An important part of the Progressive Education movement, the playground, influenced John Dewey's educational philosophy of learning. "The playground, particularly during the Progressive reform movement of the early 1900s benefited from the widespread belief that play was child's work. Dewey portrayed children as miniature adults who…

For art educators, teaching textual literacy can be a challenge. In a review of literature, Hall (2005) found that content area teachers (as opposed to teachers of Reading and English) did not feel qualified to teach reading and believed that students did not need reading instruction to be successful with texts from their specific disciplines.…

In this article, the authors discuss mixed-media projects done with elementary students in a summer art camp and preservice elementary teachers taking Visual Arts in the Elementary Classroom, illustrating their consideration of how stories carry the curricular potential to bring students' out-of-school experiences into the classroom. In order…

What could video games bring to a K-12 visual arts curriculum? Overby and Jones were skeptical about incorporating gaming and virtual worlds into the classroom, but watching their own children engaging in the video game Minecraft changed their perception. As they started researching the game and how these kids were operating within the space, they…

Since the summer of 2006, the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA), in the Dallas/Ft. Worth metroplex, has invited secondary students to participate in their summer SEED program on campus. The program was developed by the Dean of the School of Architecture and the Chair of the Art + Art History Department. SEED (Strategies, Events, Episodes +…

When used effectively, feedback promotes student ownership in artmaking by encouraging students to inject originality, persist, and improve. Feedback from teacher, self, and peers can also provide students with motivation. In this article, the author explores her students' understanding of the idea of ownership, observes how feedback…

The music education profession is faced with two serious problems regarding the (mis)use of data in music teacher evaluation. The first has to do with the quality and kinds of data that music teachers have been forced to use; the second is concerned with how these data are being used in the music teacher evaluation process. The evidence I will use…

As a result of Race to the Top, states across the country vied for school improvement grants in order to advance educational reforms including effective professional development and teacher collaboration within their school districts. Requirements of the grant included the development of teacher evaluation systems and a professional development…

This article synthesizes current dance education research that demonstrates connections between the culturally relevant pedagogy and student academic achievement, details why the arts are exponentially important and valuable to all communities, and provides practical solutions for the everyday teacher. Through a pointed focus on culturally…

One of the most important factors determining a nation's level of development in the modern world is preschool education. When preschool education is perceived as an entity that affects every aspect of childhood development, this fact is undeniable. Several aspects of preschool education, including art education, play a significant role in a…

This study aims to analyse artistic understanding in primary and secondary education and the relationship between this understanding and motivational characteristics such as goal orientation, engagement in art activities and attitude to art education at school, which determine (according to prior research) learners' academic achievement, in…

Given the increased awareness of the negative effects the building industry has on the environment, designs produced without considering sustainability of the planet can no longer be accepted. Although the concepts of sustainability and environmental responsibility are not new to the field of interior design, a review of the literature reveals…

The debate over the design thesis is often entangled in the dialectics of the practical and the theoretical. Whether the argument is waged and weighted in favour of a practical emphasis or a theoretical emphasis, or more insidious, a judicious balance between the two, what is inevitably assumed in the debate is the possibility of drawing and/or…

The continued viability of art and design programmes depends on our ability to produce graduates able to contribute successfully and confidently to the future of the creative industries. This in turn depends on our ability to lead students to develop both the ability and the motivation to learn. A significant proportion of our students however,…

Compared to other professions in recent years, architecture has lagged woefully behind in attracting and retaining a diverse population, as defined by class, race and gender. This research investigates the extent to which architecture culturally reproduces itself, specifically examining the socialisation process of students into the subculture of…