There are different types of copying, some involving artistic behaviors and some not. It is important to differentiate these types, separating the replication of conventions from more inventive artistic behaviors. A framework for such examination is applied in a group of pilot studies involving children copying comic strips. (Author/RM)

Current beliefs about how children draw emphasize the importance of drawing from memory, rather than from observation. However, an experiment with children aged seven to nine showed that observation drawings included greater detail and complexity. More research on observation drawing is recommended. (IS)

The author argues that American art education has long been misled by its reliance on Lowenfeld's theory that creativity is the ultimate good and that children are innately creative. She proposes a more structured and technical approach to art education, based on developmental research with children and art. (SJL)