Approaches to Art
in Education - Cont.

American teachers of art who were trained by refugee Bauhaus teachers [or their students] found, in the Bauhaus emphasis an experimentation, an approach to art that seemed in accord with Dewey's emphasis on creative activity for children and the experimental method in learning. [The method is described in John Dewey, How We ThinkNY: D.C., Heath, 1910. p. 72.] By the mid-1940s, experimentation with materials had virtually become a doctrine in art education, and few art teachers questioned the value of this means of involving children in creative art activities.

By the early 1950s, however, it became apparent to some art educators that teachers had lost sight of the meaning of experimentation as a systematic inquiry into the nature of materials. In practice, it had come to mean little more than improvisation with media, and the more media the better. Although children were indeed inspired by opportunities to explore art materials, teachers too often accepted the superficial manipulation of materials as a genuine experiment or creative effort.

Today, most art teachers recognize that the expressive possibilities of a material are not limited to those that can be discovered by improvisation. Indeed, when the Bauhaus philosophy is practiced seriously, children's experiments with art media are quite deliberate and in the spirit of scientific experimentation: [For a description of the analytic character of the Bauhaus program, see Gillian Naylor, The BauhausLondon: E. P. Dutton, 1968. pp. 76-132] Their discoveries lead to greater control in achieving their expressive intent. Ideally, children are conscious of the decisions they make in designing their work and can apply their discoveries to new situations. [pp. 14-15]

Art Education During the Second World War - During the Second World War, the nation 's activities were concentrated on victory. In publications and at conferences, at educators stressed the freedom of expression ejoyed by citizens of a democracy, condemned the censorship imposed on people living under a totalitarian form of government, and advocated the development of well-rounded personalities as a remedy to f uture wars. [Hellmut Lehmann-Haupt, Art Under A DictatorshipNY: Oxford Univ. Press, 1954], and "Art Education and the War," in Art Education Today,Fine Arts Staff, Teachers College, Columbia Univ. NY: Teachers College Press, 1943] In schools, however, children made stereotyped posters for the war effort and they mass-produced patriotic mementos and decorative items for organizations like the USA and the Red Cross. Since art materials were in short supply, art teachers exchanged recipes for paste, paint, and modeling materials and found ingenious ways to use all sorts of scraps . . . . [p. 15] . . . . theory and practice rationalized by patriotism . . . .

. . . . It is important to recognize that schools are social institutions, that they are influenced by national priorities and social problems. Because art forms are an effective means of communicating ideas and beliefs, they are often used for political or social ends. Today, art teachers are exploring ways to help children understand both the use and abuse of visual forms in shaping the attitudes of people. Advertising, product design, and visual symbols of various groups are examined as transmitters of social values and beliefs. [p. 15]

Art as a Developmental Activity - After the 2nd World War, and largely as a consequence of that experience, the literature of art education considered the humanizing potentials of art. Making the world " safe for peace" seemed to depend on developing human creative capacities through freedom of expression. [Eastern Arts Association, Art Education for One World: Yearbook 1946Kutztown, PA.: Kutztown State Teachers College, 1946] and Art Education in a Free Society: Yearbook 1947Kutztown, PA.: Kutztown State Teachers College, 1947]. Also National Art Education Association, Art Education and Human Values: Yearbook 1953Kutztown, PA.: Kutztown State Teachers College, 1953] and Art: A Frontier for Freedom: Yearbook 1955Kutztown, PA.: Kutztown State Teachers College, 1955.] The coercive influence of authority was recognized. Art activities were viewed as broadly therapeutic--a means for children to give expression to their experiences in a creative manner, free from the possible coercive influence of adult standards. Art educators believed that the intellectual, emotional, physical, and creative processes involved in producing art would help the child achieve an integrated, well-rounded personality. Thus, in the post war years, the dominant theme in art education became human development through creative self-expression. [p. 16]

Today, this philosophy of art education is called the developmental point of view; in the process of giving visual form to experiences, the child 's whole being is active. Ideally, there is such a complete integration of thought with feeling and of purpose with effective action that the process of creating art contributes to the development of personal maturity. [p. 16]

Contemporary art educators do not reject the developmental perspective, but they believe that children can benefit from studying works of art that have been created by adults. Exposure to adult art can become a satisfying experience if children gain a personal knowledge of how art is created, what it can express, and how it pervades everyday life. Through their comprehension of art, children become sensitive to the varieties of human experience that can be captured in visual form. Many art educators recognize the complementary relationship of education though art and education in art. [p. 16]

Art and Creative Behavior - In the late 1950s, the space race began, and interest in the relationship between artistic and general creativity reached a peak. [The literature on creativity is voluminous. [For an orientation to this topic, see Lambert W. Britain, ed. Creativity and Art EducationWashington, DC.: National Art Education Association , 1964] At that time, Russian technological achievements in space spurred Congress to fund educational programs in mathematics, science, and foreign languages in order to catch up with the Soviet Union in producing creative scientists and engineers. In the interests of strengthening the position of the art curriculum, some art educators believed it important to relate artistic creativity to the development of a general creativity in life, especially in mathematics and the sciences. Numerous publications justifying the development of creativity through art were issued. Although this justification of art education is still pervasive, it is not totally adequate. [p. 16 ]

Many educators assume that creativity is a desirable characteristic to nurture, that creative behavior is always manifested in socially worthwhile ways. We might call this the fallacy of creativity as a moral good. History teaches us that creative behavior can serve morally offensive ends as well. Both Einstein and Hitler, for example, could be counted among the most creative people of this century. [pp. 1 6-17]

The problems of defining creativity is not simple. One can hardly compare the traits and performance of Michelangelo or Picasso with those of elementary school children. In addition, there is little evidence of the existence of a general creativity trait that carries into every aspect of life. Instead, creativity in each field of endeavor seems to hinge as much on a sound command of knowledge as it does on flexibility and openness. [Frank Barron, "The Creative Personalilty: Akin to Madness," Psychology Today 6 [1972]: 43-85] In short, there is no firm basis for claiming that artistic creativity contributes to a more general pattern of creative behavior. [p. 17]

1960 to Present
Art as a Body of Knowledge
The first Russian achievements in space led to many changes in American education. In 1958, Congress passed the National Defense Education Act to encourage curriculum reform in mathematics, science, and foreign languages. Academic excellence became the keynote of education in the 1960s. In response to the new concern for educational achievement, art educators began to reexamine the academic status of art and to view it as a body of knowledge that should be transmitted to children. Efforts centered on the identification of key concepts and fundamental behavior that would foster an understanding of the nature of art . [Edward L. Mattil, project director, A Seminar in Art Education for Research and Curriculum Development.U. S. Office of Education Cooperative Research Project V-002 [Univ. Park: Pennsylvania State Univ. Press, 1966] [p. 17]

In contemporary educational thought, art is defined both as a body of knowledge and as a developmental activity. Children are introduced to basic concepts in art and to methods of inquiry that permit them to learn about the subject of art. At the same time, art educators are committed to art experiences as a means of nurturing personal maturity. The process of creating art and of responding to visual forms develop the child's identity and openness to experience. It is worth repeating that personal development through art is as important as learning about art. [p. 17]

Art and the Social Order - During the 1960s, the civil-rights movement focused attention on minority groups and the problems of living in urban areas. Questions were raised about the quality of life one could hope for in an abused, polluted environment. These and other social issues have caused art educators to reassess the bearing of art on social problems. [June King McFee, "Society, Art, and Education," in Mattil, A Seminar in Art Education,pp. 122-40] Environmental awareness is now an essential aspect of school art programs. [p. 17]

Almost every new program in the last decade can be considered a contemporary variation on earlier ideas. [Al Hurwitz, Programs of Promise: Art in the SchoolsNY: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1972] Newer environmental awareness programs, for example, although less ambitious than the Owatonna Project, are in the spirit of that earlier attempt at integrating art into everyday life. The concept of emphasizing career education in art was in evidence in Walter Smith's time, in the early manual-training programs, and in the years of the depression. Current interest in ethnic-arts programs are an effort to reverse the melting-pot trend that began in the early decades of this century. Recent interdisciplinary studies linking the arts or relating art to science have their roots in earlier concepts of correlated and integrated art. Other parallels have been pointed out in the discussion of each period, and even more could be noted in a more detailed treatment of historical developments in art education . . . . [p. 18]

1. Developing the well-rounded child through art,

2. Promoting the knowledge and appreciation of art as a subject, and

3. Fostering the ability to relate art to daily living.

In general, art educators have shown greater interest in children as creators of art than as appreciators of visual forms. The highly personal and creative nature of art has received more attention than the influence of art on society. The time is ripe for a fusion of these three concerns:

1. Personal fulfillment through art;

2. Appreciation of the artistic heritage;

3. Awareness of the role of art in society. [p. 18]

The historical comparisons reveal that it is not difficult for art educators to indoctrinate children with a particular view of society and the proper role of art within it. Indeed, at no time have we been so aware of the stereotypes--social, racial, sexual, vocational--that past educational practices and narrow concepts of art have helped to create. If it is easy to endorse a single doctrine of art education, it is also hazardous. What we need is a concept of art education that will help children to appreciate the artistry in varied life styles and to wisely shape their own. This is one of the main challenges facing art education in this decade. [p. 18]

Purposes of Art Education
In a democratic society, the power to determine the quality of life is shared by all the people, not just one person or a self-appointed few. The need for enlightened citizens leads to three primary responsibilities of general public education and, by implication, of art education. General education provides for personal fulfillment, nurtures social consciousness, and transmits the cultural heritage to each generation. In practice, we say that school programs should be planned in relation to the child, the subjects that comprise the cultural heritage, and society. [p. 19]

Three major purposes of art education stem from the personal, social, and historical responsibilities of general education . School art programs encourage personal fulfillment by helping children respond to their immediate world and express its significance to them in visual form. Through studies of the artistic heritage, children learn that art is related to cultural endeavors of the past and present. By studying the role of art in society, children can begin to appreciate art as a way of encountering life and not view it as simply an esoteric frill . . . . [p. 19]

1. Personal Fulfillment Through Art
When children use art as a means of expression and as a way of responding to life, it becomes a source of personal fulfillment. Learning to perceive expressive forms is just as important as learning to create them. The two modes of art experience are dynamically interrelated; both are essentially creative processes. Children's perceptual awareness and expressive powers have to be cultivated so that children can clarify their feelings and make sense of the booming, buzzing confusion of raw experience. The educational task is to develop children's independence in creating art and in fully perceiving the world. [p. 19-20]

2. Appreciation of the Artistic Heritage
The artistic heritage is broadly defined as organized knowledge about art as well as specific works that have been created by artists, designers, architects, and artisans of the past and present. When children's lives and artistic efforts are related to the artistic heritage, the entire experience is personalized, and children are helped to value the work of others. At the same time, their encounters with the artistic heritage confirm the authenticity of their own creative efforts. [p. 20]

3. Awareness of Art in Society
Children should understand that the visual forms they create help them express their own identities as well as their membership in groups. Visual forms also mark important events in their lives. In the same way, tools and spaces for living reflect people's expressive and physical needs in everyday life. The color, shape, and arrangement of objects in stores and in advertisements have a profound effect on behavior. We should help children become aware of the many ways visual forms can shape and express the feelings of people of all cultures. [p. 20]