both as audience members and as artists. Such an education is vital to students’ success as individuals and as members of society, emphasising not only creativity and imagination, but also the values of cultural understanding and social harmony that the arts can engender - (MCEETYA and Cultural Ministers Council, 2007).

The BPCS Integrated Arts Program increases engagement in learning, self-esteem, empathy, critical and creative thinking and the ability to work together.

 

BPCS Arts Program in Early Childhood

 

The BPCS Arts Team is visible in the playground and classrooms. The Arts Team works alongside the Early Childhood Staff to provide experiences that provokes interest, opportunities, thought and creativity in the students. These experiences are taken back to the Early Childhood classes for further investigation and learning.  There are opportunities for the students to work with older students from the Primary and Middle School, which fosters a sense of identity and ‘belonging’ to the wider community.

           

 

                                   

BPCS Arts Program in Primary School

In the Primary School, the Arts Team and Class Teaching Teams work together with the students for an entire day.  As such, each student has the opportunity to experience one full day of immersion in the Arts. Three disciplines work together to build understandings, explore skills and techniques specific to the art forms. These experiences then lead to a long-term project or investigation (for example, a collaborative art installation; a sustainable garden; a performance etc).  

Two classes of multi-aged students work together during the Arts Day.  This fosters peer learning and mentoring, and opportunities for different groups of students to work together. Traditional academic subjects are embedded in all aspects of the program and documented through individual journals and whole group reflections. The Classroom Teaching Teams work alongside the students and the Arts Team and take common threads and skills back into their classroom to consolidate learning.

 

BPCS Arts Program in Middle School and College

In Middle School, the Arts Team and Class Teaching Team work together with the students for an entire day. As such, each child has the opportunity to experience one full day of immersion in the Arts. Three disciplines work together to build understandings, explore skills and techniques specific to the art forms.  These experiences then lead to a long-term project or investigation (for example, a collaborative art installation; a sustainable garden; a performance etc).  

Two classes of multi-aged students work together during the Arts Day.  This fosters peer learning and mentoring, and opportunities for different groups of students to work together. Traditional academic subjects are embedded in all aspects of the program and documented through individual journals and whole group reflections. The Classroom Teaching Teams work alongside the students and the Arts Team and take common threads and skills back into their classroom to consolidate learning.