Despite strong evidence for the support of the arts in the Australian curriculum particularly in preparing students to participate effectively as global citizens (Ewing, 2010), the position of the arts in current Australian schools programs is variable, with dance and drama usually only available as an extracurricular activity and with one State having legislation for the inclusion of only music and visual arts in the curriculum (ACARA, 2010). Consequently, in a crowded curriculum it is tempting for schools to implement just a minimal arts program, which limits many children’s access to the exposure of music, dance, creative writing, stage performance, and creative and visual arts. As a result a valuable vehicle through which meaningful learning of motivation, problem solving, self-discovery and context is rendered unavailable to children (Herberholz, 2009; Magsamen, 2009; Nilson et al., 2013; Robinson, 2001, 2006). This was a specific issue highlighted in the research undertaken in the Peel region (Nilson et al., 2013). Extracurricular Arts opportunities were highly valued and sought by mothers for their children, as the Arts in their curriculum was viewed as inadequate and a “filler to academic subjects” (p.7). In addition, the dissatisfaction by the mothers extended to the lack of artistic ability of the generalist teachers, reporting that the “product of the art work was considered more important than the process” (p. 7). Further to the argument that specialist teachers are required in primary school settings to either teach the individual Arts subjects or at least support the generalist teachers to facilitate the subjects, was a comment made by an artist-in-residence during the Peel Study, who was commenting on the lack of credibility given to the Arts in the curriculum. She stated that:
“Very few schools have got specialized art teachers…it’s not sitting there drawing and painting…it’s about clay, it’s papier mache, making junk music instruments, creating costumes, creating mask, creating artefacts…it’s giving the children a chance to express themselves creatively, to use some imagination, to get a variety of things, materials and objects together and just with their imagination…think of something three dimensional…with their eyes and their hands and their fine motor skills to create it…first they have to visualize it in their head…visualize it, then they start to create it…that is teaching them valuable life skills (Nilson, 2011, p. 95-96)”
ACARA anticipates the Australian Curriculum: The Arts Foundation to Year 10 will be published in late July 2013, following a three year consultation period. The initial feedback report for the proposed curriculum highlighted several concerns (ACARA, 2011). A major concern was the overcrowding and ‘cramming’ of the arts disciplines and allocation of insufficient time for deeper and more extensive learning in each of the Arts areas. Sufficient time should be devoted to the arts, particularly in the primary curriculum, where Arts programs should incorporate the development of critical thinking, which is fundamental in shaping adult development (Isbell & Raines, 2007; McKenna, 2012; Robinson, 2001, 2006 2010; Richardson and Prior, 2005). Limited exposure and time restraints placed on the Arts in the current curriculum reduces children’s opportunities for full engagement in thoughtful and reflective practices that would help nurture this development (Nilson, et al., 2013). This is of particular importance because critical thinking and its development occurs both during and after the experience of production and therefore time to reflect is a key factor to this endeavour (Eisner, 1965, 1966, 1985, 2002). The teachers in the Peel study were found to be particularly concerned that there was limited time to facilitate any student reflective practice or to evaluate any learning outcomes with the students following arts activities. The teachers felt that “reflections are probably not done efficiently enough…we probably might spend about five minutes at the end of the lesson talking about what we’ve done today and what did they think about this idea and what did they think about that idea… but it’s never to the extent that I’d like to do it” (Nilson, 2011, p. 91).
Further concerns raised in the feedback report of the proposed Arts curriculum (ACARA, 2011) were related to implementation issues. The important consideration of the Arts Industry and Community Arts Networks that supplement in-school learning through collaborative partnerships was not highlighted. There is a need for sustainable collaboration between school teachers and Arts discipline specialists to provide childhood educators with resources, materials and methods to support the development of appropriate curricular for deeper learning (Balshaw, 2004, Isbell & Raines, 2007; Kinder & Harland, 2004). Art projects that are managed by teachers who have professional support are able to provide the children with a strong learning experience through the arts (Ewing, 2010; Imms, Jeanneret, & Stevens-Ballenger, 2011). This was highlighted in one particular theme of the Peel study; ‘processes in mobilising children’s creativity’ (Nilson et al, 2013, p. 5) where AiRs perceived that with expert guidance, teachers could learn to use strategies to excite children’s imagination. One AiR provided this example:
“My take on imagination is that it’s a response to certain conditions… if I keep throwing ideas at them then it’s not fertile ground for them to develop imagination…I just keep asking questions once we’ve set a scene…as an example; We are at the beach…I ask ‘who is there?’…from there I continue to draw on them to develop the story…at the start they say…’I don’t know’… the teachers I work with want to tell them…I say ‘Shhhh! Let them develop that first thread of the idea for themselves’…I believe the more we allow them to develop the ideas the more we can engage them in imagination development (Nilson, et al., 2013, p. 10).”
Arts discipline specialists are considered to make the most useful contribution to the quality of Arts curriculum delivery (Ardzejewska, McMaugh & Coutts, 2010; Donelan, Irvine, Imms, Jeanneret, & O’Toole, 2009; Imms, et al., 2011). Although there are a growing number of secondary trained specialist art teachers working in primary schools in Australia, not all schools have the capacity to employ them and therefore Arts education largely falls on the shoulders of the generalist primary teacher (Alloway & Dalley-Trim, 2009). There is evidence to confirm that many primary generalist teachers do not feel equipped to teach across all five subjects of the Arts curriculum (Alter, et al., 2009, 2009a; Dogani, 2004; Garvis & Pendergast, 2010, 2012). In a study aimed at providing an insight into the current perceptions of beginning generalist teachers regarding teaching the Arts, Garvis & Pentagast (2010) found that the teachers felt supported in their schools, when helped by colleagues and specialist teachers in the area. If specialist art teachers are not available, then the primary generalist teacher should be supported by an AiR, whenever possible. (Donelan, et al., 2009; Imms, et al., 2011). In addition, establishing collaborative and sustainable projects between schools, Arts organisations and Arts discipline specialists, maximises student engagement, learning and achievement (CEOM, 2012; Donelan, et al., 2009; Ewing, 2010; Imms, et al., 2011). Furthermore, the role of the Arts in the community must be considered more seriously because if the perceived value in the arts increases so too will the community’s investment in them (Ewing, 2010). One theme in our study connected specifically to community engagement. This was ‘children’s creativity contributing to community vibrancy’, which identified that the children developed a sense of belonging and connection to the community through the arts activity and a sense of pride in their contribution to the community event (Nilson, et al., 2013, p. 5).
In the recent Review of Funding for Schooling (RoFfS) in 2010 commissioned by the Australian Government a review panel, chaired by David Gonski, visited schools and consulted with key education group across Australia and received over 7000 submissions. An important recommendation to arise from the Gonski report relates to raising the profile of the teaching profession, with an understanding that quality teachers and teaching excellence impacts positively on student engagement and performance. One key element is the preparation and training of teachers to “use the curriculum as a resource upon which to draw, to shape learning programs to stretch individual children from their current stage of learning to the next achievable stage” (RoFfS – Final Report, 2011, p. 218). In the context of the proposed Arts curriculum, generalist teacher training programs do not prepare the new graduate to teach the arts (Alter, Hayes & O’Hara, 2009, 2009a; Dinham, 2006; Dinham, 2007; Ewing, 2010; McKenna, 2012; Temmerman, 2006; Torzillo, 2013). Currently primary teachers have limited if not poor backgrounds in the arts and have difficulty in providing effective visual arts education. This has resulted in what teachers refer to as the ‘bag of tricks’, which produces many pieces of ‘multiple sameness’. The lack of expertise on the part of the teacher translates to markedly similar works from the student. The teacher lacks the ability to facilitate individual responses to a task and the children copy one another or simply follow instruction to result in similar outcomes for every child (Alter et al., 2009a; Darling-Hammond, 2000; Dinham, 2007; Gibson & Anderson, 2008; Hudson & Hudson, 2007; Oreck, 2004; Russell & Zembylas, 2007). Emancipating students to communicate their own meaning to others in the classroom enables social construction (Fetherston, 2008). When considering an image for example, students perceive characteristics and elements within the work in their own unique way (Fetherston, 2008). As students review and explore the individual characteristics and elements of an image they develop their own meaning. The issue of ‘multiple sameness’ was highlighted in the Peel region study in the theme; ‘environmental factors influencing children’s creativity’ (Nilson, et al., 2013), where a lack of creative arts experts to provide instruction across the curriculum greatly influenced whether children were offered the opportunity to be independently analytical and creative. One mother reported that “if a child had a few teachers” in the primary years that were not “arty and didn’t particularly like it” then the teacher was “more inclined to not understand” its importance and the children “would not get exposed to it as much” (Nilson, et al., 2013, p. 7). This view is supported by recent research (Alter et al., 2009a; Eason, Giannangelo & Franceschini, 2009), which concluded that teachers with creative talents encourage and support student creativity in the classroom, while those who are not creative do not feel confident to do so. The artful space in the classroom can become ‘alive’ when self-regulation is coupled with the knowledge and belief that the Arts have a value to student and teacher alike (Mckenna, 2013). Self-regulation in this instance is a metacognitive ability which fosters thinking (thoughts and thinking about the art and its co-creation). Teachers need to develop the skills to foster thinking, creative behaviour, and high personal motivation in the viewing and making of art (Mckenna, 2013).
In addition, the Gonski report (RoFfS – Final Report, 2011) found that all schools regardless of location and student population, and whether they are located in the government, independent or Catholic school sectors require the same level of resources. An AiR in the Peel study talked about the lack of resources to teach the arts reporting that “there is no funding…very few schools have got specialised art teachers…very few schools have even got a wet area where they can do art work…you know…I’ve had to go out into the yard and do it…and sometimes there has been no running water and we’ve had to bucket it” (Nilson, et al., 2013, p. 7). The implications of such resource shortages can only impact negatively on the opportunities given to children to develop creative and critical thinking. (Jalongo, 2003; Robinson, 2001)
Research on the preparedness of the generalist primary school teacher to teach the Arts, has in the main concluded that they are ill equipped (Alter et al., 2009, 2009a; Dinham, 2006, Dinham, 2007, Dongani, 2004; Ewing, 2010; Temmerman, 2006). The focus must now be on ensuring that each classroom has a teacher equipped with a ‘toolkit’ to provide quality teaching (McLean Davies et al., 2013), that includes the development of critical thinking through arts exposure and engagement (Darling-Hammond, 2000; Dinham, 2008). Essentially, the ‘toolkit’ should be filled with supportive ‘resources’ such as the administrative and financial support from schools to enable generalist teachers to be flexible to drive innovative strategies to deliver effective arts education in schools; to support the professional development of generalist teachers to provide quality teaching in the Arts; and to support pre-service teacher training to build teaching skills in the areas of critical thinking and the Arts.
Monday, July 13, 2015
The Arts in the Australian Curriculum
Despite strong evidence for the support of the arts in the Australian curriculum particularly in preparing students to participate effectively as global citizens (Ewing, 2010), the position of the arts in current Australian schools programs is variable, with dance and drama usually only available as an extracurricular activity and with one State having legislation for the inclusion of only music and visual arts in the curriculum (ACARA, 2010). Consequently, in a crowded curriculum it is tempting for schools to implement just a minimal arts program, which limits many children’s access to the exposure of music, dance, creative writing, stage performance, and creative and visual arts. As a result a valuable vehicle through which meaningful learning of motivation, problem solving, self-discovery and context is rendered unavailable to children (Herberholz, 2009; Magsamen, 2009; Nilson et al., 2013; Robinson, 2001, 2006). This was a specific issue highlighted in the research undertaken in the Peel region (Nilson et al., 2013). Extracurricular Arts opportunities were highly valued and sought by mothers for their children, as the Arts in their curriculum was viewed as inadequate and a “filler to academic subjects” (p.7). In addition, the dissatisfaction by the mothers extended to the lack of artistic ability of the generalist teachers, reporting that the “product of the art work was considered more important than the process” (p. 7). Further to the argument that specialist teachers are required in primary school settings to either teach the individual Arts subjects or at least support the generalist teachers to facilitate the subjects, was a comment made by an artist-in-residence during the Peel Study, who was commenting on the lack of credibility given to the Arts in the curriculum. She stated that:
“Very few schools have got specialized art teachers…it’s not sitting there drawing and painting…it’s about clay, it’s papier mache, making junk music instruments, creating costumes, creating mask, creating artefacts…it’s giving the children a chance to express themselves creatively, to use some imagination, to get a variety of things, materials and objects together and just with their imagination…think of something three dimensional…with their eyes and their hands and their fine motor skills to create it…first they have to visualize it in their head…visualize it, then they start to create it…that is teaching them valuable life skills (Nilson, 2011, p. 95-96)”
ACARA anticipates the Australian Curriculum: The Arts Foundation to Year 10 will be published in late July 2013, following a three year consultation period. The initial feedback report for the proposed curriculum highlighted several concerns (ACARA, 2011). A major concern was the overcrowding and ‘cramming’ of the arts disciplines and allocation of insufficient time for deeper and more extensive learning in each of the Arts areas. Sufficient time should be devoted to the arts, particularly in the primary curriculum, where Arts programs should incorporate the development of critical thinking, which is fundamental in shaping adult development (Isbell & Raines, 2007; McKenna, 2012; Robinson, 2001, 2006 2010; Richardson and Prior, 2005). Limited exposure and time restraints placed on the Arts in the current curriculum reduces children’s opportunities for full engagement in thoughtful and reflective practices that would help nurture this development (Nilson, et al., 2013). This is of particular importance because critical thinking and its development occurs both during and after the experience of production and therefore time to reflect is a key factor to this endeavour (Eisner, 1965, 1966, 1985, 2002). The teachers in the Peel study were found to be particularly concerned that there was limited time to facilitate any student reflective practice or to evaluate any learning outcomes with the students following arts activities. The teachers felt that “reflections are probably not done efficiently enough…we probably might spend about five minutes at the end of the lesson talking about what we’ve done today and what did they think about this idea and what did they think about that idea… but it’s never to the extent that I’d like to do it” (Nilson, 2011, p. 91).
Further concerns raised in the feedback report of the proposed Arts curriculum (ACARA, 2011) were related to implementation issues. The important consideration of the Arts Industry and Community Arts Networks that supplement in-school learning through collaborative partnerships was not highlighted. There is a need for sustainable collaboration between school teachers and Arts discipline specialists to provide childhood educators with resources, materials and methods to support the development of appropriate curricular for deeper learning (Balshaw, 2004, Isbell & Raines, 2007; Kinder & Harland, 2004). Art projects that are managed by teachers who have professional support are able to provide the children with a strong learning experience through the arts (Ewing, 2010; Imms, Jeanneret, & Stevens-Ballenger, 2011). This was highlighted in one particular theme of the Peel study; ‘processes in mobilising children’s creativity’ (Nilson et al, 2013, p. 5) where AiRs perceived that with expert guidance, teachers could learn to use strategies to excite children’s imagination. One AiR provided this example:
“My take on imagination is that it’s a response to certain conditions… if I keep throwing ideas at them then it’s not fertile ground for them to develop imagination…I just keep asking questions once we’ve set a scene…as an example; We are at the beach…I ask ‘who is there?’…from there I continue to draw on them to develop the story…at the start they say…’I don’t know’… the teachers I work with want to tell them…I say ‘Shhhh! Let them develop that first thread of the idea for themselves’…I believe the more we allow them to develop the ideas the more we can engage them in imagination development (Nilson, et al., 2013, p. 10).”
Arts discipline specialists are considered to make the most useful contribution to the quality of Arts curriculum delivery (Ardzejewska, McMaugh & Coutts, 2010; Donelan, Irvine, Imms, Jeanneret, & O’Toole, 2009; Imms, et al., 2011). Although there are a growing number of secondary trained specialist art teachers working in primary schools in Australia, not all schools have the capacity to employ them and therefore Arts education largely falls on the shoulders of the generalist primary teacher (Alloway & Dalley-Trim, 2009). There is evidence to confirm that many primary generalist teachers do not feel equipped to teach across all five subjects of the Arts curriculum (Alter, et al., 2009, 2009a; Dogani, 2004; Garvis & Pendergast, 2010, 2012). In a study aimed at providing an insight into the current perceptions of beginning generalist teachers regarding teaching the Arts, Garvis & Pentagast (2010) found that the teachers felt supported in their schools, when helped by colleagues and specialist teachers in the area. If specialist art teachers are not available, then the primary generalist teacher should be supported by an AiR, whenever possible. (Donelan, et al., 2009; Imms, et al., 2011). In addition, establishing collaborative and sustainable projects between schools, Arts organisations and Arts discipline specialists, maximises student engagement, learning and achievement (CEOM, 2012; Donelan, et al., 2009; Ewing, 2010; Imms, et al., 2011). Furthermore, the role of the Arts in the community must be considered more seriously because if the perceived value in the arts increases so too will the community’s investment in them (Ewing, 2010). One theme in our study connected specifically to community engagement. This was ‘children’s creativity contributing to community vibrancy’, which identified that the children developed a sense of belonging and connection to the community through the arts activity and a sense of pride in their contribution to the community event (Nilson, et al., 2013, p. 5).
In the recent Review of Funding for Schooling (RoFfS) in 2010 commissioned by the Australian Government a review panel, chaired by David Gonski, visited schools and consulted with key education group across Australia and received over 7000 submissions. An important recommendation to arise from the Gonski report relates to raising the profile of the teaching profession, with an understanding that quality teachers and teaching excellence impacts positively on student engagement and performance. One key element is the preparation and training of teachers to “use the curriculum as a resource upon which to draw, to shape learning programs to stretch individual children from their current stage of learning to the next achievable stage” (RoFfS – Final Report, 2011, p. 218). In the context of the proposed Arts curriculum, generalist teacher training programs do not prepare the new graduate to teach the arts (Alter, Hayes & O’Hara, 2009, 2009a; Dinham, 2006; Dinham, 2007; Ewing, 2010; McKenna, 2012; Temmerman, 2006; Torzillo, 2013). Currently primary teachers have limited if not poor backgrounds in the arts and have difficulty in providing effective visual arts education. This has resulted in what teachers refer to as the ‘bag of tricks’, which produces many pieces of ‘multiple sameness’. The lack of expertise on the part of the teacher translates to markedly similar works from the student. The teacher lacks the ability to facilitate individual responses to a task and the children copy one another or simply follow instruction to result in similar outcomes for every child (Alter et al., 2009a; Darling-Hammond, 2000; Dinham, 2007; Gibson & Anderson, 2008; Hudson & Hudson, 2007; Oreck, 2004; Russell & Zembylas, 2007). Emancipating students to communicate their own meaning to others in the classroom enables social construction (Fetherston, 2008). When considering an image for example, students perceive characteristics and elements within the work in their own unique way (Fetherston, 2008). As students review and explore the individual characteristics and elements of an image they develop their own meaning. The issue of ‘multiple sameness’ was highlighted in the Peel region study in the theme; ‘environmental factors influencing children’s creativity’ (Nilson, et al., 2013), where a lack of creative arts experts to provide instruction across the curriculum greatly influenced whether children were offered the opportunity to be independently analytical and creative. One mother reported that “if a child had a few teachers” in the primary years that were not “arty and didn’t particularly like it” then the teacher was “more inclined to not understand” its importance and the children “would not get exposed to it as much” (Nilson, et al., 2013, p. 7). This view is supported by recent research (Alter et al., 2009a; Eason, Giannangelo & Franceschini, 2009), which concluded that teachers with creative talents encourage and support student creativity in the classroom, while those who are not creative do not feel confident to do so. The artful space in the classroom can become ‘alive’ when self-regulation is coupled with the knowledge and belief that the Arts have a value to student and teacher alike (Mckenna, 2013). Self-regulation in this instance is a metacognitive ability which fosters thinking (thoughts and thinking about the art and its co-creation). Teachers need to develop the skills to foster thinking, creative behaviour, and high personal motivation in the viewing and making of art (Mckenna, 2013).
In addition, the Gonski report (RoFfS – Final Report, 2011) found that all schools regardless of location and student population, and whether they are located in the government, independent or Catholic school sectors require the same level of resources. An AiR in the Peel study talked about the lack of resources to teach the arts reporting that “there is no funding…very few schools have got specialised art teachers…very few schools have even got a wet area where they can do art work…you know…I’ve had to go out into the yard and do it…and sometimes there has been no running water and we’ve had to bucket it” (Nilson, et al., 2013, p. 7). The implications of such resource shortages can only impact negatively on the opportunities given to children to develop creative and critical thinking. (Jalongo, 2003; Robinson, 2001)
Research on the preparedness of the generalist primary school teacher to teach the Arts, has in the main concluded that they are ill equipped (Alter et al., 2009, 2009a; Dinham, 2006, Dinham, 2007, Dongani, 2004; Ewing, 2010; Temmerman, 2006). The focus must now be on ensuring that each classroom has a teacher equipped with a ‘toolkit’ to provide quality teaching (McLean Davies et al., 2013), that includes the development of critical thinking through arts exposure and engagement (Darling-Hammond, 2000; Dinham, 2008). Essentially, the ‘toolkit’ should be filled with supportive ‘resources’ such as the administrative and financial support from schools to enable generalist teachers to be flexible to drive innovative strategies to deliver effective arts education in schools; to support the professional development of generalist teachers to provide quality teaching in the Arts; and to support pre-service teacher training to build teaching skills in the areas of critical thinking and the Arts.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment