The State Board of Education, in conjunction with the South Carolina Arts Commission, shall plan and develop discipline-based arts education curricula in the visual arts, music, dance, and drama which complies with the State Department of Education discipline-based arts education curriculum framework. The State Board of Education shall cause the arts education curricula to be pilot tested in selected school districts during 1989-90, 1990-91, 1991-92, and 1992-93 and shall provide teacher in-service training programs for arts specialists and classroom teachers.

After pilot testing, the State Board of Education shall establish regulations related to in-service training and curriculum development in cooperation with the Arts in Basic Curriculum Steering Committee and after consultation with the Education Oversight Committee. These regulations shall encourage innovation and flexibility and reflect the integrity of instruction required by each arts discipline. These regulations must be developed in cooperation with school and district-level teachers and administrators.

Funds for the program must be used by the school districts to:

(1) plan, develop, and implement discipline-based arts education curricula in the visual arts, music, dance, or drama compatible with the State Department of Education discipline-based arts education curriculum framework;

(2) provide teacher in-service training programs for arts specialists or appropriate classroom teachers or both which are approved by the State Department of Education working with the state's colleges and universities;

(3) hire certified arts specialists or contract with professional artists approved by the South Carolina Arts Commission to assist certified arts specialists or appropriate classroom teachers or both in planning, developing, and implementing discipline-based arts education curricula.

The Joint Legislative Study Committee on Formula Funding shall review whether or not arts education should be given a weighting under the Education Finance Act, if appropriate, recommend a weighting, and report to the Education Oversight Committee by December 1, 1990. The General Assembly shall phase in the arts education program and funding for the arts education program after piloting over three years in substantially equal annual intervals.

HISTORY: 1989 Act No. 194, Section 17; 1998 Act No. 400, Section 15.