Purpose
The Arts, Media, and Entertainment (AME) Industry Sector is a California Department of Education (CDE) program designed to identify and develop curriculum, standards, instructional resources, and assessment strategies for teachers, students, guidance personnel, curriculum planners, and administrators. Leadership in the AME Sector is fostered through partnerships with a variety of media and entertainment industry partners and key representatives from the California Community Colleges, California State Universities, and the University of California Postsecondary Education systems. The program identifies tools, resources, strategies, activities and standards to assure that students are offered challenging, relevant academic and career-related experiences. Through on-going implementation of high quality, standards-based programs, students may access a range of sequential courses of study developing skills in Design, Visual and Media Arts, Performing Arts, Production and Managerial Arts, and Game and Simulation Design pathways, as well as focused in-depth study of specific AME Sector careers.
Program/Services
CDE services for the AME Industry Sector are located within the High School Innovations and Initiatives Office. The CDE assigned AME Industry Sector Lead and participating industry partners support implementation of a quality standards-based program of instruction for AME.
The specific services and program objectives include the following:
- Provide technical assistance and monitor the work of industry sector grant recipients to insure compliance to state and federal laws and regulations.
- Create instructional resources such as Career Pathway Guides, strategies for implementing the Career Technical Education (CTE) AME Industry Sector Model Curriculum Standards, and Integrated Performance Activities aligned with the standards.
- Assist with the establishment of statewide AME Industry Sector work groups and advisory committees.
- Review regional and statewide data from the AME Industry Sector project leads and others to inform decisions.
- Promote the integration of the academic disciplines and industry-based standards into new and existing AME curriculum.
- Provide technical assistance and support for AME Industry Sector project leads for project operation, funding, and leadership direction.
- Promote the development and implementation of AME Industry Sector professional development activities through programs and services provided in statewide and local seminars, conferences, and workshops.
- Promote the inclusion and expansion of AME Industry Sector activities in elementary and middle school career awareness programs.
- Provide schools and stakeholders with current information on exemplary arts career education programs, such as those in specialized high schools, middle schools, career academies, and programs that have made arts career education a curriculum focus or have infused the application of core subject area disciplines into arts career development courses.
- Involve teachers, administrators, artists, parents, arts-related business and industry representatives, and members of the broader community in the process of identifying the qualities that mark an outstanding instructional model for schools based on the AME industry standards.
- Establish programs and initiatives that will develop new ways for business and industry to work closely with schools on an ongoing basis.
- Analyze and share innovative approaches to bridge the gap between school and the world of work to create a variety of opportunities for a free flow of arts industry information, resources, and career-oriented experiences for students.
Beginning in 2012, the AME Sector will launch a new career pathway in Game and Simulation Design. The use of computer games and simulations exists in almost every other industry and this new pathway will help prepare students to take a leading role in this rapidly expanding segment of the AME industry.
Outcomes
Local school-based AME instructional programs are a part of the entire educational experience at high school. In addition to the variety of training options provided by California Community Colleges and Regional Occupational Programs and private postsecondary institutions, the University of California and California State University systems list over 3,700 AME courses statewide which satisfy a-g requirements for university admission.
Raising the quality of discipline specific instruction by including, where possible, the Common Core and academic subjects content standards and the Visual and Performing Arts Content Standards with the recently adopted state CTE AME Standards results in the following:
- Providing new and existing resources, strategies, activities, including standards-aligned curricula to assure that students are offered challenging, academic and career-related experiences.
- Providing students an awareness of the many career opportunities available within the sector.
- Establishing learning opportunities and partnerships that increase career guidance and educational relevance leading to improved student involvement and achievement and preparation for continued education and careers in the AME Industry Sector.
- Integrating arts career and academic curriculum that includes industry-based standards.
- Identifying and supporting the development of AME Industry Sector digital resources and related links to arts career industries and educational opportunities.
Funding
AME courses and broad-based programs are supported by a variety of state, federal, and private funding streams, including California Partnership Academy Grants, Specialized Secondary Programs Grants, and the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act funds. Certain AME pathway programs are also supported by the Career Pathways Trust Grants as part of local or regional collaborative. Additional funds for leadership development in this industry sector are provided through federal Carl D. Perkins funds. The AME Industry Sector Lead in the High School Innovations and Initiative Office is assigned to oversee and monitor projects and activities supporting the AME Industry Sector programs.
Arts, Media, Entertainment Model Demonstration Sites
Student enrollment in Arts, Media, and Entertainment (AME) programs have grown by 10% or more for each of the past 6 years. In 2012–14 sector enrollment has grown to 147,000 plus students in four sector career pathways. This grant will fund a total of eight regional AME Model Demonstration Sites which will provide dissemination of best practices and regional technical support in the four AME pathways. Each site will receive $15,000 in grant funding to provide two regional Demonstration Days per year at which they would will share pathway standards based curriculum, program design, collaboration strategies, and industry partnership resources. In addition each site would share best practices at a minimum of two statewide or local conferences each year and provide technical assistance to build regional AME capacity.
Students Served
AME Industry Sector curriculum programs serve over 147,000 students statewide in grades seven through twelve. AME programs exits in a variety of delivery models, including District CTE, Linked Learning and California Partnership Academies, Regional Occupational Programs, Tech Prep 2+2, and articulated Community College programs.