Kristina is the Director of Youth Dreamers. Based in Baltimore, Youth Dreamers began in 2001 and created a youth-run youth center that employs teens and creatively serves children of all ages. Since 2001, Youth Dreamers have raised over $900,000 and served 618 youth in Baltimore City. For more information on Youth Dreamers check out their website and their book! Kristina is also the Education Director of Young Audiences Maryland (YAMD) and the Literacy Specialist of YAMD's Summer Arts and Learning Academy. Below she shares her unique perspective on arts and literacy, and the impacts of arts and literacy on student lives.
What does it mean to be literate? I would take it further than just "a person able to read and write." I believe to be literate TODAY, you must be able and want to read for a variety of reasons AND be able to express yourself/communicate in multiple ways - through writing, speaking, an art form, etc. It is NOT enough to simply be able to read and write - you need to be CURIOUS, CRITICAL, REFLECTIVE, and ARTICULATE (not in the fancy way, but in a way that allows you to clearly communicate. What roles do literacy and language play in identity formation? We figure out WHO we are based on the experiences we have, our engagement with others, and our opportunities to READ about different perspectives. Literacy and language are vehicles for that to happen. How have arts integrated approaches to teaching literacy compare to more "traditional" approaches? How has this affected student performance? Access! Much like Gardner's worm on multiple intelligences, it is COMMON SENSE that we all learn and express our understanding through different modalities. STANDARDS and STANDARDIZED testing can limit how we deliver instruction and what acceptable methods of assessment are. WITH the arts, you HONOR the uniqueness of each individual, invite opportunities to take control of learning through creative choices, explore a variety of ways to communicate and ultimately help students discover who they are vs. being defined by others. Students ACHIEVE when they are HEARD, when they are ENGAGED in different ways, when they are guided to be REFLECTIVE, and when they have choices about how to demonstrate their new understandings. When done well... literacy provides an avenue to step out of our comfort zones and learn about others. The arts provide a vehicle for this AND build the COMMUNITY that is essential for young people to TAKE RISKS. How can community arts initiatives connect students of different languages, dialects, and vernaculars? How do these programs promote mutual respect among students? Community arts initiatives (if done well) are grounded in the communities in which they take place. Even so, these programs must take the time to Build COMMUNITY among participants by allowing each individual to express who he/she is THROUGH ART. Language is not necessary - we can understand each other through art. This freedom to tell our own stories, identify commonalities, and feel comfortable asking questions of each other create and support mutual respect, compassion, honesty and authenticity. Does an emphasis on Standard English create inequitable learning environments? If so, can the arts effectively address these inequities? We can recognize and understand Standard English AND create spaces (through the ARTS and through simply being an effective facilitator) where other dialects and vernaculars are honored, understood and celebrated as part of who we are as unique individuals.
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