Managing Time
Managing Time in an Arts Classroom
How will arts learning time be organised in a school?
Implementing an arts program begins with establishing an Overarching statements that guide learning in the arts. in each school. This policy guides time management to ensure lesson planning builds sufficient depth in the interrelated arts strands of Making and Responding to ensure that the arts maintain their integrity.
The Shape of the Australian Curriculum: The Arts (2011) paper indicates that approaches to the Processes by which schools enact curriculum. of the five different arts subjects may be varied. Schools, guided by their authorities and schooling sectors, will make site-specific decisions about who delivers the arts and how time is managed. The Shape document indicates that:
Schools are best placed to determine how learning in the Arts will be delivered. These decisions will take account of the different approaches that can be taken for each subject in the Arts. For example, some subjects in the Arts require frequent brief tuition while others require more intense immersion less frequently. (p.4)
Source: Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA)
The Shape paper also advises that many aspects of the arts curriculum are recursive. Therefore, schools should consider managing arts time to allow for some repetition of skills across the bands of schooling. This will ensure ongoing practice and consolidation of knowledge, understanding and skills.
How should the time for the arts be organised?
While each school may approach time management in different ways, the key considerations of effective arts learning are:
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arts learning needs to take place on a regular basis and in a variety of large and small blocks of time in order to allow skills to develop
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arts learning should not be given as isolated experiences (for example, engaging in a one-off craft activity on a Friday afternoon).
What are the Overarching organisers for the arts curriculum. of the arts to be delivered?
In the national curriculum, the five arts subjects are presented through two interrelated strands:
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Making – using processes, techniques, knowledge and skills to make art works
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Responding – exploring, responding to, analysing and interpreting art works.
These two aspects should not be covered in isolation, as they support and inform each other. Teachers are encouraged to find opportunities for students to work both individually and collaboratively through the Connecting and combining experiences to mutually benefit each other. of making and responding experiences between the arts subjects and other learning areas.
What does a high-quality arts program look like?
Each subject in the arts uses a different language to communicate in its own mode with particular knowledge, skills and symbols. Time needs to be given to provide learning experiences that build sufficient depth of content and understanding to ensure that the arts maintain their integrity.
Below are links to supporting documents that provide advice and guidelines for: