Promotion of creative abilities and active participation in cultural life of children and young people
- support every child’s right to active participation in cultural life
- encourage every child’s creative abilities equally, irrespective of their talent, background or religion, while also strengthening important other skills such as concentration, motivation, communication skills, creativity, self-awareness, self-discipline, self-confidence, and a sense of responsibility
- strengthen each individual participating child’s self-confidence as well as their sense of social belonging
- harness the positive effects of music and performing arts and the opportunities they provide to inspire children and young people and take a discernible step towards a society of equal opportunities
- connect people across borders, promote dialogue, and provide a positive experience of joint creative work
Examples of programmes dedicated to the promotion of creative abilities in children and young people include:
Superar: This is a high-quality musical programme for young people who, for various reasons, have little or no access to cultural education; the focus is on particular areas where music can contribute to social cohesion and promote dialogue. The programme offers courses in choirs and orchestras free of charge. At “open-house” singing lessons, entire classes or groups of pupils who have undergone no prior selection process receive musical training aimed at helping them achieve the best level possible. Instrumental lessons also take place in groups, with lessons focused on participants not only learning how to use the instruments, but also gaining a basic knowledge of music theory and how to handle and care for the instruments that they are borrowing. These activities are offered to school classes as well as in the form of classes open to the public, such as at community centres. The objective is to match the existing opportunities at the respective locations as closely as possible. Today, 1,200 children and young people are part of Superar in Austria. Furthermore, Superar has recently extended its activities internationally to locations in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Romania, Slovakia, Switzerland and Liechtenstein.
Kulturschultüte (Culture School Cone): The project was initiated 2013 and offers each primary school pupil the opportunity to participate over a period of four years in a free cultural project once a year. Each year is dedicated to one artistic discipline. The projects are developed and implemented in close cooperation with Vienna’s most reputable cultural institutions and cover the annual areas of music, drama, museums, and orchestras. Furthermore, the project offers workshops and training courses to support teachers in integrating cultural content into the curriculum. To date, around 2,100 children and 100 teachers from primary schools – most of which serve high percentages of children with migratory backgrounds and many with
Superar:
- implement 32 choir classes in cooperation with 13 schools
- implement 7 open-house choirs and 1 open-house orchestra
- involve 1,200 children and young people in the project (choirs and orchestras) in Austria, and 800 more in 5 other countries (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Liechtenstein, Romania, Slovakia, and Switzerland).
Kulturschultüte:
- implement at least 14 projects in cooperation with cultural institutions
- involve 2,100 pupils in the project
- expand the network of cooperation partners by at least 1-2 additional cultural institutions each year
- facilitate exchange and cooperation between school directors, teachers, and cultural institutions, by organizing round table discussions and get-togethers
Superar:
About 20% of the budget are provided by the City of Vienna (Municipal Department for Cultural Affairs, the 10th district of Vienna, and School Board of Vienna). The rest is provided by its main partners the Hilti Foundation and the ERSTE Foundation as well as other partners (foundations, donators, sponsors…).
Kulturschultüte:
To date, the project is funded almost exclusively by private sponsoring. Fees for artists involved in the teaching/learning process at schools are provided by the KulturKontaktAustria Dialog Events funding scheme.