BA2 Education – Page 3

What Can We Learn From Creative Arts?

I remember back when I was in primary school I made a lot of creations with a number of different materials through a number of different methods that I could take home and show to my parents with great pride. I really loved these classes as it allowed me to get hands-on with my work and it was so much more fun than sitting at a desk answering questions from a textbook. However, looking back now I realised that although I made a variety of things there wasn’t much room for my own alterations to the project; everyone in the class’ looked the same apart from the colours you used to decorate whatever it was. From the first input looking at the different levels of artwork throughout a school Diarmuid mentioned the interesting question of “how much teacher involvement was there?” which is something I probably wouldn’t have thought about beforehand. Although on the surface it looks like the child had the chance to be creative and express themselves it may not be the case, the teacher may have directed them in a certain direction, giving precise instructions decreasing the window of creativity.

The Curriculum for Excellence experience and outcomes for Expressive Arts states that:

“My learning in, through and about the expressive arts:

enables me to experience the inspiration and power of the arts
recognises and nurtures my creative and aesthetic talents
allows me to develop skills and techniques that are relevant to specific art forms and across the four capacities
provides opportunities for me to deepen my understanding of culture in Scotland and the wider world
is enhanced and enriched through partnerships with professional arts companies, creative adults and cultural organisations.”

After speaking to some teachers and reflecting back on my own experience I think it’s great that there is more of an emphasis on expressive arts and are cross curricular. It shows children that subjects such as Maths and English can be approached in numerous ways and facilitates children that learn creatively as opposed to traditional rote learning. It encourages problem solving skills within the child as the creative arts teach children that problems can have more than one solution and that questions can have more than one answer; it promotes looking at things from different perspectives (Eisner, 2002), a transferable skill into the wider world thus contributing to the CfE’s aim of making the learner a more confident individual, this was actually demonstrated in a workshop when we were discussing some of the children’s artwork, one piece of work triggered multiple interpretations, doing so boosts children’s confidence because it can reduce the feel of a ‘competition’ between classmates. As well as this, I am really appreciative that this is part of my university course because in the face of cuts external teachers in the arts are usually one of the first places where schools will reduce to save money, so if I appreciate and am confident in delivering the arts then I will be a more effective and desirable teacher.

Keeping these things in mind I am really looking forward to this module and what it has to offer.

References:

LTS (2009) Expressive arts: Experiences and outcomes. Available at: http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/Images/expressive_arts_experiences_outcomes_tcm4-539863.pdf (Accessed: 4 October 2016).

Eisner, E (2002) The Arts and the Creation of Mind. Yale University Press.

Week 1: Integrated Arts: An Introduction

Art

It’s been well known for some time now that the arts is positively linked to academic achievement, social and emotional development among other things (Smith, 2009). It is acknowledged in the education system as it stimulates the brain in ways textbooks cannot and was a massive step forward to integrate it into formal education. However, after being in practice for a number of years the delivery is being revised so that children get the most out of the arts through varying mediums such as dance, drama, music and can bring out a child’s artistic potential.

Art can be taken in so many different ways. What one person might see another person will see something completely different with neither being right or wrong. This is the main point I gained from today’s input when we were going round looking at artwork ranging across the whole of the primary school. I wouldn’t describe myself as being incredibly art-inclined, I’ve always leaned closer to the facts and figures so when I saw this image the first thought that came to my head was that the child was practicing drawing the number 4 and had made it into a circular pattern. However, when brought to the wider class discussion someone else said it looked more like a child drawing chairs around a table – the possible classroom layout where the child was. It could have been either of the ideas or none at all and that is the great thing about art; there is no right or wrong answer.

Another concept brought to attention was the involvement of the class teacher in the production of the art piece. Was the child told to use a specific technique to produce the piece of art? Was the child given an image to reproduce or was it an original idea? Was the child incorporating a number of techniques they have seen from famous artists or were they just copying a painting? Did the child have a choice of resources? How long would the piece taken to create? Was it done in one sitting or multiple?

Children’s reproductions of Van Gogh’s ‘Sunflowers’

All these questions were considered and it highlighted the importance of the teacher’s role in cultivating a child’s creativity. Although learning about the different styles and techniques of famous artists is important and practicing them to see the effect they have in producing an image, getting a whole class to reproduce a version of a famous painting can be counterproductive. Instead of an exercise which allows the child to explore a style of art it becomes an exercise of who can reproduce the painting closest to the original or who can follow instructions correctly; this puts up barriers to creativity if the child’s work can be compared to the rest of the class’s in a way where one can be ‘the best’ and one ‘the worst’. Dictating what the child produces does not allow them to exercise their potential and develop their own style. A teacher’s role in the creative process should be focused on providing the resources and platforms for the child to take what they will and create as opposed to the teacher leading the process and putting up boundaries – supporting the creativity, not imposing (Bruce, 2004:12 as cited in Craft, 2007). There needs to be a balance between providing too much structure which can demotivate a child and providing too much freedom where the child can get confused and lost (Craft, 2007) to allow for the child’s creativity to develop and flourish.

This has made me think of my impact as a student teacher and how I need to be mindful of teaching methods so not to restrict children and their learning. This different way of thinking and seeing things from multiple perspectives has made me reflect on my personal experience of expressive art in primary school and how it has influenced my views of my own ability of creativity. It has opened my eyes to how important it is that children are not put off acknowledging they are creative and how creativity should not be measured and compared to those around them. It has made me really excited to get into this module and practicing not seeing everything as clear cut as black and white.

Music

I have always thought I was never musically gifted but it is as I have gotten older it has occurred to me that my inability to play an instrument does not make me ‘bad’ at music; it does not mean that my creative capacity cannot gain from music. I have always enjoyed listening to music from a young age and it makes me feel a range of emotions, it is the perfect partner to every aspect of life, the best days and the worst days. It can take you back to certain periods or time and help release stress, anger, joy and elation.

The activity we did in the music workshop today was stimulating, it showed how even just listening to music can exercise one’s imagination, creativity and portray emotions in ways that words cannot. Discussing how short audio clips made us feel showed how music affects us in all different ways – where a clip may make one person feel incredibly happy it can strongly anger someone else with many others in between. Creating a comic strip of what scenario came to mind whilst listening to the music was a brilliant way to provide a structure to showcase one’s imagination, it gave us the foundations to work off of with the only restrictions being our own thoughts, not capability. Presenting the scenario to the rest of the class what your group came up with perfectly illustrated how different people’s responses can be without being ‘wrong’ responses. It shows how little boundaries there are within the arts and how music can work the mind.

Expressive Arts: Experiences and Outcomes

Expressive arts

Experiences and outcomes

Experiences in the expressive arts involve creating and presenting and are practical and experiential. Evaluating and appreciating are used to enhance enjoyment and develop knowledge and understanding.

My learning in, through and about the expressive arts:

enables me to experience the inspiration and power of the arts
recognises and nurtures my creative and aesthetic talents
allows me to develop skills and techniques that are relevant to specific art forms and across the four capacities
provides opportunities for me to deepen my understanding of culture in Scotland and the wider world

is enhanced and enriched through partnerships with professional arts companies, creative adults and cultural organisations.

(Education Scotland, 2009)

Creativity and utilizing expressive arts is beneficial to a child as it is relevant across a range of learning, be it in imaginative play and mark-making in the early years to solving disputes in later life (Duffy, 2006).

Expressive arts in the curriculum is used to help enhance, accompany and enhance the child’s learning. Some topics and concepts can be hard to learn from a teacher explaining it theoretically and not experienced which is where drama, art, music and dance can step in and take the lead. Creativity and the arts has been associated with benefits in subjects such as Maths and English (Smith, 2009) as well as being a central role in cognitive development; it is through symbolic representation that children require the facility for abstract thought (Duffy, 2006). As well as this, children learn in all different ways: kinetically, visually and auditory and exercising their understanding in the arts can compliment their preferred way of learning. Experimenting with different forms of art in traditional and unorthodox ways allows for the learner to practice and discover any talents they may have and further their understanding of the world around them as art can be found everywhere and is no longer reserved to the upper classes of society to appreciate. Having the opportunity to exercise creativity from the early years allows for the learner to develop and nurture their creative talents and acknowledge where their talents can take them.

Directed Study Task

My Local Urban Area

I moved to Ayr last year for university and am now living in one of the three blocks of flats that is Churchill Tower. At the bottom of one of the flats there is a small convenience store and in the middle of the courtyard out front is a small decorative statue which, I think, is reference to the harbour which is across the river from me. There is only one road that passes the front of the blocks which s a relatively quiet one and there is one behind the flats and over a small bridge which runs the shorefront. There isn’t a lot of green space in my direct area, but the beach is pretty much a stone throw away.

I, personally, either use my bicycle or walk for modes of transport, but there is an underground parking facility and parking bays to the sides of the flat. Thankfully there are cycle lanes on the roads and even up to and on the main road at the end of the street which makes cycling less dangerous and a lot easier. There are bus services which mainly connects the smaller surrounding villages to Ayr but there is a double-decker bus which runs to Glasgow and Edinburgh. As well as this, there’s a train station in town which can get pretty busy at peak times with people coming to go to the college and university on top of people commuting to Glasgow for work. The roads as well can get rather congested at peak times also. In town there are parking metres to try and reduce the number of cars in town and there is a one way system as well to accommodate for the narrow roads.

Community spaces wise, there are a number of private gyms as well as the council leisure centre. There’s a big library in town and numerous churches all over Ayr. To my knowledge I haven’t seen any allotments but they may be some outwith the town centre. There are also a couple parks on the riverside for children and more in the outer districts. Next to the beach there is a large square with a lot of green space and benches for people to walk through and sit at. The beach front has a large play park and activities for young children and adolescents. As well as an Odeon cinema, there is a theatre which is linked to the university for the performance and theatre technology students. Although not in Ayr itself there is an all-weather pitch in Prestwick that people can go to to play football and other sports.

Since I’m relatively new to Ayr I’m not entirely sure about the industry and work places, but there is a large shopping centre and plenty of pubs and clubs to provide employment. There’s also a lot of work when the races come around in the racecourse itself, hotels, restaurants and surrounding pubs.

In the peri-urban spaces surrounding Ayr there are a number of supermarkets and hotels, especially next to the racecourse that connect the houses and flats to the town. Industrial estates have been swallowed up by the surrounding housing estates as they have grown and become part of the town.

In South Ayrshire there are 92 people per square kilometre which is quite high in comparison to Scotland as a whole which has 68 people per person per square kilometre. This is because it is one of the bigger towns in Scotland and is a popular place to live by commuters to Glasgow. (http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/HTMLDocs/dvc134_c/index.html)

Ayr has the lowest ranking for air pollution, this is probably due to it not being a major industrial town that isn’t overly congested or busy. (http://www.scottishairquality.co.uk/latest/site-info.php?site_id=AYR&view=photos&photo=west)

The Environment

Theme:

The Environment

Key Learning:

Interconnections and dependency on the environment

Food provisions, raw materials (wood, fossil fuels, etc)

Human’s relationship with the environment

Human intervention, industrial farming, urbanisation, effect on lifestyle and physiology.

First step in Learning for Sustainability/Education for Sustainable Development

Green energy, awareness of industrial farming

Impact on my views/lifestyle/practice:

Previous to the workshop and lecture I was aware of the different types of environments (urban, country etc) but this workshop was great in experiencing the different styles of teaching kids about the environment. Even though we were adults and doing the activities seemed easy did think it was great for realising the good of getting the kids outdoors. Sending them off to search for different bugs, leaves and birds will prompt them to ask questions and stimulate their senses which will make for a memorable lesson and knowledge that will stay with them as they discovered it as opposed to being told. It makes them more observant and provides a change to the classroom getting them active and moving.

It also emphasised the knock on effects of changing smaller environments, like building a farm, housing estate, supermarket on country land, has on a bigger scale; cities are mainly responsible for putting pressure on the wider environment due to carbon emissions and finite amount of resources and the loss of natural surroundings disrupts and changes the biodiversity and food chain in the area. I could demonstrate a small replica of this in the classroom by creating a small natural environment either on the school grounds or in an area of the class and then change it to more ‘industrial’ and show how there will be a big change in the bugs that would be there.

Areas of interest to explore further/develop:

How human intervention has changed the environment and the domino effects its had on wildlife and even human evolution. Showing how people who live in more rural areas have evolved to adapt to that environment e.g. rural Africans have thick soles on the bottom of their feet to deal with the uneven, rocky ground, those who live in colder weather tend to be hairier to keep warm and even discussing skin colour varies to protect against the sun.