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CC Marsh (2014) [Video file] Retrieved from
https://www.flickr.com/photos/thedreamrocket
/15767221368/in/photolist-q2i8Ah
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When I say the words ‘art
education’ what do people immediately think of? Perhaps drawing, painting, or
dance? But these shallow interpretations are only a small possibility of what arts
education could be; in reality it is increasingly complex. The purpose of
integration is to take a specialized and segregated subject like arts education
and promote dynamic pathways of interdisciplinary teaching and learning that
connects art to other subject areas (LaJevic, 2013). Art can be used as a way
to make meaning of the world, promote high levels of student learning, and can
stimulate creativity and self-expression (LaJavic, 2013).
Although
teachers are beginning to explore collaborative and digital learning, the
majority of teachers still continue to rely on textbooks and supplemental
workbooks for subjects such as math, science, language arts, and social studies
(La Jevic, 2013). While textbooks can be utilized as a resource, the lessons
often become mundane. Arts should not serve the purpose of filling in the empty
time throughout the day, but rather should be incorporated into the components
of lesson planning (LaJevic, 2013). For example, teachers often ask their
students to cut snowflakes in the winter time as decorations for their
classrooms, but what they often forget to mention is how this snowflake
represents symmetry, an essential component of geometry or science in
connection to different states of matter. In this example, the arts were
considered an activity rather than a way of thinking or knowing which
contributes to the devaluation of arts integration (LaJevic, 2013). That being
said, arts integration is not easy, and it requires a level of skill and
understanding that not all teachers currently possess. Since arts’ teaching was
not a formal part of their own education, teaching about the arts can create
uncertainty, making arts integration an intimidating task (LaJevic, 2013). Assuming
that teachers understand art from different cultures, that they feel confident
teaching them effectively, and that teachers know how to encourage students to
explore the arts are dangerous assumptions because it does not take into
account the diverse backgrounds of each teacher (LaJevic, 2013).
This topic is personally meaningful to me because I went to an integrated arts high school, so I am familiar with the concept of arts integration and how successful it can be if employed correctly. Erik Stern and Karl Schaffer’s MathDance is an excellent example of taking elements of the arts in order to ‘spice up’ an ordinarily boring exercise like counting the number of possible outcomes to a problem. Instead of simply asking the students how many ways they can form a handshake, they ask the students to model their answers and compile them into a dance.
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CC Maki Maya (2013) [Video file] Retrieved from
https://www.flickr.com/photos/therightbraininitiative/
10482011575/in/photolist-gYg3Rv
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Chemi (2014) does an excellent job of describing the current dilemma of Arts education. In this metaphor she describes art education as the whipped cream on the schools metaphorical pie. While whipped cream certainly makes the pie more attractive and more delicious some would argue that it is not absolutely essential, and should therefore be omitted from a truly healthy diet. If arts are like whipped cream, then what healthy foods would academic subjects correspond to? In this example, academic subjects were likened to rye bread; a food with rich nutrition that is suitable for everyday consumption, yet it is often bland in taste (Chemi, 2014). Chemi (2014) calls for a new recipe to be developed, one that integrates enjoyment and purpose; perhaps rye bread pudding with whipped cream! We can see real-life examples of this concept in both Susan Riley and Jane Fung’s blogs where arts integration is present in the classroom.
In real life there are no
distinct boundaries between academic subjects but rather they are intertwined.
Arts integration celebrates the rhizomatic overlapping qualities between
subjects and approaches education as a whole. Educators must be willing to get
lost and welcome the uncertainties that arts education brings in order to
develop creative and exciting curricular and pedagogical possibilities
(LaJevic, 2013).
References:
Chemi, T. (201). The Artful Teacher: A Conceptual Model for Arts
Integration in Schools. The
National Art Education
Association Studies in Art Education: A
Journal of Issues and Research, 56(1),
383-3370.
Drake, S., Reid, J., & Kolohon,
W. (2014). Interweaving
Curriculum and Classroom Assessment: Engaging the 21st-
Century
Learner (pp. 6-8). Don Mills: Oxford University Press
Fung, J. (2013, May 17). What You Can Do When the Arts are Missing from
Your Elementary School. In Tch:
TeachingChannel. Retrieved October 6,
2015, from https://www.teachingchannel.org/blog/2013/05/17/arts-integration/
LaJevic, L. (2013). Arts Integration: What is Really Happening in the
Elementary Classroom? Journal
for Learning
through the Arts, 9(1), 1-30.
LaJevic, L. (2013). The lost and found space of the arts in education. International Journal of Education
through
Art, 9(1),
41-54. doi:10.1386/eta.9.1.41_1
Riley, S. (2012, November 30). Use Arts Integration to Enhance Common
Core. In Edutopia: What works
in
Education. Retrieved October 6,
2015, from http://www.edutopia.org/blog/core-practices-arts-integration-susan-riley
Stern, E., & Schaffer, K. (Actor). (2012). Math Dance [Online video]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ws2y-cGoWqQ
