The Arts in Schools - Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation

the timetable. The school has a common curriculum sothat every child will spend over one sixth of the week onmusic, drama and art. Even in the last week I have beenconsidering how to give more emphasis to these studies,especially for 6th Formers. They will all spend time ondrama and in art and they will be encouraged to do music.From our capitation, English will have £1,500 this yearand the Arts Faculty £2,300. We are about to re-fashionour Hall as a working theatre using our own labour andhave asked a local charity for £1,250 for materials. Suchis my confidence, after 19 years, in the value of this work.'125 Equality The arts have a claim on an equitable and major part ofofcurriculum time. This holds no less for capitation monies,provision the provision of rooms, materials and equipment and theappointment of staff. Just as scientists need laboratories,so do arts teachers need studios. Of course, just as physicists,chemists and biologists may have to share their facilities,so must arts teachers, on a dual-use basis, be prepared to'double-up' where necessary. Just as teachers of science,mathematics or modern languages need money for technicalequipment, slides, tapes and specimens, so too do arts teachersneed materials such as paper, canvas, clay, sheet music,tapes and slides and equipment such as kilns, easels andmusical instruments. Like all teachers they must also beprepared to co-ordinate their need for materials and equipment.Just as those who value the sciences in schools will wantto see as many representatives of them in school staffroomsas possible — physicists, chemists, biologists, geologists — sotoo will those who value the arts want to see artists, musicians,teachers of dance, drama, poetry and literature. Arts teachersare not asking for the moon. They are as aware as anyone elseof the need to work within financial limits and restrictions ofspace and time. But they can see no reason, and neither canwe, for their being fobbed off with next to nothing. Even intimes of restraint and cutback we can see no reason why theyshould shoulder a disproportionate share of restricted opportunitiesfor doing the work at all. In Joan Freeman's words,'Neither time nor money are adequate excuses for deprivingchildren of the richer aspects of education . . . The losersfrom this state of affairs are growing up now.' (Freeman,1979)126 Summary In this chapter we have looked at some of the constraintson the development of the arts in schools. We have stressedthe need for a policy for the arts in each school and have79