Describe the main features of the policy/measure:
Programme ‘Backpack (full) of culture’ is part of the government policy for kindergartens, elementary and high schools. The programme is a joint initiative of the Ministry of Culture and Media and Ministry of Science and Education. It is a national complementary programme of support to the elementary and high school curriculum related to arts and culture which is implemented in schools by experts (writers, fine artists as well as theatre, music and dance artists). It provides children and youth with better access to culture bringing them closer to the fields of art and culture, thus also contributing to the development of their aesthetic culture.
The Ministry of Culture and Media issues a yearly public call for the expression of interest for artists, artistic organisations and cultural NGOs to participate in this programme, while the Programme Committee selects the participating artists and/or organizations that would become part of the yearly programme. The Ministry of Culture and Media provides financing for the selected programmes, while the Ministry of Science and Education was responsible for providing the network of schools that hosted the selected programmes. The Programme was oriented to children and youth from 3-18 years of age, while the artistic range of the programmes was rather wide – from performing arts, fine arts, film, cultural heritage to literature, especially programmes oriented to the promotion of reading.
Website of the policy/measure, if available:
What are the results achieved so far through the implementation of the policy/measure?:
In the period from its initial launch in 2013 until December 2015, there were over 100 artistic-educational programmes executed in 63 kindergartens, 125 primary schools, 10 high schools, 3 rehabilitation centres. 2863 children in kindergartens participated in the programme, 6835 primary school children and 1476 children in high schools, together with 120 children with special needs. In 2016, during last three months of the programme additional 42 programmes were executed in which 1576 children participated. In 2017 out of 148 programmes that applied for funding 47 programmes were selected and 7236 children participated in the programme. In 2018 the same amount of applications was submitted and the same number of programmes were selected, while 5197 (school) children participated in the programme. In the 2019 the number of submitted and accepted applications rose (184 and 66 respectively), and 6369 children participated in the programme. Thus, the implementation of the programme resulted in a high number of quality artistic programmes distributed to a large number of pupils and students throughout Croatia, contributing to the decentralisation of culture and providing better access to culture to children and youth.
Financial resources allocated to the policy/measure in USD:
2019 - 312.500USD
Partner(s) engaged in the implementation of the measure:
| Name of partner | Type of entity |
|---|---|
Ministry of Science and Education
| Public Sector
|
Has the implementation of the policy/measure been evaluated?:
YES
If yes, what are the main conclusions/recommendations?:
The evaluation showed that such programme was necessary for both kindergartens as well as primary and high schools, where the arts and cultural education programmes are not adequately present. The evaluation showed that this is especially relevant for those educational institutions that are in the areas with inadequate traffic and digital connectivity (e.g. the islands, mountain regions etc.). In 2018, a special pilot programme for the islands called ‘The Island Backpack’ was created that resulted in the execution of 43 programmes and workshops on a number of Croatian islands where more than 600 children participated.
As a recognition of the quality of the programme, it should be mentioned that the programme ‘Backpack Full of Culture’ was selected as a good practice example for the OMC Group on Key Competence 8 Cultural Awareness and Expression manual for cultural and artistic education, published in 2016.