Cultural Education Plans
In recent years, cultural education at schools has become goal-oriented and organised in the geographical areas of the cultural centres, first and foremost thanks to the plans for cultural education. A cultural education plan is a plan drafted by a municipality or region on how culture, art and cultural heritage education shall be carried out as part of general education in the municipality or region. The plan is based on the curriculum. At the same time, it guarantees every pupil the same opportunity to attend this education. The ambition is to give all the pupils at preschools and comprehensive schools access to culture and art every year. Cultural education binds together different subjects and penetrates all instruction in addition to art and craft subjects. Approximately one third of Finnish municipalities have cultural education plans. These plans take into account each region’s own cultural heritage and offerings.
Several cultural centres for children have had a decisive influence in the creation and implementation of these plans in their respective regions. From the very beginning, a cultural education plan is put into action in collaboration between schools and actors in the culture and art sectors. The education and culture sectors pledge to comply with the common plan together with art institutions, such as libraries, museums and theatres. This cooperation guarantees the children and youth in the municipality or region equal access to local culture in a multifaceted way.
The culture contact persons are a vital link between schools and the cultural centres for children. These culture contact persons, appointed by kindergartens and schools, inform the staff at their workplaces about the offering of children’s culture, handle the registrations to attend, give feedback to event organisers and participate in the programme planning from the perspective of an expert in upbringing issues. Culture contact persons are needed in drafting the cultural education plans, for instance. They have an important role in developing the plan and in managing the practical arrangements.
The national Kulttuurivoltti project, implemented in 2015–2016, produced an online service for drafting a Cultural Education Plan.
