Arts in Education

Students develop practical pedagogical strategies and curriculum writing skills for integrating the arts in teaching humanities, sciences and other academic subjects; social skills, character & spiritual development and artistic skills. The course focuses on assisting students to gain an understanding of how the arts accommodate cognitive learning styles, and how to engage the metaphoric nature of the arts (art as metaphor) as well as arts-integration methods to enhance learning in any subject. This is an interactive and creative class in which students apply their learning to the design of curricula and lesson plans for arts-integrated projects. Students will deliver their lessons in interactive “teachback” format. The course will provide students with a working knowledge of, and opportunity to apply, all elements of arts-based curriculum and lesson planning, effective teaching, student assessment and ways children and youth learn. Specifically, the course will address:

Course Objectives

• Data regarding the impact of the arts on learning
• Cognitive learning styles and multiple intelligences
• Metaphor in the art-making process
• State and national standards for learning in the arts
• Inquiry-based learning
• Assessing learning
• Developing rubrics
• Elements of curriculum writing and lesson planning
• Characteristics of effective teachers/mentors

Student Learning Outcomes

• Create effective arts-based lessons & experiences in service to specific academic learning objectives using at least one research-based pedagogical method (90%)
• Correctly formulate curriculum/lesson goals, objectives and outcomes (95%)
• Develop rubrics for grading and for focusing standards of achievement (90%)
• Develop assessments (including arts-based assessments) to measure student pre-knowledge and learning (90%)
• List and define the seven multiple intelligences and incorporate them in lessons (100%)
• Identify concepts having meaning for children and youth that can be taught using the arts (100%)
• Articulate how the arts impact critical thinking
• List and incorporate all four levels of State and National Standards for the arts in curriculum planning (100%)
• Articulate the concept of art as metaphor, distinguishing it from arts-integration, and intentionally design an art experience that engages art as metaphor (85%)
• Write a minimum 4X4 rubric and use it to assess student learning (90%)
• Effectively teach a lesson demonstrating 80% of the characteristics of good teachers. (100%)

For further information on this course, check out the Arts in Education site.