This chapter shares a suite of collaborative artmaking projects, designed to use Arts-based inquiry through an a/r/tographical lens to enable deep learning and the development of pedagogical content knowledge. These projects are underpinned by a desire to provide authentic and engaging learning experiences for Visual Arts pre-service teachers in a…

Despite the significant role of pottery in preserving cultural identity and providing a source of livelihood to the people of Nanumba, their artistic development of pottery production has been stagnant. This has resulted in low patronage of their products, which is further accentuated by the influx of the plastics industry on the market. This in…

The purpose of this study was to explore the anxiety and stress-reducing effects of drawing, using different drawing materials by promoting the development of student confidence. The drawing activities were designed to foster the exploration of identity, emotion, and sense of self, while encouraging the exploration of materials and mark making.…

Targeting students in grades K-8, Art in Action's program consists of 12 age-appropriate lessons per year led by parent and teacher volunteers. The curriculum is based on historically significant artists and their works of art. Through semi-structured discussions, students examine a variety of masterpieces, learning about the artist as well as…

Recently there have been calls to expandSTEM education to include the arts and design, transforming STEM into STEAM in the K-20 classroom (Maeda, 2013). Like STEM, STEAM education stresses making connections between disciplines that were previously perceived as disparate. This has been conceptualized in different ways, such as: focusing on the…

There is a wonderful community of art educators connecting a once-isolated profession through blogging. Art educators around the world are sharing ideas and communicating with their peers through this amazing resource. In this article, the author describes the bottle cap mural at Tulip Grove Elementary School which was inspired by this exchange of…

Targeting students in grades K-8, Art in Action's program consists of 12 age-appropriate lessons per year led by parent and teacher volunteers. The curriculum is based on historically significant artists and their works of art. Through semi-structured discussions, students examine a variety of masterpieces, learning about the artist as well as…

Last spring, students from several North Carolina middle schools were invited to participate in the annual Celebrate the Arts festival in Columbus Country. Larry Hewett, a local art teacher, had been selected to instruct the middle-school students. Larry's River Rock Circles project was made as the starting point for the Celebrate the Arts…

The designers of our future built environment must possess intellectual tools which will allow them to be disciplined, flexible and analytical thinkers, able to address and resolve new and complex problems. In response, an experimental and collaborative design studio was designed to inspire and build on students' knowledge and their creative…

Art teachers are renowned for their claims that the creative properties of their senior secondary pupils' artworks occur as a result of the realisation of a creative process. Drawing on my recent ethnographic studies in senior art classrooms in Sydney, Australia, and Illinois, USA, I uncover a sociological, rather than a psychological explanation…

Promoting student artwork through national publication empowers students to celebrate their accomplishment in the artroom. As a form of art advocacy, it can also promote a teacher's art program, reinforcing the value of art education. In this article, the author relates how he was encouraged by an administrator to look for a professional journal…

In this article, the author, an art teacher at a Pennsylvanian high school, tells of methods she has used to help "open up" students in her Intermediate Studio Art class who are timid but talented individuals who will not risk embarrassment by expressing themselves. Her methods involved having students serve as models for sketches and…

This article discusses the development and implementation of a district-wide mural project that would highlight the strength of the arts and encourage collaboration between all the art teachers, students of multiple ages, and the community. Over 350 students, exhibited their talents and skills by collaborating on a three-paneled ceramic mural that…

Presents a qualitative study of the sociocultural teaching and learning system involved in an introductory direct metal-sculpture studio class. Discusses the cognitive, affective, and physical processes that take place through the social exploration of material, form, and concepts. Includes a graphic model of the learning process. (MJP)

Art education in the United States has never been on a firmer footing than at the present time. It faces a future secure in the knowledge that during the past 10 years its social, economic, and educational values have been demonstrated and acknowledged and generally put into practice. Educational leaders no longer ignore it; rather one finds an…