Considerations and Procedures for Schools

Welcome to Artists in Education. The aim of this networking facility is to support schools and artists in working together for the benefit of students by providing schools with direct access to practising artists and their professional work.

Considerations

• Check your school's policy on the use of professional artists or volunteers with students
• A visiting artist does not replace a teacher and a teacher should always be present when a visitor is working with students
• You may find it helpful to brief visitors on any rules you have in place or practices you would like them to follow, e.g. you may request that students send any follow-up queries through the school rather than contact an artist/group directly
• We encourage all schools who have used the Artists in Education service to provide feedback using that artist's profile. Additionally we encourage teachers to use the appropriate emailing discussion community to share positive experiences about the work of artists in their schools
• Although we do our best to only list artists best suited to work in schools, we cannot guarantee this. Whether artists are employees, contractors, or volunteers, ascertaining the reputation and quality of anyone working in schools is the responsibility of the school management on behalf of the board of trustees. Please read the National Administration Guidelines (especially NAG 5) for further information
• Schools which have concerns about the suitability of artists listed on Arts Online should contact the Arts Online project director
• If the artist is not a registered teacher and is to be employed by your school or contracted to work in your school, then the NZ Teachers' Council, which acts as conduit for police vetting, has information and application forms for compulsory Non Teacher Police Checks. If you wish to check individuals who are not covered by the compulsory vetting requirements, e.g. volunteers or non-regular contractors, information and forms are also available at the NZ Police website.

Protocols and Procedures

An effective programme involving artists in schools:

• Provides students with direct access to arts works, creative processes, and performances
• Provides safe opportunities for students to reflect on and discuss their own arts work, ideas and aspirations
• Provides opportunities for students and teachers to share their arts learning with each other, family and community
• Communicates directly with students about the work of an artist or group
• Extends arts programmes already provided by schools
• Fosters learning which crosses arts disciplines and other curriculum areas
• Stimulates students and teachers to participate more actively in the arts
• Encourages teachers to learn together with their students
• Demonstrates specialist disciplines, skills and creative processes
• Provides a role model for ways in which artists contribute to their local communities and to the cultural identities of New Zealand
• Highlights vocational opportunities in or related to the arts
• Fosters in students a life-long enthusiasm for the arts.

Artists working in a school environment should:

• Recognise that working in schools involves ethical and professional responsibilities in the way they interact with students and in the kinds of material presented to them
• Recognise that teachers' skills as arts educators complement those of the practitioner - both are important to students' learning
• Present work of high educational and artistic quality
• Have skills in working with young people
• Be genuinely interested in how young people learn through arts experiences
• Target material carefully to appropriate age levels
• Pay attention to gender balance in their material and interactions with students
• Respect the cultural backgrounds and values of all students and teachers
• Enable students with special abilities to participate
• Involve students and teachers actively in their programme rather than only as passive viewers
• Include student participation, if appropriate, which is purposeful and relevant to the educational aims of the programme
• Assist students to see the relevance of an arts programme to their daily lives
• Be aware of work in their arts area that may already be undertaken by the schools
• Know that in schools with successful arts programmes, students may already be skilled in their arts area
• Be open to constructive evaluation (collected in the feedback box on artists' profiles) by teachers and students.

Artists working in schools can expect:

• The school to have an arts policy which identifies the relevance of the work of professional artists to the school curriculum and has the support of all teachers, not only those who teach the arts
• Teachers and students to respect visiting artists as professionals who provide a valuable educational resource
• Courtesy and access to appropriate school facilities
• That teachers have prepared their students for the artists' programme
• That teachers will be present, participate as appropriate, and provide unobtrusive supervision

Practical Considerations:

The involvement of artists in a school's programme will be more effective and successful if:

• There is a clear written agreement between the artists and the school that covers:
  1. The date, time and venue.
  2. The cost and arrangements for payment (expressed as a flat fee or on a per student basis) and identifies GST (as inclusive or exclusive).
  3. The number of students involved.
  4. Equipment or facilities to be provided by the school.
  5. Details of any cancellation fee required.
  6. The arrival time and any access requirements for the venue.
  7. The name of a contact teacher who will liaise with the artist/s.
• The artists/group provides:
  1. pre-programme information in time for teachers to prepare their students
  2. suggestions for follow up resource material allowing teachers to integrate the visit into the classroom programmes
• All confirmed arrangements are kept or adequate notice given of unavoidable alterations
• There is opportunity for both parties to make well-considered, constructive evaluation on the programme (Go to Artists' Profiles, select the programme and provide your feedback).