The Capital Region Center for Arts in Education  Founded on the Lincoln Center Institute (LCI) model of aesthetic education, The Center for AIE (founded in 1982) brings area schools a comprehensible professional development program that supports teachers in the use of  strategies for imaginative learning. This experimental approach strengthens critical thinking, creative problem solving, imaginative and perceptual abilities. The Center works in partnership with pre-K through grade twelve educators, professional development providers and degree-granting teacher education programs.

Central tenets of imaginative learning are:

• Arts in education teaches creativity through cognitive processes and social environment.
• It is often project-based and involves problem solving.
• It becomes applicable to learning in all academic disciplines, including math, reading, the sciences, and the arts themselves. Instructional strategies support learning across the curriculum.
• Imaginative learning builds brain-based pathways for critical thinking skills and stimulates the perceptual and innovative abilities of young learners. The learning platform is immersion in complex experiences; low threat/high challenge; active processing and reflection.

The Center for AIE’s program is successful because it is comprehensive and incorporates what research proves about effective professional development. Our educational approach supports sustained, coherent study; collaborative learning; time for classroom application; and follow-up. It aligns teachers’ learning opportunities with their real work experiences, using actual curriculum materials and assessments.

Teaching Artist and Teacher Partnerships - a collaborative feature of the program takes place in the classroom, where teachers and specially trained teaching artists (professionals in dance, music, drama or visual arts) plan and implement instructional units of study.