"More than any other anti-tobacco program, Artful Truth empowers students," says Jamey Wise, the head of evaluation for the Florida Department of Health's Division of Health Awareness and Tobacco, which in 1998 provided a seed grant for the program." Artful Truth teaches students to deconstruct the messages of the tobacco industry. If they understand that they are being manipulated, students will be less likely to trust the tobacco industry and to start using their products."

Results show the program working phenomenally well to both decrease smoking by 11- and 12-year-olds  - that is the age at which many children first begin using tobacco - and to increase youngsters' comprehension of all types of visual cues. An independent assessment of more than 200 children found that nearly half of those who admitted tobacco use on a pre-program survey claimed to have stopped by the time they completed the program.

Equally significant: students who scored 50 percent or lower on a visual literacy pretest made dramatic gains on the test administered at the program's conclusion. Both tests were based on essay questions that invited students to interpret messages and their meanings.

"These essays are really not about tobacco," says Dr. Sande Milton, a member of the team that evaluated the program. "They are critically thinking essays that answer the question, 'How do you see this ad and what is it attempting to make you do?' That is relevant throughout life."

In the classroom, students and teachers alike have responded well to Artful Truth.

"The colorful workbooks really help get the message across to students in a fun way," says Debra Cline, a Palmetto, Fla., computer graphics teacher who has her sixth graders use computers to complete assignments such as designing logos. "It all ties in to what I'm teaching. Listed for me are the activities, the teaching goals and even the benchmarks that we are working to achieve. That really makes it easy."

Despite great pressure on Florida's K-12 educators to teach core subjects that directly address materials covered in statewide standardized exams, teachers have welcomed the Artful Truth for its easy integration into the curriculum. Teachers work from an instructor's manual that lists the specific skills that are taught in each of the program's 12 lessons. These skills are then correlated for teachers to Florida's Sunshine State Standards, a numeric menu of required basics that educators must account for teaching.

"Artful Truth is a very portable package," notes Dr. Felicidad Curva, whose company was hired to evaluate the program. "Everything is referenced for the teacher. It makes it easy for them to sell the idea of teaching the program to their principals, who are concerned about standardized tests scores and the school's overall grade." (Florida schools are issued annual report cards based on test averages.)

Artful Truth is produced by The Wolfsonian-FIU, an internationally renowned museum of decorative, design and propaganda arts. The Artful Truth - one of dozens of anti-tobacco programs initiated with funds from Florida's landmark $13-billion settlement with the tobacco industry - draws both images and inspiration from the museum's extensive collection of posters, ads and other visual materials. Expert staff with backgrounds in the visual arts and education worked closely with teachers from around the state to produce the user-friendly, graphically arresting student workbooks.

"As a university museum specializing in the visual culture, we felt obligated and uniquely qualified to create such a program," says Cathy Leff, director of The Wolfsonian-FIU. "We began with the premise that art-interpretation skills are higher-order skills that utilize math, language arts and critical thinking. We believe Artful Truth serves as an effective and powerful weapon to help students combat the daily bombardment of images that they face. In this way we can contribute to their growth as sophisticated and discerning citizens."

The Artful Truth Curriculum Pack has been distributed to more than 500 visual arts, language arts, health and other educators around the state. The pack includes an instructor's manual with CD-ROM, 20 reusable student workbooks, worksheets and assessments for photocopying and cards with images to be used by students in the classroom.

Teachers throughout the country who would like to use the Artful Truth in their classrooms can download the entire curriculum from the Artful Truth Web site at www.artfultruth.org. All the materials found in the original Curriculum Pack, including information on the CD-ROM, are available as is a complete evaluation of the program. Students can visit the site to read about Artful Truth, link to tobacco-awareness sites and play computer games designed to stimulate their creativity.

The Wolfsonian receives ongoing support from the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs, Florida Arts Council; Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs through the Cultural Affairs Council, the Mayor and the Miami-Dade County Board of County Commissioners; the Mayor and City Commission of the City of Miami Beach and the Miami Beach Cultural Arts Council; Continental Airlines, the preferred airline of The Wolfsonian; the Chase Manhattan Foundation; the Arthur F. and Alice E. Adams Foundation; American Express; the Indian Creek Hotel; and Hotel Nash.

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