This means students are introduced to and allowed to choose from a variety of centers like drawing, collage, painting, sculpture, fiber, digital, etc. The goal is to offer a program where students are encouraged to assume creative control of their art and art-making processes within an environment designed to support individual inquiry and the development of artistic behaviors. In this model, it is the individual student, not the teacher who defines the project. Teachers function as facilitators, mentors, instructors, and motivators depending on what students need.
Are regarded as artists.
Have choice in what they create and how they create it.
Practice 21st century skills like: idea generation, critical thinking, creativity, and collaboration.
Learn to plan for and reflect on their art-making experiences.
Work at a developmentally appropriate pace.
Learn to practice art-making skills as a way to improve performance.
Receive individualized direction and feedback from the art educator
The Studio Thinking framework highlights broad thinking dispositions, or habits of mind, that visual arts educators teach in their classes. These eight Studio Habits of Mind, which emerged from the research study Studio Thinking: The Real Benefits of Visual Art Education (2007), include the following:
Develop Craft (Technique & Studio Practice)
Engage & Persist (Finding Passion & Sticking with It)
Envision (Imagining & Planning)
Express (Finding & Showing Meaning)
Observe (Looking Closely)
Reflect (Question & Explain and Evaluate)
Stretch & Explore (Play, Use Mistakes & Discover)
Understand Art Worlds (Domain & Communities)
Using the Studio Thinking Framework, classes time is organized in the following ways: Teacher Presents, Students at Work, Talking About Art, and Showing Art. If you would like to know more about the specific Studio Habits of Mind or the way class is organized, you can view the definitions of these here.
If you'd like to read more about TAB and choice-based art and the research behind this style of teaching, the Teaching for Artistic Behavior website is a great resource, along with Studio Thinking website.
Another resource is the book Studio Thinking from the Start by Hogan, Hetland, Jaquith, Winner, which features a number of art educators from Acton-Boxborough!