Rafael Otto

Seeking Bridges: Arts & Education on the Edge of Change

Posted by Rafael Otto, Apr 15, 2013 13 comments


Rafael Otto

Rafael Otto Rafael Otto

PDX, Stumptown, the City of Roses, Portlandia, Bridgetown. All of these offer a glimpse into my “second-tier,” west coast city—Portland, OR—nestled between majestic Mt. Hood and the brisk and rugged Pacific coast.

After four years away I’m back with a fresh perspective, a renewed commitment to the arts, and a job that gives me an unparalleled perspective into the world of education across the country.

I also have a vested interest in the educational system here—my daughter entered kindergarten last September. She is now a student in the Portland Public School District, Oregon’s largest district, in a state that has the fourth-worst graduation rate in the country.

As a father, I cringe at stats like that. I worry about the quality of her education, especially when we emphasize assessment and test scores over creativity and collaboration.

As a writer and researcher working in education, I know we can do better.

As an artist, I see that Portland’s system of education has failed to harness the very best of Portland’s innovative and creative talent.

So, what would make Portland a better place and bring it to the next level?

How about a world-class education system that combines the best of Portland’s imaginative and artistic energy with the best approaches to education? To get there, we need more than essential arts education. We also need the creative process shaping instruction, policy, engagement, and implementation. And we need you.

Not too much to ask, is it?

I hope your answer is no.

Portland does so many things well. We are consistently rated as America’s most bike-friendly city and lauded for the best public transportation system in the country. We rank at the top for amazing food and food trucks, have a well-funded arts and culture council and a vital creative sector, and we compete nationally in the realm of urban sustainability.

Portland also attracts hordes of young creative talent and recently appointed its first Creative Laureate, an advocacy position designed to “engage the city in conversations about the arts, education, and creative industries.”

We’ve also got the Creative Advocacy Network (CAN), a nonprofit organization committed to securing a “dedicated funding stream for arts and arts education.” Their CANifesto opens: “The arts are not a luxury. Not here.”

Given all of this, I don’t see any reason Portland can’t have an education system that is also the envy of the nation, one that harnesses the creative capital we already possess and takes our ability to create, innovate, and lead to forge an education system that truly thrives. Do you?

That said there’s much happening in education here to instill a sense of hope and progress.

Education-friendly Governor Kitzhaber recently appointed Oregon’s first chief education officer, Rudy Crew, known for implementing dramatic reforms.

Portlanders also recently approved new taxes to support education. In November we said yes to a $482 million bond measure to “rebuild and upgrade Portland Public Schools buildings” and a measure that funds art education and arts organizations.

Efforts such as the Chalkboard Project are targeting educator effectiveness and there’s no shortage of conversations about revitalizing the schools.

In pockets of innovation around the state, proficiency-based instruction has started to take hold supported by a new grading policy from the state Board of Education. Portland also has an under-utilized alternative school network that could help drive creative engagement with youth and families.

GettingSmart.com recently discussed our entrepreneurial energy and potential for innovation. But they also point to our general reluctance to reform education. Our language is, at times, exhausted—revitalize, reinvest, remodel, renew. Our approach lacks vigor.

Sounds like we need the arts more than ever.

With a statewide goal for the Class of 2025 of a 100 percent graduation rate, we need fresh thinking and constructive processes for getting us there.

This is my daughter’s class. I’m invested. But it’s not enough that my daughter—or any student—simply graduates. She must graduate with essential 21st century skills that include, as Kay and Greenhill write, critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and creativity and innovation.

Here the arts are vital. Because we need to create, push boundaries, and invent. We need to explore the edges where change occurs and then push ourselves to manage that change. Through the process of inquiry, through play and attention to passion and engagement, our students can become innovation ready.

The catch is that they won’t get there unless adults do the same. The time to engage in the process of creating is at hand.

The challenges:

How can educators, artists, entrepreneurs, administrators, parents, and local leaders join minds to drive innovation?

How can we tap our rich social and creative assets to transform how we teach, how we learn, and our children’s capabilities?

How can we ensure that the process of educating our students right now is a creative one that results in essential 21st century skills?

How do we create a new system that looks, feels, operates and performs in ways that we cannot currently envision?

I’m confident we can artistically guide our learners to succeed on the path ahead, that we can make our system sing and bridge the gaps between two of Portland’s crucial sectors: arts and education. But we all need to engage to create solutions, to tap into what we do well and lift our education system to a new level.

Only one question remains to stimulate a cultural transformation for Portland, for my daughter, for all of our children: are you willing to participate?

13 responses for Seeking Bridges: Arts & Education on the Edge of Change

Comments

April 19, 2013 at 3:03 pm

I agree that issues of equity are among our biggest challenges when it comes to supporting our children in education and the arts. The equity lens also opens up the discussion to include a full range of societal factors such as socio-economic status, family background, race, achievement gaps, and school funding, among others. I'm hopeful that Portland can take the lead in developing a district that is innovative, groundbreaking and equitable!

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alex cooper says
April 15, 2013 at 8:08 pm

I really like the article but I would have liked to seen more information about why this is important to others and why we should help. I did like that you mentioned your daughter because every parent wants what's best for their child but its not mentioned how this school affects all students of Portland .and I do like the goal bout 100% graduate rate but how will we make this happen .give ideas do something.

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April 17, 2013 at 11:32 am

Alex -
Part of what I wanted to accomplish with this piece is to show that Portland has a lot of great things happening in both the arts and education, but also raise some questions and stimulate some thinking about what we need to do to move forward. It's really just the beginning. I'm also not just talking about my daughter's school. Her experience makes my involvement with PPS much more personal, but it's not just her school I'm focusing on. I think embracing the creative process can help move our education system toward a kind of network of services that I think we are trying to envision. After all, if we are aiming for a 100% graduation rate, we will have to get serious (and creative) about issues of equity, access, closing achievement gaps, and really promoting 21st century skill development and learning for all of our students. The very fabric of our society depends upon making sure that all of our young people have the opportunity to access education and succeed as citizens.

We may need a creative think-tank that engages people from the arts and education communities, not to mention the business and government sectors, to help drive this. I think Portland is really in a good place to make this happen. In terms of ideas, here's a handful: our schools need to operate as energetic hubs for the communities in which they live, not just places kids go during the day :: parents and families need to be engaged :: we should have lots of teaching artists :: instruction should be arts- and creative-rich :: proficiency-based instruction :: harness technology to personalize learning :: use technology to explore intercultural issues and global contexts :: consider the dissolution of grade levels :: think about year-round school :: open early college high schools :: connect early learning with K-12 with postsecondary :: volunteer :: talk to people :: stop thinking about the arts as supplemental but essential :: think collaboratively, creatively, critically - and then model those actions for our young people. In other words, there's a lot to do!

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April 15, 2013 at 9:52 pm

Ultimately the arts are a major player in the education system for a variety of reasons we all know and love. The arts serving as a method for retention in schools is definitely a point that has been brought up consistently over the years- what I'd love to see more of personally is not only the arts serving as a point of retention, but as a relevant career path. Oftentimes they are branded as "an escape," "an alternative," "a refreshment,"-- but what about as a bona fide way to live a happy and healthy (and financially stable) life? Art is something that so many kids grow up loving but leave behind because they think its not real. I'd love for that reality to be addressed in schools!

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April 17, 2013 at 12:06 pm

Hi Cristy! Yes, there are so many benefits of teaching and learning through the arts. I think we should support students interested in the arts as a profession. I also think we should think about creative leadership and how to infuse creativity into any profession. Ken Robinson talks about this and lots of other good ideas here: http://www.thinkwithgoogle.co.uk/quarterly/creativity/the-educator.html Thanks!

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Tanya Mead says
April 18, 2013 at 11:27 am

I love the question: how can a culturally thriving city such as Portland be struggling (as it is)in terms of its educational programming? I think it is a great question. For me one of the most disturbing things about our public school system are the inequities that exist between schools, in a single district such as PPS. Savvy and affluent parents move to the 'right' area to get their kids into the best schools with good resources. For my work, I visit district schools and it is so disturbing to see the inequities as a parent, citizen and educator. Take school libraries as one small example: you will see libraries run by a fully trained teacher librarian along with two assistants, a school library fully run by an assistant, a library run by parent volunteers, and finally a library barely open with limited hours. I literally feel sick when I see these differences. These issues profoundly affect our kids love of reading and literacy levels, which are connected to all, of their learning. I have seen great teachers in all kinds of schools in Portland but some have much harder "rows to hoe" because of a lack of resources that other schools have come to take for granted.

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Nick says
April 22, 2013 at 8:40 am

It seems Portland is a wonderful place, and should be next on my places to visit. I am particularly interested in the education system nationwide. I believe that there is so much talent with our nation's youth and that there are not enough of us, adults, who have the hope you and I have. With that being said there are many cities much like yours. Let's look at Atlanta, my hometown, the capital of urban music, and home to a melting pot of artistic influences and also one of the nations worst public school district. I see a trend in which students drop out because school does not have a need for them, they see the money in street pharmacy, rap music, and night dancing. This is a very alarming and true reality that many students are faced with, and many teachers are dumbfounded about what to do. The answer to me is quite simple, cater to the students. By using the plethora of natural beauty that Portland has, or the cultural stigma that Atlanta boast; teachers can encourage students to find their place. In a world where everything and everyone is different teachers must understand that everyone does not learn the same. To teach a student math does/ should not ALWAYS mean going to the white and writing numbers and creating equations. The concept of math may mean stepping out of the norm and find interest in the student which may mean using colors as numbers and draw a picture based off of a given equation. I believe that if a teacher is not interested in the development of their students, than the student will not be interested in the development of themselves. I whole heartedly agree of stimulating our nations youth to think better, wiser, and creatively in the classroom. I have hope for them.

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Todd Diskin says
April 16, 2013 at 2:20 pm

Welcome back Rafael! I am so happy to see you have returned to us and doing this great work. Your daughter is in kindergarten! Where has the time gone. Thanks for this inspiring introduction I look forward to seeing the great things you will be doing in your new role and I hope our paths cross.

Todd Diskin

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April 17, 2013 at 11:34 am

Thanks, Todd! It's good to be back in PDX. Let's figure out a time for our paths to cross :)

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April 16, 2013 at 3:11 pm

Thanks for this thoughtful post, Rafael. I'm particularly pleased to see that folks at Grantmakers for Education are thinking about the arts and the critical role they play in education. I attended a GFE conference a couple of years ago where the arts were barely mentioned. We need more funders who invest in education to recognize the arts as core curriculum...

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April 17, 2013 at 11:45 am

Matty -
Thanks for reading. There is so much happening in education that it can be hard to pull everything together in a single conference, especially with many funders interested in policy, Race to the Top, i3, advocacy issues, race and gender equality, Common Core, etc. But I agree with you on the need for increased attention to incorporating the arts into curriculum - not just as additional classes but integrated with how instruction is offered. Several years ago, GFE did a conference in partnership with Grantmakers in the Arts in Albuquerque. Maybe it's time to look at those kinds of partnerships again...

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April 17, 2013 at 12:46 pm

Thanks Crystal. I honestly can't imagine how to think about education without government involvement. I think that's just part of the puzzle. But your role as a teacher and parent will be powerful and influential and I hope the politics of the day don't leave you discouraged before you begin. Will you be teaching in Portland?

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Crystal says
April 16, 2013 at 8:03 pm

This is a great article. As a parent and a soon to be teacher I am very concerned how our schools are performing. It makes me wonder why the government cuts education cost first before cutting anything else. Teachers are getting less pay and less days to work but then some are getting no pay raises because of their students test scores. I don't beleive that our education problems will get better as long as the government is involved.

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