The arts can provide valuable educational opportunities for students to encounter and contribute to the world and reflect on their experiences and cultures as well as those of others. However, despite the benefits, arts education opportunities have been in steady decline throughout the United States over the last half-century. This decline has not been equal across student subgroups; while Latinx and Black students have experienced substantial declines, White students have seen virtually no change.
In this brief, the Houston Education Research Consortium investigates the extent to which national trends in inequitable arts learning opportunity, at least in terms of secondary school course offerings and enrollment, occur in the Houston Independent School District (HISD).
Key Findings
- There is substantial variation in the number of art courses offered by the socioeconomic and racial/ethnic composition of HISD high schools.
- There are pronounced disparities in art course offerings across HISD high schools based on the percentage of White students schools serve.
- There is substantial variation in art course enrollment by the socioeconomic and racial composition of HISD high schools.
- There seem to be pronounced disparities in art course enrollment across HISD high schools based on the percentage of White students schools serve.
