CODE was founded in 1970 after an informal community of Drama educators connected with one another for moral support and to share their questions, their best practices and their challenges in the late sixties. The first CODE conference was organized by this group in 1971.
In the late nineties, Dance teachers joined our organization because they were also seeking a teacher community and we welcomed them to join with us.
Today CODE embraces a vibrant and supportive community of teachers across the province to support and connect with one another as well as with artists, arts organizations, not for profit theatre and dance companies, and even with community minded businesses who support our work enthusiastically.
Provincial: Subject Association Partners
CODE works with all of the the other ARTS provincial subject associations. Find a complete list on the OTF Curriculum Forum page.
In particular, we collaborate with:
- Ontario Art Education Association (OAEA) Visual Arts
- Ontario Music Educators’ Association (OMEA) Music
- First Nations, Metis, and Inuit Education Association of Ontario (FNMIEAO) This site is essential for Drama and Dance teachers seeking to include Indigenous artists in their efforts to decolonize their arts teaching practices.
In 2023, OAEA, OMEA and CODE formed the Arts Alliance to better support elementary generalists and advocate for the Arts in Ontario.
Provincial: Arts and Education
- Arts En Direct (AFÉAO) This is the provincial subject association for all of the arts: Dance, Drama, Music and Visual Arts for the French Language Boards of Education in Ontario. Please note that the English Language and French Language Boards of Education have slightly different ARTS curricula. English teachers searching for French language resources may need to do minor modifications to meet English language curriculum expectations.
- Arts Education Consultants of Ontario (ARTSECO)
- Dance Ontario
- National Theatre School Festival - Ontario (NTSFestival Ontario)
- Ontario Secondary School DanceFest (OSSDF) (Affiliated with CODE. Our Dance Liaison is on the board of both organizations.)
- Ontario Teacher Educators in the Arts (ONTEA)
- Pulse Dance Conference (Affiliated with CODE. To view the 2018 documentary click here)
- Provocations Journal
Provincial: Education
- Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (ETFO)
- Ontario College of Teachers (OCT)
- Ontario English Catholic Teachers’ Association (OECTA)
- Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation (OSSTF)
- Ontario Teachers’ Federation (OTF/FEO)
- People for Education
National: Arts and Education
- Canadian Conference of the Arts
- Canada Council for the Arts
- Canadian Dance Assembly
- Dance Collection Danse (DCD)
- National Roundtable for Teacher Education in the Arts (NRTEA)
- National Theatre School (NTS)
In 2023, CODE liaised with Provincial drama and theatre subject associations and other stakeholders across Turtle Island to begin a National Drama in Education discussion.
International: Arts and Education
- Dance and the Child International (daCi)
- International Drama/Theatre Education Association (IDEA)
- United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
- World Alliance for Arts Education (WAAE)
Government: Arts and Education
- Canada Council for the Arts (CCA)
- Ontario Arts Council (OAC)
- Ontario Ministry of Education (OME)
- Toronto Arts Council (TAC)
CODE Members can find out about opportunities to get involved with management board meetings, committees, and current projects in the Member Zone.
This page is about CREATING COMMUNITIES for Dance and Drama in Education and an on-going work in progress. Please contact president@code.on.ca for suggestions, questions, and comments.
Last updated May 6, 2024