Blog 7: Theory, Trend, & Assessment

Over the past three weeks, I have explored a few types of art education theories, trends, and assessments. Whereas theories outline an approach of curriculum, trends are depicted in the content, and assessment is what indicates to teachers what students have learned. When classrooms are tailored to educate children in ways that suit them best, with subject matter that means something to them, and using testing methods that best display student outcomes, student learning is ultimately enhanced. By connecting an art education theory, trend, and assessment type, not only does it help in classroom management but also structures learning in a way that engages and motivates students depending on how it was modified.

Before one begins to structure their art room with these elements, they must first know their students. As stated by Bertling and Moore, the United States "has a history of evolving in response to emerging social, cultural, and political conditions" (Bertling & Moore, p. 24). So, as an educator in an evolving world with critical issues increasingly occupying space in our daily lives, a teacher must take the time to recognize the situations students are going through. Whether with understanding the community, local culture, or more global issues, one would want your students to take something beneficial away by being in your class.

Once the educator knows their audience, they can begin pairing up theories with trends and visualize assessments that will authentically display corresponding knowledge. The five pedagogical approaches, or theories, in art education include constructivism, collaboration, inquiry-based learning, integration, and reflection. As for trends in art education, among the most well-known are TAB/ choice-based, critical multiculturalism, visual & material culture, STEAM, community-based, place-based, social justice, and ecological/ environmental. When envisioning a functioning art classroom, it is natural that some concepts innately relate well with others. The question only lies in what expected outcomes are and how do we get there. For example, if an art teacher wanted to incorporate critical multiculturalism in their classroom, an approach they could take is an inquiry-based one because it enables research, asking questions, critically-thinking, and problem-solving. It could also be a good idea to utilize multiple theories together, such as if one wanted students to regularly collaborate in recognizing stereotypes and problem-solving contemporary issues.

The last component of an engaging class is authentic assessment methods. According to Boughton, the problem of assessment is that the understanding of complex relationships between form and meaning in an artwork is not intimately related to the curriculum and artmaking practices (Boughton, p. 215). Rather than mere multiple-choice quizzes or written response tests, more telling modes of assessing knowledge include, but are not limited to, physical portfolios, digital portfolios, self/ peer reflections, class discussion, visual journaling, and performance-based projects. These types of assessments are more appreciated, particularly in the art field, because they emphasize process and allow for well-thought-out responses over choosing a correct answer and turning it in. Overall, the assessments an educator chooses, relating to how their classes are conducted, should be appointed to employ most accurately displaying expected outcomes.

Citations:

Joy G. Bertling & Tara C. Moore (2021) The U.S. K–12 Art Education Curricular Landscape: A Nationwide Survey, Studies in Art Education, 62:1, 23-46, DOI: 10.1080/00393541.2020.1858007

Boughton, D. (2005), ‘From fine art to visual culture; assessment and the changing role of art education’, International Journal of Education through Art 1: 3, pp. 211–223. doi: 10.1386/etar.1.3.211/1