UTILIZING THE ARTS IN GENERAL EDUCATION PROCESS TO INTEGRATE THE PERFORMING ARTS INTO THE JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL (7-9) HUMANITIES CURRICULUM PLAN AT THE EAST HARLEM PERFORMING ARTS SCHOOL (NEW YORK)

This descriptive study reports the progress of 200 junior high school students at the East Harlem Performing Arts School (EHPAS) in Community School District Number Four (CSD ;AGE at EHPAS demonstrates to the student the relationship of all academic discipline, and the requirement for various integrated knowledge in problem solving. AGE assumes that the arts are extendable, i.e., they can be used to integrate general learning. AGE assumes that learning in all areas can occur simultaneously reinforcing each other.;AGE philosophy, developmental theories on artistry, and positions by critics of AGE comprise the related literature in Chapter II. Various AGE projects are detailed and included as related programs.;Chapter III offers information about the AGE process as it pertains to the organization, students, teachers, curriculum, and teaching strategies used at EHPAS.;Chapter I details an Arts in General Education (AGE) pilot project developed to treat academic regression at EHPAS. The problem was believed to stem mainly from minority group isolation. CSD ;A statistical assessment of the pilot project is articulated in Chapter IV based on criteria projected by CSD ;Chapter V concludes that the AGE process can play a positive role in the progression of academic and attitudinal achievement. Recommendations are made for the use of the arts as integrators. The future state of arts education is projected in terms of Mortimer Adler's Paideia Proposal: An Educational Manifesto. The author concludes that arts integration is necessary in the production of a whole and humanized person, i.e., one who knows, thinks, feels, and acts.