Pomaika‘i Elementary School

Background
Pōmaika‘i Elementary School (K-5), opened in Kahului, Maui on July 30, 2007 with 350 students (nearly 150 more than planned). An ArtsPartner School with Maui Arts & Cultural Center, Pōmaika‘i (blessed in Hawaiian), presents a unique opportunity for the Hawai’i ’95 Team to investigate the impact of an arts integrated curriculum on attitudes towards school, effective teaching, and student performance. We are committed to investigating the impacts for at least the next three years.

Objectives of the research:
1. To bring attention to how an arts integrated curriculum effects:

• Teacher morale
• Students’ motivation to learn
• Students’ time on task
• Parental involvement in school

Q1. What are the foundational beliefs about arts integration at Pōmaika‘i?

Based on the data collected from teacher reflections (journals and year-end retreat) and teacher interviews, the core beliefs at Pōmaika‘i are:

• Beauty and Celebration. Find the beauty in everyone and celebrate it! Students feel honored which builds confidence. We acknowledge gifts in others.
• Unity and Community. Through lokahi (Hawaiian value of unity and harmony) we can build the foundation of love. Students come to school with an open mind and positive attitude. Teachers are unified in teaching the whole child. Parents/community are actively involved in their child’s learning and support the school’s vision.
• “Whole Child” as a foundation for decision making. The needs of the whole child are the foundation of all decisions. Students are engaged, communicate and share. Teachers and staff collaboratively gather and analyze authentic student data to drive decisions.
• Learning can be fun and engaging. Learning is fun and engaging. Students respect, listen, participate and take risks! Teachers have well planned lessons; are organized and participate in professional development. Parents/community are involved and supportive.
• Malama, take care of each other and community. We need to malama (Hawaiian value of nurturing) each other, our community and the environment. (Everyone tries their best in the learning process.)
• Teach to the strengths of the child. We all have a right to learn in the way we learn best. I am loved and supported and challenged.

Q2. What is the impact of drama integration on teachers and students?

Findings
100% of the seventeen (17) teachers interviewed reported student improvement in learning using drama. The major categories we found that impacted teachers and students were:

• Collaboration/Community
  “I like how everyone is one big family; the philosophy is wonderful.”
  “We are making the rules; I love the camaraderie and support.”
  “This is a dream to be here; I love the support, kids, staff, curriculum, artists. The sky is the limit if you are willing to put in the time.”
• Engagement
  “[Drama] was especially effective with my ESL students. They were more engaged and the time on task improved.”
  “I get it now! I’ve been doing it all wrong before. I made them work and work. When I integrate the arts they want to learn.”
  “Drama brings the classroom alive and kids have a better understanding.”
• Rigor in learning
  “I have recorded evidence of student improvement; having kids reflect has bumped up the quality.”
  “I’ve seen some improvement on test scores, but even more when they can verbally express their learning.”
• Teacher Self-Confidence
  “The influences from Pomaika`i completely revolutionized the way I approach teaching.”
  “My arts integration has been a journey indeed . . . I am now feeling much more comfortable in integrating the arts into my curriculum daily.”
• Positive Learning Environment – finding JOY!
  “I love the staff; they are wonderful and have a positive attitude. The kids see this and it seeps into their relationships.”
  Community member and teaching artist Paul Wood commented, “I visit a lot of schools and I walk into a lot of classrooms. I get a lot of information, much of it intuited, about the "vibes" of schools and the atmosphere of individual classrooms. The palpable vibe at Pomaika'i, in a word: 'joy.' You folks are working your okoles (rear end) off, that's obvious. But the atmosphere that you are creating together is calm and joyful. That is not usual.”

Additional learnings or unanticipated outcomes that came about as a result of the project.

1. It is absolutely critical to have an arts integration curriculum coordinator in a school that is going to have the arts as a core value and integral to all learning. Rae Takemoto, a Master Arts Integration Teacher, began the 2007-08 school year as a third grade teacher, but it soon became apparent that she would not be able to coordinate the research, support the teachers’ learning, and be a full-time teacher. In October 2008, funds were acquired to hire a new teacher from the mainland to take Rae’s 3rd grade class. Without her support, it would have been impossible to have made the huge progress in increasing the knowledge and experience of the teachers in arts integration.

2. We saw a marked “growth spurt” in teacher effectiveness after the 3 days of professional development by Sean and Melanie Layne, March 14-17. (One day of demonstration lessons followed by reflection and deconstructing the lessons plus 2 days of hands-on workshops in developing the actor’s toolkit of skills, tableau as a learning strategy, and documenting student learning.) Why was this so powerful? There was a shared experience of what quality looks like followed by reflection with the TA and 2 full days of direct instruction by an artist and a teacher team. We now had the criteria.

3. The residency with Donna Breeden was an introduction. Teachers got a smorgasbord of activities. Teachers were not ready for the Layne workshop at the beginning of the year. Scaffolding of the professional development included the residency as a first step.

4. In order for teachers to “own” a strategy, they need to see it used with students in an exemplary way, reflect on that strategy, and practice it. This is more of the scaffolding process. When there is focused use of a strategy, the quality increased as the frequency of using the term decreased.

5. The number of teacher professional development hours definitely correlates with how effectively they teach arts integrated lessons.

6. In addition, when a school has a vision that everyone supports, and when that vision is the foundation for all planning, success is not only possible but probable. The leadership team at Pōmaika‘i has a multi-year plan on how to effectively implement an arts integrated curriculum. The foundation of that plan is professional development which includes arts residencies (modeling); focused, hands-on workshops for staff; mentoring by teaching artists and the school arts leadership team; and reflection/articulation on how the process is working. None of these pieces can be eliminated.

7. What we discovered years ago at Kula School still holds true! If the right teachers are given support and encouragement in teaching, in, through, and about the arts, a life-long passion develops and makes the learning for teachers, students, and parents joyous and effective.

Next Steps

Building upon what we learned this year, we will continue to provide arts residencies for students and professional development workshops and reflection/articulation sessions with the arts integration curriculum coordinator for teachers. (There will be 5 new teachers next year—all attended the MACC Summer Institute for Educators.) During this first year, we built the foundation of the arts integrated school. Next year we would like to continue the research and look closer at student learning while still collecting data on teacher practice and community/parent involvement. Our research questions for next year will be on how an arts integrated curriculum effects students’ written and oral communication skills and the impact of an arts integrated curriculum on developing a strong school community.

For more information, contact Susana Browne at susana@mauiarts.org.