Killing and reviving craft in every curriculum?

Here something again to add to our growing understanding why crafts are important:

There is a group on facebook called "Killing Craft through educational vandalism"

This fast growing Face Book Group was initially set up to draw attention to what was happening at one of Scotland’s leading art institutions, Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art (DoJ) in Dundee with the dropping of weave from it’s Textiles Course with immediate effect, this has now been temporarily over turned meaning the current second year students may now complete their studies as weave students in 2012. 

 Their site is well worth the time for an in deph visit, to find out about makers, esp weavers, from around the country, and very crafty initiatives around the world, such as 'crocheting the coral reef', a huge enterprise not only stretching the creative scope of crocheting, but also combining craft with studying biology, mathematics, and much much more...

One contributor to the facebook group is 

Joanna McLeman Gisbey

and she writes on Aug 15

Hello James,

Thank you for that heartfelt (ha-ha, no pun intended!) letter. There just has to be passion about this, especially in Scotland, where for generations we have had a wealth of creative industries.

Personally, I am an artist/maker/designer and I teach Art part-time in primary schools. The children today, across... the board, are lacking in dextrous skills. Once they have made, drawn, created something themselves, which initially they didn't have a clue about, they are SO delighted, and more confident, and willing to try more!

The whole push of Curriculum for Excellence for 3-18 year olds has a HUGE emphasis on the Creative/Expressive Arts and learning through those, so if the further education courses are being cut now, where do these creative beings continue? Japan???

All good wishes, and Keep Going,
Joanna McLeman Gisbey.

 Joanna also has a very nice slide show about herself on (click) here.