Despite the numerous benefits art has for children, research suggests that there is a lull in the development of expression in children's drawings during the primary school years and that many children give up on art between the ages of 10 and 12. Research investigating this phenomenon has taken an educational focus and aimed to identify…

This article is an account of a national project established to support secondary school art teachers to re-engage with their own artistic practice. It draws extensively upon the experiences of the participants and examines the value of teachers making time for their own practical work, both personally and professionally. Beginning in January…

How does life drawing impact on a group of 14-16-year-old female art and design students and their perception of body image? In contemporary Western society, we are bombarded with advertising, social media and celebrity culture on a daily basis, often with a focus on body image. This article questions whether, due to this visual assault, young…

Developing one's creative potential is a basic human right, and thus the relationship between democracy and creativity is ineffable. Reggio Emilia pedagogies recognise this intrinsically; teaching through this modality embeds deep learning and an aesthetic awareness not often evident in formal schooling, despite the overwhelming evidence…

A phenomenological approach was employed in order to record and present the lived experiences of three students during a five-hour art-making activity. Theoretical definitions of cognitive processes pertinent to art and design were compared with the descriptions gathered from the students. The research was intended to portray as accurately as…

Two artists involved in "socially engaged art" practice were invited to work with art education teacher candidates and instructors in an effort to rethink notions of teaching, learning and art. We initiated this residency, which we called "The Summerhill Residency", to examine how learning encounters might create environments for meaningful…

Ideas and issues based contemporary art is often seen as something to be avoided in schools, as the controversial subjects that it broaches are often perceived as problematic and inappropriate. However, by censoring education, it can be seen that educators are missing vital opportunities to confront the relevant personal, social, political and…

This article examines a case study of an A-Level student's work and how the inclusion and integration of my own practice as artist-teacher into the classroom has changed the teacher-student relationship, resulting in a more collaborative environment. It investigates how the mutual sharing of practice supports opportunities for pupils to discuss…

Art teachers are renowned for their claims that the creative properties of their senior secondary pupils' artworks occur as a result of the realisation of a creative process. Drawing on my recent ethnographic studies in senior art classrooms in Sydney, Australia, and Illinois, USA, I uncover a sociological, rather than a psychological explanation…

This article reports on an evaluation to interrogate the efficacy of a Scottish Government sponsored initiative to introduce an arts-infused education model to primary (elementary) and secondary (high) schools called Arts Across the Curriculum. Between April 2005 and December 2007 the evaluation team gathered data about this three-year pilot…

This article considers the far-reaching potential and the particular characteristics of performance art within the secondary art curriculum. It discusses the means by which an art department has incorporated it into their teaching curriculum at a state secondary school with reference to installations and the work of different performance artists…

This article considers the background and provisions of the New Secondary Curriculum in England. Attention is drawn to the extent of the policy changes by comparing the ten-year old demands of the Swift & Steers 'Manifesto for art in schools' (1999) with the new legislation and guidance. In particular, while there is strong support for overdue…

Fine arts teachers' concerns about male underachievement in a Quebec coeducational high school, and a related survey showing boys' negative perceptions of fine arts motivated this interdisciplinary literature review. Referring to biology and cognitive science, the article explores concepts of sex-related cognitive traits to help in designing…

This article examines the demands that pupils with dyspraxia may face when engaging with the secondary art and design curriculum in a mainstream secondary school. It explores the possibility that there is an exclusive approach to art and design, prioritising a formalist approach to the teaching of specific skills and mastery of techniques, and…

Museums and buildings are both considered immutable by the majority of people who use them. A small team from Goldsmiths College, the V&A + RIBA Architecture Partnership and Pimlico School set out to challenge this preconception. The Victoria & Albert museum was taken as a case study to investigate how buildings are a physical manifestation of an…