Questions the traditional assumption that primary age children are not capable of historical understanding. Study discovers a wide range of responses that validates some of Parsons' Theory of Aesthetic Development and calls other aspects into question. Concludes with a suggestion for more study. (MJP)

Maintains that young children enjoy talking about art and should be given opportunities to do so. Recommends using Parsons' Aesthetic Development Theory as a flexible framework and guideline for discussion. Includes several transcribed discussions between the teacher and her pupils. (MJP)

Reviews two curriculum frameworks--one developed by Elliot Eisner and Elizabeth Vallance and the second by Henry A. Giroux, Anthony N. Penna, and William F. Pinar--as a context for reconsidering conflicting notions about nature and purpose of art teaching. Discusses discipline-based art education (DBAE), suggesting that controversies over…

Asserts that art education affirms its identify within the school curriculum by the way it controls and assembles its beliefs. Concludes that it is only at the level of reflective interaction that the cultures of art and art education can be resolved and a rationale for art education developed. (CFR)

This document consists of the two issues of the journal "Visual Arts in Research" published in 1994. This journal focuses on the theory and practice of visual arts education from educational, historical, philosophical, and psychological perspectives. Number 1 of this volume includes the following contributions: (1) "Zooming in on the Qualitative…

Reports on a study of seven preschool children engaged in drawing activities with traditional media (crayons, felt-tip pens, etc.) and a mouse-driven computer paintbox program. Finds that the same basic media-independent strategies are used when children try to establish a relationship between their mark-making actions and the resultant effects.…

This document consists of the two issues of the journal "Visual Arts Research" published in 1995. This journal focuses on the theory and practice of visual arts education from educational, historical, philosophical, and psychological perspectives. Number 1 of this volume includes the following contributions: (1) "Children's Sensitivity to…

Presents three studies of children's ability to create and detect expressions of emotion in drawings. Compared to younger children, older children used more strategies, experimented with line and color, and were more likely to explore themes of death, aging, and illness. Includes sample drawings and statistical tables. (MJP)

Reports on the beginnings of visual representation in early childhood by using longitudinal studies in both London, England and Singapore. Finds evidence to support the theory that underlying children's use and organization of visual media are certain robust forms of behavior, or deep structures. (CFR)

Maintains that two goals in multicultural art education are developing students' sensitivity to the techniques and inspiration of artists and utilizing that understanding to discover more about their own beliefs and values as translated through an art object. Describes a case-study lesson based on this approach. (CFR)

Discusses how teachers can guide young children to become aware of residential buildings in their hometowns in order to help understand cultural diversity in the global community. Maintains that, as children explore diverse forms of shelter, they begin to recognize cultural similarities. (CFR)

Reviews research about young childrens' focusing on the ability to transform a perceived scene into another representation. Reports on a study of 109 children and 18 college-age students on their ability to mold a lump of clay into a three-dimensional figure. Finds that cognitive maturity alone does not automatically lead to competence. (CFR)

Describes a corrective method of color adaptation designed to allow most, if not all, individuals to participate in the learning process as well as social and work-related environments. Provides a concise summation of facts and theories concerning color deficiency. Includes anatomical drawings, graphs, and statistical data. (MJP)

Summarizes interviews with British West Indies children concerning the production of art and the role of the artist. Demonstrates that children's perceptions undergo a shift from naive realism (pretty things make pretty pictures) to a more interpretive stance (the artist's efforts define the final product). (MJP)

Examines a number of variables in children's drawings (color selection, subject matter, artistic skills) for evidence of gender differentiation in these variables. Discovers differentiation in only two variables. Moreover, this dichotomy decreases from kindergarten to third grade suggesting an increase in sex equity due to education. (MJP)