Arts and Cultural Education at School in Europe. Latvia 2007/08

Overview & Synopsis

This paper focuses on Latvia's arts and cultural education. Cultural and creative dimensions of education in broader sense are responsibility both of the Ministry of Education and Science and the Ministry of Culture. Decisions about the creation of the curriculum related to culture and creativity within education are made at central level. Latvia has specified aims for the whole curriculum. Curriculum (both the Standard and Model Programme for Basic Education) includes cultural and creative aims. Among main aims of basic education is a following: "to enable harmonic development of a pupil." This paper contains the following sections: (1) Responsibility and purpose; (2) Organisation and aims of arts education; (3) Special provision with a focus on art education; (4) Assessment of pupils' progress and monitoring of standards in the arts; (5) Teacher education in the arts; (6) Initiatives; (7) Ongoing reforms and proposals; and (8) Responsibility and purpose. (Contains 1 footnote.)