A Salford-based artist hopes that the government scrapping its current assessments is the start of a journey to bringing creativity back into school curriculums.
Emma Evans (@emmaevansstudio), artist and owner of the Wandering Palate in Monton, believes that art should be taken more seriously within the education system – and hopes the end of EBacc is the start of a renaissance in art teaching.
The EBacc (English Baccalaureate), is a suite of ‘traditional’ GCSEs – it is a Conservative policy introduced in 2010 which requires students at secondary school age to take english, maths, science, a language and a humanity.
Under previous rules, schools have been rewarded in league tables if they were able to have a large proportion of students take it. However since the Labour government’s decision to scrap the EBacc this month, artists around Salford hope that art will take a bigger priority within school curriculums.
Emma Evans, artist and business owner based in Monton, has worked within schools for the last few years: she has illustrated a book for Human Rights UK which has been a tool for education – posters and books are in schools and Emma also does workshops around Human Rights.
Credit: Emma Evans @emmaevansstudio
Having struggled with english and maths herself as someone with dyslexia, Emma feels art and creativity is not embraced in schools like it should be.
“It’s important that students are awarded correctly for their creativity to uplift them, and to acknowledge that it is possible for them to pursue a creative career,” said Emma.
“The government needs to ensure that funding is going in the right places for creativity to take pressure off of schools and teachers, and it is important to be able to get artists from all different backgrounds to pass on their knowledge in schools and inspire our younger generation who are going to be leading us.”
Campaigning to restore arts and creative subjects as a crucial part of the curriculum is the Arts and Minds Campaign – their aim is to draw attention to the ‘creative gap’ present in schools.
Philip Westcott (@westcottphilip), Eccles artist and ex-teacher, said: “Having taught both Technology and Art, I was sad when both subjects started to lose importance in schools.
“Both subjects are important in developing the minds of youngsters and helping them learn a creative process – art helps people cope with the stress of everyday life and we have seen this even more since the pandemic.”
The Arts & Minds Campaign infographic by Georgia Lumb
By becoming a member of the Arts and Minds Campaign, fighting for change in school curriculums ensures that all children will have the opportunity to study creative subjects, and that art will not just be restricted to private school students.
Paul Houghton (@paulhoughtonmosaics), mosaic artist from Salford, said: “I grew up in a council estate in Salford and never thought art as a viable career was possible for someone from my background.
“That is why it’s importance as part of the curriculum is so crucial – often people like myself don’t really get the encouragement at home and it is often a teacher of the creative subjects where that belief and encouragement come from.”
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