The Arts in Schools - Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation

implications of different types of abilityg more attention should be given during teacher trainingto problems of this natureh we consider the value of the arts to be underestimatedin hospitals, prisons, and other institutions receivingyoung people for particular periods of time. The roleand possibilities of the arts in these situations should bereassessed in light of experience reported by organisationssuch as Shape178 A special The Warnock Report and the recent surveys of primary andproblem secondary schools by the Inspectorate all point out thatteachers' expectations of their pupils are too low. Thisincreases possibilities that potential will be overlooked ornot encouraged at both ends of the spectrum of specialneed. We think, though, that within the generality of specialneed in the arts there is one group particularly at risk. This isthe economically disadvantaged child of whatever race. Itseems to us reasonable to assume that there are proportionatelyas many gifted and talented children from low incomefamilies as from more wealthy families. There are certainlyas many disabled children, possibly more. What poorerchildren lack is the educational opportunity, environmentand family advantages of the better off. The economicallydisadvantaged talented or disabled are an acute and specialproblem requiring, perhaps, an element of priority treatment.179 Summary In this chapter we have considered areas of special needwithin the general provision for the arts in schools. We haveidentified four such areas and commented on each of them.We have looked at arguments for and against making specialprovision for gifted children and have concluded that it ismerited. We specified what this might mean in terms of theschools and local education authorities. Against this backgroundwe discussed the additional needs of the disabled.The uses of the arts in remedial teaching and in therapywere also recognised and endorsed. In these respects weacknowledged the difficulties in sustaining discrete categoriesof special need and gave an example of the generalvalue of the arts in raising children's self-esteem. We turnedthen to the arts of racial minorities and argued for particularattention to be given to these in the general cultural settingof the curriculum and of the school as a whole. We haveconcluded by pointing to the aggravation of all of theseissues by economic hardship and have recommended anelement of priority attention to certain aspects of this in thearts in schools.110