AEP Launches ArtsEdSearch™

The Arts Education Partnership is pleased to announce the release of ArtsEdSearch.org — the nation’s first online research and policy clearinghouse that documents the educational outcomes of arts learning for students and teachers.

A first-of-its kind, ArtsEdSearch™  grew out of a need for high quality, centrally located, and user-friendly information on the essential role the arts play in developing students’ creative thinking, problem solving, communication, and collaboration skills—attributes many education and business leaders identify as important in preparing young people for college and career success.ArtsEdSearch’s easy-to-navigate design provides access to research summaries—written in everyday language—that examine the educational outcomes of arts learning and analyze the research for implications for education policy more broadly.

While other online resources focus on how to teach the arts well or how to assess students’ technical knowledge in the arts, ArtsEdSearch has a unique focus on how education in the arts affects students’ cognitive, academic, personal, social and civic development. ArtsEdSearch also provides valuable information on how teaching strategies based in the arts influence educators’ instructional practice and engagement in the teaching profession.

One Goal, Many Paths: Ensuring a high quality education that includes the arts for every student

Parents, school leaders, community members, and champions of arts education can use ArtsEdSearch to customize advocacy materials with the confidence that the information is backed by a significant body of high-quality research.

Researchers can use ArtsEdSearch to identify directions for future research based on the site’s gap analysis of the areas where more evidence is needed.

Policymakers and policy analysts can use ArtsEdSearch to understand the arts’ role in tackling some of today’s most pressing education issues. These challenges include increasing school attendance, reducing dropout rates, and improving teacher effectiveness.

Grantmakers and donors can use ArtsEdSearch to shape their philanthropic agendas for social and educational change, using the site’s implications for policy and questions for future research.

Betsy Loikow
Legislative Affairs/Web Master
National Dance Education Organization
301-585-2880
bloikow@ndeo.org