Long-Term Benefits of Field Trips to the Walton Arts Center

Some exciting news came to Walton Arts Center this week: A recent study shows that field trips to Walton Arts Center can provide long term benefits to students! Last year alone, more than 50,000 students experienced the arts through programs like Digging Up Arkansas, the Colgate Classroom Series, and other master classes and activities with WAC performing artists.

In tandem with a study on the educational value of museum field trips conducted at Crystal Bridges, University of Arkansas researchers Jay P. Greene and Brian Kisida investigated the long term benefits of student field trips to Walton Arts Center.

More than 2,000 7^th graders from around the area participated in a survey asking about their participation in cultural activities and their values like tolerance and empathy. The students’ answers were analyzed based on how many WAC performances they had been to throughout their school careers. 

For each field trip students took to WAC, there was a statistically significant difference in students’ desire to attend cultural events. And more than that, field trip participation increased student desire to participate in cultural activities, not just attend them. Also notable, the study found that students who participate in arts field trips are more tolerant and empathetic than other students. The study will help educators better understand the important benefits that field trips to arts institutions offer students.

Learning & Engagement at Walton Arts Center

Here at Walton Arts Center, we strive to positively impact our community through learning and engagement.  One of our main goals is to strengthen school learning communities through arts integration teacher training by to sharing model arts integration programs with the State education community.

One way we reach this goal is by training teachers throughout the area on how to creatively integrate education about the arts into their classroom lesson plans.  There are three main programs designed for these teachers: AWE Institute, SmART Residency and ARTeacher Fellowship.

ARTeacher Fellows

This year’s ARTeacher Fellowship was held June 19-21.  Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, the Northwest Arkansas Education Service Cooperative and the Center for Children and Youth joined the Walton Arts Center in an effort to provide this exemplary professional development. The Center for Children and Youth selected 27 Jr. high and high school literacy and social studies teachers to participate in the program, and they will implement the arts integration strategies across their curriculums for a year.

ARTeacher Fellows studied with The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts presenter, Randy Barron; Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art School Programs Manager, Anne Krybill; and University of Arkansas’ Center for Children and Youth, Hung Pham and Dr. Chris Goering.

ARTeacher Fellowship teachers participating in an art integration strategy for the classroom

Last year, the ARTeacher Fellowship reached nearly 500 students with 10 teachers participating in the program, so there are great expectations for the impact this year’s 27 trained educators will have on Northwest Arkansas students.

Teachers being trained through the ARTeacher Fellowship with small group practices

All three programs have yielded positive results in the classroom, for teachers and students alike, all the while keeping the arts alive in schools.  Teachers have noticed that students respond well to art integration strategies with better attitudes, eagerness to participate and an overall preference to the strategies over traditional ones.  Teachers that have participated in the programs say they have gained confidence teaching literacy and social studies with the art integration strategies and 90% believe their teaching skills have improved through the training.

We are excited to see the talented teachers integrate the arts into their curriculum this upcoming school year!  To learn more about the arts integration teaching training programs, visit our website. 

Sticks, stones, sweat and heART

We are right in the middle of our Artosphere Festival, and while we do have Polyglot Theatre's We Built This City happening in our hall this Saturday, May 19, there is also a lot going on outside our theater!

As part of Artosphere's visual arts component this year, we commissioned two artists to build site-specific installations; Karst artist Massey Burke, and Stickworks artist Patrick Dougherty. Both artists began their residency last week, and what progress they've made these past few days! Of course, they have had help from local volunteers that have dedicated their time (and sweat) to helping both of these artists complete their pieces.

Dougherty and volunteers

Patrick Dougherty installation on Walton Arts Center's Tyson PlazaLocal apprentices learning sustainable building techniques while assisting BurkeWalton Arts Center will host an End-of-Construction Celebration for Massey Burke and her Karst project on Saturday, May 19 from 3pm-5pm at the installation on the Nadine Baum Studios lawn. Patrick Dougherty's piece will be finished by the following week, May 28.

If you're interested in learning about artists who work with nature, join us this Saturday, May 19 from 2pm-3pm at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art for a lecture with Patrick Dougherty and Robert Tannen. While the event is free, reservations are required due to limited seating, and can be made by clicking here.

BIG thank you to all the volunteers who are helping bring both of these projects to life on the Walton Arts Center campus. We truly appreciate your help, and could not have done this without your support. Northwest Arkansas truly is a wonderful community!