Arts+Frameworks+Backgrounder

** Background ** Revision of the 1998 Fine Arts K-7 IRPs began in 2004/2005. Some internal Ministry work was done to create a first draft to reflect the “new” curriculum format, i.e., including Suggested Achievement Indicators to align with the Prescribed Learning Outcomes, as well as splitting the clustered grades K-1 and 2-3 into separate grades. Following this, four teams of educators (one for each discipline area) were brought together for consultation and input regarding these first drafts. This updated work, which comprised four draft frameworks for K-7 Dance, Drama, Music, and Visual Arts, was then presented at the BC Arts Education Focus School Forum held in Kamloops on November 2 and 3, 2006 at the Beattie School of the Arts for broader consultation.
 * K -7 Draft Frameworks for **
 * Dance, Drama, Music, and Visual Arts **

The BC Arts Education Focus Schools Forum was an opportunity for a group of educators representing BC fine arts schools to meet to discuss and provide feedback on the draft revisions to the K-7 curricula for Dance, Drama, Music, and Visual Arts. Each school’s representation included at least one administrator and one teacher from each arts discipline, i.e., Dance, Drama, Music, and Visual Arts. The findings of their discussion were compiled into a report for the Ministry, and subsequent revisions/edits were made to the draft frameworks based on the feedback generated from the forum. These draft frameworks for K-7 Dance, Drama, Music, and Visual Arts are current and posted on the wiki for team review and discussion.

An important piece of the discussion was the recognition that many elementary teachers are not specialist teachers in any of the four disciplines. It was the advice of these consultations to ensure that there was continuity in format between the four disciplines in order to assist the generalist teacher in understanding the goals of the curriculum.

The goal is to refine and finalise the draft frameworks, which will ultimately include for each arts discipline: · Rationale (to be developed) · Key Elements or Key Concepts (to be developed) · Curriculum Organizers described/defined (Descriptions for the Curriculum Organizers were not developed during the initial development/revision process. However, there was consensus that the curriculum organizers for Dance in the 1998 IRP still are valid for the revised (draft) version of Dance K-7. The curriculum organizers for the current draft frameworks of Drama, Music, and Visual Arts need descriptions). · Prescribed Learning Outcomes (PLOs) that are measurable and assessable through large-scale and/or classroom-based assessment. (Gaps or missing details that also need to be completed or defined are highlighted (in yellow) on the draft frameworks). · Suggested Achievement Indicators that align with the PLOs. (Gaps or missing details that also need to be completed or defined are highlighted (in yellow) on the draft frameworks).
 * Goal and Next Steps **