Education of arts vital

 ARTS education at any level within the education system is rarely considered a core subject matter necessary for a child or a nation’s development in Papua New Guinea, a university art lecturer says.

The University of Papua New Guinea Arts Strand leader Sophie Naime stated that in her write up of the reassessment of creative arts strand training and education.

She said many have argued that arts could only be taken by artists or those interested as there was no employment after graduating.  

Naime said the creative arts strand lacked adequate resources to train and educate the students creating a loop between knowledge and skill set.

When quoting Bamford, A and Wimmer, M.  2012 in their edition of The Role of Arts Education in Enhancing School Attractiveness, which stated: “[w]hile the degree to which the arts are included in national curriculum varies, it could be argued that most policies for the state school – as an institution – encourage young people to take part in the social, economic and cultural life. 

“Although this supports the notion that arts education is a part and partial of human development, the full effect of grasping techniques and skills is often disadvantaged by lack of adequate resources.”