"Every child deserves Art and Craft!”

1. "Every child deserves Art and Craft!” Professor Dr Anne Bamford International Research Agency anne@annebamford.com

2. Studies conducted to date • In Nordic countries: • Denmark • Iceland • (also study in Finland) • In other countries: • Belgium • The Netherlands • Hong Kong • Australia (EAPI) • United Kingdom (WO Music and FYT)

3. The Norwegian Study • Commenced October 2010. • Field work completed April 2011. • Draft report presented June 2011. • Public release: After the summer, date to be determined

4. Outputs include • A detailed evidence-based empirical review presented as a published report including an executive summary and a clear and concise list of recommendations .

5. Aims • To conduct an empirical review of existing arts and cultural education provisions in Norway • To identify, document and analyse case studies in schools, kindergartens, municipal music and art schools and colleges, including teacher education • To formulate a set of recommendations of strategies to strengthen arts education in schools and the community • To advise the Norwegian Directorate for Education and Training via the Norwegian Centre for Arts and Culture in Education on Arts Education (Boda) • To benchmark arts and cultural education within Norway against international best practice indicators, especially those within Europe and the Nordic countries

6. Questions • What is being done in arts and cultural education (both in and outside schools) and how is it being done? • What is the quality of arts education in Norway? This includes both the quality of the teaching and the quality of the learning? • What are the possibilities and challenges currently and into the future? • What expertise exists within education and more broadly in the arts and cultural sector?

7. Scope • The scope of the study was limited to a sample of formal school provisions for young people between the ages of 3-18 years and included non-formal (outside of school) arts and cultural offerings that directly intersect with the specified target group.

8. Method • Document and media analysis • Survey and data tracking of baseline data • Interviews • School visits • Focus groups • Observations • Provisions for electronic submissions

9. Sampling • We have endeavoured to get a sense of the full scope of activity and have visited different school types and different levels, in different geographic and social situations. • We have met with all sorts of people including pupils, teachers, principals, parents, artists, managers, industry, cultural sector, volunteers, professional associations, officials, local authorities, politicians and plenty of characters!

10. Comments on the process • Wonderful support • Opportunity for engagement • Geographical/climatic challenges • Organizational challenges • Economic challenges • Data availability

11. And a feel for the project…

41. … and the journey!!!

49. The real strengths include… • Cultural Rucksack • Community resources • Passion and commitment • Accessibility (generally) • Intrinsic value • Amateur arts • Associations • Facilities in the community

50. Possibilities and challenges • The choice argument… “I don’t really remember much about the rucksack. We maybe have things twice a year. We had an author and then someone doing country music. It is always country music!” “It would be better if we had more say in the sort of thing that came to the school.” • The NO choice argument… In this Kommune we make all the schools take the rucksack. We don’t give them a choice. If we gave them a choice, a lot of principals would say they did not want it. Even making it compulsory, we battle to get two things into the school each year. The schools wouldn't take the offer. They would say they don't want it. It takes too much tie or it does not fit into their schedule. They don't want It.