Although art classrooms are rich with demonstrations, discussions, and artmaking, the COVID-19 pandemic brought unprecedented challenges to art educators wanting to engage students in studio-rich practices. As one solution, Bitmoji classrooms emerged in response to emergency remote teaching (ERT). Bitmoji classrooms--containing an instructor's…

The author writes this article to remind art educators of the importance of crafts in art education. They have noticed that scant attention is given to crafts in contemporary art education in the United States. Through this article, the author would like to reflect on why crafts are essential in art education by considering their role in…

Creative thought leaders and educators have readily invited and challenged humans to harness the imagination as a way to envision otherwise. Ethical teaching and learning processes demand creating equity along a continuum of critical and creative practices (Freire, 1970/2014; hooks, 2009; Love, 2019). Some in the field of art education have taken…

In "Teaching Critical Thinking," bell hooks (2010) addresses education as the practice of freedom by explaining that we use "our intellect and our imaginations to forge new and liberatory ways of knowing, thinking, and being, to work for change" (p. 170). Speaking to the arts, Maxine Greene (1995) said that "of all our…

This study examines the underpinnings of Japan's "programming education" in elementary school music, officially implemented nationwide in 2020. Through that reform, which has introduced "programming thinking" (a local version of computational thinking) in all areas of compulsory education, the country follows the international…

As we consider art education for future generations, we envision a change in focus from the "product," or artwork, to the artistic "process"--the thinking behind the artwork. How can we be so sure this shift of priorities is afoot? Indicators in general education point to thinking dispositions as the goal of learning (Costa…

A year ago when the author wrote and circulated the call for papers on the theme "The Future of Art Curriculum," she did not imagine a conversation about the future being as urgent and dynamic as it is now that humans worldwide are faced with the challenges of a pandemic. Different conceptions of the future inform art curriculum, but the…

Having researched and considered for some time where the field of art education has been perhaps positions the author to thoughtfully ask, Where we might be going in years ahead? And subsequently, What should the field do to meet with success the challenges it faces in the future? In the fast-paced, ever-changing, systemic world, no one knows with…

This paper explores the declining trend of fine arts education in secondary schools. We examine mechanisms that may explain this phenomenon on structural levels of policymaking and policy implementation in different areas of the education system. What will be defined as the "selection device" refers to the structurally determined…

The purpose of this quality improvement project was to examine a newly-implemented music admissions assessment process at a small liberal arts university and students' perceptions of that process, which was intended to provide a holistic view of prospective students' pre-admission achievement and to offer feedback regarding their readiness and…

As Seattle and the United States grapple with COVID-19, police brutality, and racial inequity, a teaching artist, a leader from a youth-focused cultural organization, and a representative from a city agency each explain, from their unique perspective, why teaching artists are essential workers. They also explore the local arts/culture, education,…

Arts Education Partnership (AEP) partner organizations work to promote high-quality arts learning opportunities that align with college, career and citizenship readiness goals. AEP Success Stories provide detailed information on programs with the potential to be replicated in communities across the country. This Success Story highlights the work…

In this paper, we discuss a perennial question in the field of music teacher education: is school music education better served with generalist or specialist teachers? To answer this question, we discuss the educational policy reforms implemented in two African countries, Uganda and South Africa, and in Spain as well. We also discuss how teacher…

The authors of this article each present the current situation of their respective educational systems regarding music teacher education, schools and professional development: all of which have undergone massive changes in the last decades. In the UK, this lead to a shift of teacher education away from universities toward school-based training and…

2020 has been marked by disruption on a global scale due to a range of compounding crises including the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Many community arts responses to the pandemic originated from individuals rather than by means of concerted or sustained sectoral responses. This paper uses reflections from Ireland, Australia, and Mexico to discuss…