Applications for the next round of Creatives in Schools will open on Friday, June 16.

Minister of Education Jan Tinetti and Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Carmel Sepuloni made the announcement today during a visit at Te Wharekura o Mauao in Tauranga.

'The Creatives in Schools programme funds schools and teachers to collaborate with professional artists to deliver engaging learning experiences for students,” says Tinetti.

Since 2020, Creatives in Schools has supported more than 500 creative projects across Aotearoa New Zealand.

'We continue to hear positive stories from ākonga, kaiako, whānau, and the artists who've been involved in the programme,” says Tinetti.

'This is reinforced by the evaluations of the programme, which found that Creatives in Schools helps share knowledge and offers creative opportunities for teaching and learning in kura and schools.

'The evaluation also found that Creatives in Schools has helped some schools to connect with and motivate students in positive ways, and in some instances, has contributed to their wider work to re-engage students in education,” says Tinetti.

The Creatives in Schools programme is delivered by the Ministry of Education in partnership with the Ministry for Culture and Heritage and Creative New Zealand.

'Across a number of visits over the years, I've had the pleasure of seeing Creatives in Schools, in action. And today, I was once again pleased to see the delight and enjoyment on the faces of both our ākonga and creatives at our visit to Te Wharekura o Mauao,” says Sepuloni.

'For me, this reflects first-hand the beneficial impact of Creatives in Schools in developing and harnessing the creativity of our rangatahi, while also supporting creative professionals with both work and upskilling opportunities.

'The outcomes from the programme have been very encouraging. The recently published Covid-19 Cultural Recovery Programme Impacts Report 2021/22 found that 90 per cent of creatives* were likely to reuse or build on the knowledge gained from the programme.

'More than 90 per cent of teachers involved in 2022 projects reported they helped students to develop critical thinking skills and self-management skills and supported students to express themselves and become more competent using language, symbols and text.

'These encouraging findings reflect the kaupapa of the programme and its benefit to both tamariki and creatives, whereby, artistic and non-creative skills are developed by students, and transferrable career skills are gained by the artists.”

Applications will close on August 21 for creative projects to be implemented in 2024.

Visit www.creativesinschools.tki.org.nz for more information.