Assessment in the visual arts: Challenges and possibilities

Abstract

Assessment in art is notoriously difficult and is probably best approached with skepticism. Artistry is notoriously difficult to assess. Yet measures of student learning in art are needed for both advocacy and art education policy. Assessments, particularly large-scale assessments, influence funding and educational policy at all levels. This article explores some of the challenges of assessment in the visual arts and critically examines the Advanced Placement Studio Art Portfolio to illustrate how a product-oriented assessment might influence teaching and policy.     

Learner involvement in art and design education assessment: The missing matrix in Botswana's primary schools

Art in Botswana primary schools is taught under the umbrella term Creative and Performing Arts (CAPA), a subject that encompasses various arts disciplines. The arts disciplines are Physical Education, Music, Design and Technology, Home Economics, and Drama and Dance. The subject introduces learners to various disciplinary knowledge, media, and techniques in the arts. This study focused on the visual arts as a component of CAPA. It investigated the extent to which primary school teachers involved learners in the assessment processes. The qualitative study involved 12 randomly selected primary school teachers from four purposively selected schools and four administrators purposively selected by virtue of their senior positions in practical subjects. The methodology was premised on Parlett and Hamilton's (1972) concept of illuminative evaluation, Black, Harrison, Lee, Marshall, and William's (2004) and Lindstrom's (2007) learner participation models, as well as Feldman's (1994) art criticism model. Data revealed that pupils did not meaningfully participate in the assessment of their own work due to teachers' limited knowledge of appropriate assessment procedures. Teachers did not share the assessment criteria, which were limited to numerical grades and comments such as good, fair, and excellent. Pupils were not involved in critical analysis and evaluation of their art and craft works while in progress. Teachers emphasized the end product and marking was done without any prior negotiation of grading criteria with learners. The study recommends a shared approach to assessment, which values both the process and product of artistic engagement by the learner. Teacher education programs are encouraged to seriously consider assessment of the arts, particularly self assessment as it is this critical dimension that measures children's artistic growth and development.     

Visual arts education provisions for primary schools in Turkey

This article examines the history of art education in Turkey. Since the beginning, the purposes of the arts and art education have been a point of discussion by various authorities. Whether art education should be taught, and how it needs to be taught, have been at the forefront of educationalists' minds. As a result, introducing certain models of art education has been a challenge. The objective of this article is to present the changes in art education since the 19th century in Turkey. The main focus is on art education practices and policies and an overview of key events in Turkey's history of art education. The article also presents issues related to the importance of visual arts education in Turkish primary school settings. In so doing, this research aims to show readers how past developments helped to create the current visual art education policy in Turkey.     

Visual immersion for cultural understanding and multimodal literacy

ABSTRACT

When considering inclusive art curriculum that accommodates all learners, including English language learners, two distinct yet inseparable issues come to mind. The first is that English language learner students can use visual language and visual literacy skills inherent in visual arts curriculum to scaffold learning in and through the arts. Second, in facilitating a sense of belonging for students whose home language and cultural aesthetic may be different from those of the dominant school culture, an authentically developed multicultural art curriculum can guide self-efficacy and inclusiveness. Both aspects of teaching art for English language learners can have the added benefits of facilitating collaborative learning opportunities and increasing worldviews for all students.     

Comparing the effects of art education and science education on creative thinking in high school students

What is the link between art and creativity? The purpose of this study was to determine the role of art education in creative thinking. A causal-comparative research design was used. Arts and science high school students (N = 162) participated. Results showed that creative thinking in visual arts students in Grade 10 with high scores differed significantly from that in music and science students; however, this difference was not found among students in Grade 11. A main reason for this result in Grade 10 students might be the non-routine problem-solving process in visual arts education, in which artwork production is an important component in creative thinking development. Considering this result, it was concluded that the effect of different education disciplines—called education department effect—on creative thinking can be significant.     

From Lessons Learned to Local Action: Building Your Own Policies for Effective Arts Education

This article explores the process of using lessons learned about high quality, effective arts education programs to help local educational leaders and practitioners create their own policy statements. It raises questions about policy implications from those lessons and connects them to the readers'own experience. It provides an intellectual framework and an action agenda for developing local policy at the classroom, school, or district level that supports high quality arts education for every student. It argues that effective arts education programs must be supported by responsive policy and ongoing tax levy funds to have a greater chance for providing quality arts teaching and learning that endures.     

The arts in Brazilian public schools: Analysis of an art education experience in Mato Grosso State,Brazil

This article examines the relation between official policy on art education in Brazilian basic education and what is actually taught and done in public school teaching in Mato Grosso, Brazil. Making use of interpretative analysis, I directly observed art classes in schools selected in the state of Mato Grosso. I also analyzed the laws, guidelines, parameters, and other official documents related to art education in Brazilian primary and secondary schools and compared them to the observed practices in the selected schools. Specifically in Mato Grosso, there is a gap between the theoretical guidelines of these documents and what is taught and done in public schools. Conceptions of the discipline of art education in official documents are not in line with the practices of this discipline in the researched elementary schools, a discord that may contribute to art being misunderstood as a lesser discipline. Using the results of this research, I intend to seek effective ways to discuss the arts in the curriculum of primary and secondary schools and highlight their importance in school curricula. My objective is not only that these results benefit public schools by encouraging the expansion of concrete and effective public policies for the quality and improvement of primary and secondary school education and the training of arts teachers, but also that these results will assist researchers studying arts education by showing how to extend that study beyond the academic walls.     

Defining quality in visual art education for young children: Building on the position statement of the Early Childhood Art Educators

ABSTRACT

This article reflects the collective voices of four early childhood visual arts educators, each of whom is a member of the Early Childhood Art Educators (ECAE) Issues Group of the National Arts Educators Association. The authors frame the article around the ECAE position statement, Art: Essential for Early Learning (2016) Early Childhood Art Educators. (2016). Art: Essential for early learning, position statement on early childhood art education (Rev. ed.). Reston, VA: National Art Education Association. Retrieved from https://www.arteducators.org/advocacy/articles/127-position-statement-on-early-childhood-art-education [Google Scholar], which focuses on the central role of art interactions among young children, educators, environments, and materials. The authors describe eight principles that underlie the statement from philosophical viewpoints, and provide practical examples of the principles in action. Amid a varied policy landscape for visual art in early childhood, the authors assert that children need organized, materials-rich environments that invite discovery, interaction, sensory and kinesthetic exploration, wonder, inquiry, and imagination in relationship with responsive educators who value young children's diverse abilities, interests, questions, ideas, and cultural experiences. The authors explore issues and possibilities resulting when educators work to bring visual arts fully and dynamically into the lives of young children in diverse education and care spaces. In closing, the authors explore the realities of visual arts policies in the early childhood education and art education fields while emphasizing the critical need for supportive pedagogical practices in all early childhood classrooms.     

The Role of the Arts in Mental Health

One of the most important factors determining a nation's level of development in the modern world is preschool education. When preschool education is perceived as an entity that affects every aspect of childhood development, this fact is undeniable. Several aspects of preschool education, including art education, play a significant role in a child's development. This article explores the arts in Turkish preschool education from the Ottoman Empire to the present. A framework of how art is included in preschool education has been created, and an attempt has been made to develop a critical, but also solution-oriented, perspective on the Turkish education system as it relates to preschool art education. This perspective can shed light on issues related to the importance placed on preschool art education curricula in the Republic of Turkey in hopes of developing standards comparable to those in place in Western countries.     

Novel Ideas for Silk Screens

School-based management, or local school control, is an organizational school reform effort aimed at decentralizing school decision-making that has become prevalent in districts throughout the United States. Using the groundbreaking Chicago system of local school control as an exemplar, this article outlines the implications of such reform efforts for arts education, especially in a time of increasing centralization at the level of federal education policy. Following a brief examination of Chicago's path to school-based management and its impact on the district's arts programs, this article describes both the challenges and the opportunities that such reforms may provide for arts education.     

An interview with Olivia Gude about connecting school and community arts practice

ABSTRACT

Olivia Gude has a long and distinguished career as both a public artist and an art educator. She is currently the Angela Gregory Paterakis Professor and Chair of Art Education at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC), where she works with graduate and undergraduate students to prepare for working as artist educators in school and community settings. Her scholarly work includes a number of articles and book chapters about art education and community art. Prof. Gude has worked as a community public artist for many years and has created over 30 large-scale mural and mosaic projects, working with intergenerational groups, teens, elders, and children. I interviewed Prof. Gude at the SAIC building in downtown Chicago to discuss how her school, university, and community art engagement as well as her work with the National Coalition for Core Arts Standards, might offer suggestions for transforming arts education for the twenty-first century and provide authentic connections between school and community. Prof. Gude discusses important enduring understandings and big ideas from the new Visual Arts National Core Arts Standards, the Spiral Workshop youth art and research project she created while at University of Illinois at Chicago, and how her experience as a community artist informs her work with students in classroom settings.     

Guatemala Conquers America

This article raises questions about the breadth and depth of content-area expertise in initial licensure programs for art teachers, K–12. An analysis of some of the promises made in the name of art education suggests that art teachers need a high level of expertise and deep understanding of art in order to deliver on these promises. To consider the odds of teacher preparation reflecting that depth, a study of art teacher preparation in the state of Maryland is used as an example of what may be the case in that state and may also reflect preparation elsewhere. Course requirements in the content area of art for all of Maryland's state-approved and nationally accredited programs for undergraduate and graduate certification are reported. The article concludes by posing ten questions to institutions of higher education, national accreditation agencies, and national leadership concerned with policy in art education.     

Dissonance and Harmony in Dance Design

From bipartisan origins and a laudable intent, the No Child Left Behind (Act) of 2001 has profoundly altered the condition of art education. A historical vantage point and review of literature reveals the current status of pending arts language revisions to the NCLB Act, as well as a pressing need to examine the key recommendations and to consider a blend of the proposals from the National Education Task Force, the Study Group on the Lost Curriculum, and the Arts Education Working Group. This current research possesses significant implications for NCLB arts language and provides the opportunity for a unified message for revisions, leaving no child behind in art education.     

An Integrated Unit

In this article, the author analyzes Arthur Efland's Art and Cognition, which advocates study of the visual arts for its cognitive benefits. The author argues that Efland's cognitive premises are largely sound but that his specific recommendations often belie the general principles he espouses. Efland focuses on the interpretation of baffling works that deliberately flout traditional views of what constitutes a work of art. He thereby ignores his own emphasis on the role of categorization in human cognition. Moreover, although he stresses the cognitive importance of individual goals and intentions, Efland favors sociopolitical interpretations. Such interpretations disregard contradictory evidence of the artist's likely intentions and downplay the personal value of art. The author views Efland's emphasis on visual metaphor as inconsistent with his recognition that the visual arts possess a distinctive immediacy and directness.     

Biographies for Artistic and Social Intervention: A Youth-Driven Project

This article discusses how biographical materials may be used in youth arts education projects to develop new methodologies and approaches that can stimulate artistic and social intervention in contemporary urban communities, thus changing the field of arts education policy at the community level. Through their creation of Artistic Society Projects, a group of young people from the arts education project Bando à Parte: Youth Cultures, Arts and Social Inclusion (O Teatrão, Coimbra, Portugal) have created a voice that may be used to transform their own communities. The starting points for this transformation are the young peoples’ biographical paths. The influence of youth on education policy may be strategically understood in the context of formal and nonformal school curricula. How can youth use their biographies to develop specific contributions both to change in individual behaviors and to social change in urban communities, influencing arts education policies to instigate action? The exploration of these processes through the work of artistic creation, inspired by collected biographical materials, represents a contribution to ongoing reflection on the issues of memory, identity, youth resistance, and community change in urban settings, influencing the ways in which arts education policy is understood and implemented.     

Abstract Nature Forms

Abstract

This article is the introduction to the special issue about Evaluation, Educational Policy Reforms, and Their Implications for Arts Education. A summary of all the articles comprised in the special issue is reported, mainly featured, on the one hand, by a discussion about how the education policy reforms shape a particular approach to evaluation that ends up conforming education and arts education and, on the other hand, it shows some magnet examples of arts curriculum evaluation combining both standardized assessment with qualitative strategies pertinent to the nature of arts content and experiences. The article also discusses how it could be possible to move from the current scope of school arts education most of the authors depict to the development of another way of evaluation and curriculum development where the experiential process is taken into account. While these signals might be still scarce, for some other authors could be the opportunity to overcome at least partially the current demise of school arts curriculum.     

Arts Education Partnerships: Informing Policy through the Development of Culture and Creativity within a Collaborative Project Approach

Arts education partnerships have become an important means for developing and sustaining school arts programs that engage students, teachers, and communities. Tapping into additional perspectives, resources, and support from arts agencies and postsecondary institutions, arts education partnerships strengthen arts education infrastructure within schools and develop a web of sustainable relationships whereby stakeholders mutually benefit. This article provides a snapshot of an arts education partnership in action that develops creative and cultural competencies in middle school students through a theme-based collaborative project approach. This article informs policy by recommending support for arts education partnerships that develop social and creative capital among schools and postsecondary institutions and within the communities surrounding these institutions.     

The rise of creative youth development

ABSTRACT

Creative youth development (CYD) is a dynamic area of community arts education that successfully bridges youth development and arts education. CYD is an intentional, holistic practice that combines hands-on artmaking and skill building in the arts with development of life skills to support young people in successfully participating in adolescence and navigating into adulthood. Young people in CYD programs exhibit high levels of artistic skill and accomplishment along with increased self-esteem and sense of belonging. CYD participants are immersed in a broad array of rigorous artistic endeavors, including creating documentary films, researching and reporting on community issues through radio broadcasts, writing and staging new theatrical works, and engaging in thoughtful critique of one another's visual art work. The impact for youth of program participation extends beyond pride in artistic accomplishment. Throughout the United States, teen participants in CYD programs assert that the programs saved their lives, putting them on positive trajectories and away from gangs, drug use, crime, and ennui. This article provides a definition for the term creative youth development, describes core characteristics of CYD programs, and briefly describes four CYD programs. It provides background on the origins and history of creative youth development, including current advances in the field and signs the field is coalescing. The article describes creative youth development in the larger contexts of arts education and of education reform. Lastly, the article discusses policy, funding, and research needs and opportunities and provides questions for consideration.     

Arts curriculum implementation: “Adopt and adapt” as policy translation

This article examines macro, meso, and micro understandings of policy enactment within Western Australian primary school arts education where a new national arts curriculum is being revised and implemented through a process colloquially known as “adopt and adapt.” This article focuses on how a government-led implementation policy has influenced arts teaching and learning in unintended ways. It Includes a theoretical reflection and a consideration of the effects of such policies. Using policy enactment theory as the enquiry lens, four contextual variables are highlighted for their impact on teachers and schools. The variables include situated contexts, material contexts, professional cultures, and external factors. Effects are discussed through the perspectives of 11 arts curriculum leaders drawn from in-depth semi-structured interviews. Marginalization of the arts, the disconnection of schools and teachers to the arts and professional learning impacts are discussed as results of this policy translation.     

South–South Comparisons: A Syntegrated Approach to the Teaching of the Arts for Primary School Teacher Preparation in South Africa and Australia

In light of the tendency to present the arts in an integrated fashion in many education systems worldwide, this article examines the consequences of integration for discrete art forms. In particular, we investigate the advantages of adopting a syntegrated approach to the facilitation of arts in teacher preparation. A specific comparison between the implementation of arts curricula in South Africa and Australia is made. The disjuncture between policy and practice in arts education that has been reported internationally needs constant monitoring. We conclude that the heart of curriculum transfer and transformation lies in the classroom.