A Study on the Relationship between Theater Arts and Student Literacy and Mathematics Achievement

Author(s): Inoa, Rafael; Weltsek, Gustave; Tabone, Carmine | Abstract: Past studies have shown the existence of positive relationships between the arts and academic achievement when the arts are integrated into language arts, as well as mathematics and science. This study employed a multi-stage cluster randomized design in which the effects of infusing process drama into a traditional language arts curriculum are investigated. The study sample consists of sixth and seventh grade students enrolled in a high poverty urban school district. Study findings indicate that students in arts integrated classrooms tend to outperform their counterparts in both math and language arts. The authors conjecture that the arts reinforce theories that view student learning as a process of transmediation between different modes of making meaning.