Encourages counselors to incorporate poetry into student counseling. Client poems many times serve as a way to uncover student concerns. Reading and writing, particularly in free verse, can often accelerate the counseling process. (RJM)

Describes a one-year project involving the integration of expressive arts therapies into an alternative education program. Therapies such as bibliotherapy, phototherapy, poetry therapy, and studio work form the basis for the curriculum. A case study, involving a "borderline," emotionally disturbed, and artistically gifted student,…

Details the effectiveness of individual art therapy with a 12-year-old white female whose academic performance decreased after her parents divorced. The treatment focused on problem-solving and self-concept as a means of improving school performance. Results indicate a notable increase in both self-concept and academic performance. (RJM)

Discusses a pilot study in which art therapy was integrated into the ninth-grade English classroom (N=50) of an urban high school. Data from three measures (to reduce drop-out rates, decrease school failure, and improve students' attitudes about school, family, and self) indicate that the program was a success. (RJM)

The hypothesis that improving the aesthetic quality of the environment of a functionally dependent person with traumatic brain injury would show a corresponding positive effect in the attitudes and behaviors of the resident's family system was tested. Effects of environmental manipulations on family and patient are assessed and discussed.…

This article discusses the future contribution of art therapy to social science research and proposes that art therapists proactively develop collaborative ties with qualitative researchers from fields such as psychology, social anthropology, and education. Although the application of art as a tool in qualitative research is not new, its potential…

Describes "Snakes in the Grass," a weaving project used with special needs students. Discusses the preliminary skill-building activities used, the process for creating the students' individual snakes, and the preparation and process for how the students wove the snakes. (CMK)

This study is an exploration of the art produced by American veterans of the Vietnam War. In the areas of artistic history, military service, and the creative process, Vietnam veteran artists are a diverse group, and there are many different ways of explaining the connection between Vietnam experience and their art. Some individuals made limited…

This article is based on five case studies of art teaching in Israel in a situation of constant violent conflict. It presents the art teachers' practices and beliefs about coping with their students' experiences of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Three approaches to art education in this context are identified: a) art creation as an act of…

A project was undertaken to improve mental health treatment services to seriously emotionally disturbed inner city ethnic minority children. Many of these children and the majority of their parents did not speak English. As service planning began it was agreed that the developers would like to emphasize the creative arts therapies, most especially…

This report on how Native American healing methods can be utilized in Western creative art therapy emphasizes that for Native Americans, art is an element of life--not a separate aesthetic ideal. Furthermore, American Indian philosophy does not separate healing from art or religion; the belief is that traditional healing, which uses shamanic…

This paper discusses job opportunities for women art educators interested in working with exceptional children. Within the next few years there will be a significant increase in the demand for art teachers trained in the uses of art with exceptional children. This is due to the increased sophistication of schools in identifying exceptional…

Access to the arts requires facilities, programs, and services that enable the handicapped to participate in all kinds of art. Some training programs for special education teachers and classroom teachers are described. (Author/MLF)

The study explored the effect of different psychopedagogical factors on the adaptation process in 365 first year students at the Pedagogical University of Cracow (Poland). Eight sessions of "creative therapy" included music, art, and discussion. (DB)

Art therapy enhances the cognitive abilities of most students no matter how severely affected they may be. It also provides an emotional outlet and opportunity to gain self-worth. Schools would do well to seek out educator-therapists in the arts to serve the special needs of mainstreamed children. (LHW)