Mineola fine and performing arts staff outline new K�12 curriculum, propose IAAP graduation pathway

Mineolas supervisor of Fine and Performing Arts described a multi-year effort to align arts instruction across kindergarten through 12th grade and to create shared assessments and benchmarks that the district says will reduce redundancy and raise instructional consistency.

In a Feb. 5 presentation to the Mineola Union Free School District Board of Education, Miss Bernstein described the departments curriculum-writing project, collaboration with Nassau BOCES and outside consultants (City BOCES, Will Jones, CJ Oliver), and classroom examples that tie daily instruction to New York State arts standards.

The district has worked to produce a "guaranteed, viable curriculum" so that students receive consistent outcomes regardless of teacher or site. Bernstein said the work included gap analysis, summer curriculum-writing sessions and medium-specific teacher groups (band, orchestra, art) to create a skill tree and benchmark performances.

Bernstein also introduced the Individual Arts Assessment Pathway (IAAP), a portfolio-based pathway aligned to state standards that the district is exploring as a possible graduation pathway option. "It increases student participation in the arts while offering an arts graduation pathway option," she said, adding that the district believes it is "right on time" to consider launching a pilot after completing curricular supports and assessment practices.

Teachers who participated described the benefit of the process. Middle-school teacher Zach St. John told the board the curriculum work allowed teachers to identify gaps and redundancies and to build sequential instruction that "builds upon itself without overlooking any skills." Trustees praised the presentation and asked about data-driven assessment in arts, to which Bernstein and staff described plans to use portfolios and benchmarks to track growth and to guide instruction.

The presentation included examples of student projects, club activities, arts field trips (Hofstra University), instrument purchasing (735 instruments purchased to date), and upcoming events (district art show in March, summer arts camp July 120). Bernstein invited trustees and community members to view a photo book and district art show entries.

Quotation: "We provide a lot of opportunities for all of our learners to experience high quality arts education," Bernstein said.

Whats next: the board asked staff to investigate IAAP logistics and the district indicated it could consider a pilot as soon as next year pending completion of curricular and assessment work.