In 7 weeks I have filled a 3 inch binder with different
interpretations of the "right" research method to utilize for any
given topic in art education. From each
method, quantitative and the diversity of qualitative methods, I have seen how
I could implement all of them in my research towards creating a curriculum
resource. When I began this class I was
sure that I wanted to create a curriculum guide based on identity that could be
adopted by high school art teachers. I
have come to realize that is an unrealistic goal for me at this time. Curriculum design is a living process that
requires understanding the learner, learning environment, resources at hand,
content knowledge, and local, state and national standards and making something
that meets the needs of the teacher and student in their path to constructing
knowledge. No one person can do
that. So what can one person do?
Art as
research and research as art sticks in my brain like a metaphor that art brings
to life. Creating art is all about
figuring out what works the best to communicate an idea and then putting those
findings to work. Figuring out what
research method to use to do what it is I want to do requires me to know what I
want to do. That "knowing"
keeps shifting and I've struggled with it all 7 weeks. What do I want? I want to understand. I want to understand how I can find and
utilize resources to make art education relevant to my high school learners. From the process of developing an
understanding I want to share what I have discovered with teachers so that they
may not have to "re-invent the wheel" so to say.
From my
pilot study I realized that many school systems can-not afford to purchase art
textbooks for their art classes. Art
teachers are creative by nature so they find their information and lesson ideas
through conversations with peers, surfing the net, looking through museum catalogs,
participating in workshops and just about everywhere else they travel and then construct
their own resources. But wouldn't it be
nice if you didn't have to spend so many hours searching for lesson resources
or so much money to buy a textbook that is outdated in five years, and that
doesn't really relate to your classroom community? I think so.
What if there was a place where an art teacher could go that could give
them multiple options and ideas all based on a single theme, and that are developmentally
appropriate? For high school, what would
be the most relevant themes? What would
that place look like? I want to find
that place.
In the
process of creating art the artist learns what they need to make the artwork
successful. The answer is in the
studio. What do I do? What do my colleagues do? What do I use? What do they use? What doesn't work? What can I learn from what doesn't work so
that I can do something that does?
Answering these question are the stops along the way to my destination
of understanding. Once I understand then
I can create something that does work and that may even help others. My research will be a narrative of my journey
to understanding. Beyond that understanding
will be application of those new understandings in the form of an open access
teacher resource for information and lesson ideas for high school teachers working
with the theme of identity.
The
Abstract Expressionists taught me that the process of creating is just as
important as the product itself. From the
process of creating we learn and grow.
From studying someone else's process we also learn and grow. In
Design for Inquiry, Instructional Theory, Research and Practice in Art
Education (1999) Dr. Delacruz states that "Art teachers' thinking,
planning, decision making, and response to the conditions of teaching are
important but undervalued aspects of their work" (p.21). The act of teaching art is not an act at
all. It is a process of learning,
reflecting, implementing, assessing and staying current on theory, practice and
the culture of their students. Without
these processes, what is presented to students becomes irrelevant to heir
world.
This is
why I think my process of constructing the knowledge I need in order to develop
an identity resource guide for myself and others is an important topic for
further study; for research. Documenting
my processes of inquiry (classroom practice, textbook and web resource
investigations, art education literature, and interviews with students and
teachers) will take the form of a narrative as the final product of my journey.
Resources
Delacruz,
E. M. (1999). Design for inquiry, instructional theory research and practice
in art education. Reston, VA: The National Art Education Association.
Wirt, S. (2011).Title.
(Unpublished pilot study). University of Florida.
