Discusses the potential for cooperation between schools and art museums and examines the use of visual materials in the classroom. Surveys show that teachers normally use nonprint visual materials only to make their classrooms attractive or to illustrate information. Museum experiences can enrich student visual imagery and appreciation of art. (AM)

Past uses of art reproductions in schools and mass media publications are described, along with political, economic, and aesthetic issues raised by such usage. The presentation focuses on concerns associated with present and future educational use of reproductions, whether electronic or some other form. Issues of selectivity and aesthetics are…

The study presented in this article sought to determine if more positive art attitudes, more art knowledge, and higher standards of aesthetic preference might ensue from Blacks studying art examples created by Black artists, rather than those created by White artists. Results confirm the effectiveness of Black exemplars for Blacks' art…

Disputes the argument that aesthetic education is important because it contributes to learning the three Rs, and argues that aesthetic education should be considered a fourth R because aesthetic response is "a primary form of experience on which all cognition, judgment, and action depend." (Author/JG)

Though reproductions are a necessary teaching tool, they are not substitutes for the original work of art. Through museum visits, students can be provided with the knowledge needed to experience art. By describing, analyzing, and evaluating the works of art, students become aware of the differences between originals and reproductions. (CS)

Maintains that before any real teaching can take place, art teachers must combat "visual fatigue,""media bombardment," and "sensory overload." Describes each of these phenomena and offers practical advice for overcoming their effects. (JDH)

The authors review a body of theory and accumulating evidence which suggests that critical study of the arts facilitates the development of cognitive skills, including those essential to reading. (Author/SJL)

Line, shape, color and texture have always been the universal components of visual expression. Together these elements form a visual language. This packet is designed to be used as part of the Thematic Tour "First Look" offered by the Georgia Department of Education. The material explores some of the ways people use pictorial language;…

Aesthetic perception must be taught if we expect students to use it. Within a given society, the creators and viewers of art are socialized to more or less agreed upon aesthetic codes and conventions. (Author/RM)

Whether or not knowledge about the painter Picasso is helpful or indispensable in teaching appreciation of his art is discussed. Three studies by Denis Thomas, Mary M. Gedo, and Frank Elgar that argue that knowledge of Picasso the man helps students understand his paintings are examined. (RM)

This paper describes how staff at McKendree College in Illinois are working to improve student teachers' visual and verbal literacy skills as part of a children's literature class. It explains the importance of visual literacy in teaching and learning within diverse classrooms and the need for children to express themselves with writing and art,…

Students in grades 1, 3, 6, and 10 viewed a selection of paintings to determine developmental stages in aesthetic judgment. Age group responses were analyzed for general characteristics and for children's ability to distinguish among standards of personal preference, community values, and technical competence. (SJL)

This paper relates visual literacy to the historical development of art education in the United States, emphasizing the work of Walter Smith, an art educator, during the later nineteenth century. The visual mode of learning, especially drawing, in public schools has been justified as a means to furthering industrialization and as an end in itself,…

Points out the limitations of the Cartesian epistemology underlying most art education textbooks. Explores the ideas of Gregory Bateson and Ellen Dissanayake who express a semiotic view of artistic creation that is multidimensional. Suggest implications for art education. (KM)

Utilizes a 17th-century Italian sculpture and an African fetish figure to illustrate essential qualities and characteristics of figurative sculpture. Points out the extreme differences and the many similarities between the two and offers explanations. Includes a process for leading students through "reading" the sculptures. (MJP)