Education and the arts: research overview

Summarises the six education and the arts research projects commissioned by the Australia Council for the Arts since 2001. It identifies common themes in relation to key benefits of an education rich in the arts.

Evidence in the research reports indicates that arts participation, to varying degrees, positively impacts on students:

• social and personal development
• attitude to learning
• literacy
• numeracy
• arts knowledge and skills
• generic competencies (writing, communicating, problem-solving, planning, organising, perseverance)
• enjoyment and value of the arts.

The research also presents useful findings about what constitutes an effective arts education program, as well as raising a number of recommendations regarding future research.