I’m not sure if it’s because it’s summer and the tourism/events season is really rolling in South Dakota or if it’s the fantastic arts experiences I’ve had the good fortune of experiencing in the past couple of months, but I’m having a hard time shaking thoughts about non-traditional forms of arts education.

The arts, in all disciplines, are educational by their very nature. If people are engaging in an arts event or exhibit, they are learning, and there’s no way to stop it. But the really cool thing about learning through the arts is the multiplied effect that results. When learning through the arts, audiences are almost always learning about more than one thing. Another really cool thing: This type of learning generally continues through adulthood.

Last weekend, I attended the Gathering of People, Wind, and Water – which is a Rapid City, South Dakota event in its third year. Not only did I increase my knowledge in contemporary Native American Arts, but I also gained a deeper understanding of the culture and customs, as well as important historical events of the Dakota, Nakota, and Lakota people of the Great Sioux Nation. Just the week before that, I visited the National Palace of Pena in Sintra, Portugal. I was perplexed by some of the replicas of ancient artwork displayed in the palace, and I’ve since been on a quest to find out if the royal family actually owned the originals, which are now in museums. I’ve learned more about Ferdinand II and the laws of Portuguese succession than I ever thought I would – but not because I was curious about how a German became king of Portugal. Did you know he was German?

So, these things have me thinking about how the arts help students achieve depth of knowledge and experience in history, geometry, literature, culture, physics, biology, public speaking, design, technology… basically every subject available to them at school.

But they also help students learn in a multitude of other ways. Also last weekend, but on the other side of our state, I made it to the final night of the Sioux Falls Jazz and Blues Society’s annual JazzFest. The magnitude of that event never ceases to amaze me. Arts events and exhibits often include community development efforts, cooperation among organizations and people, volunteerism, and travel.  

Seeing a small group of people bring together 50 Native American artists to exhibit and sell their work, plus arrange for Native dance and music all day in the main square of a city teaches us. Witnessing the work of a largely-volunteer team that arranges a three-day music festival attracting 110,000 in a city with just 170,000 people teaches us. Traveling to a foreign land and visiting their museums, learning about their customs, and talking to the people teaches us.

There’s no doubt that summer is one of the most opportune times for people to learn through the arts. Family trips, numerous festivals and events, and nice weather certainly help, and I hope everyone takes advantage of those opportunities. But can we just think for a moment about the effects that more of this type of learning during school could have on student comprehension levels?

Our educational system has become so achievement-focused, that we’ve forgotten about learning beyond a superficial degree of remembering the correct answer to put on the test. Real learning must include experiencing. It must include understanding.

What have been some of your best learning experiences in and out of school? Please share them with us in the comments below.