- Arts and Positive "Habits of
Mind"
-
- "You are talking to someone who had very little to do with the
arts
- before I came here. This has changed me enormously. I have
an
- appreciation for the arts that I never had before. I have
seen
- youngsters come through here who perhaps weren't as
motivated,
- and I have seen them take off and fly because we pulled them
into
- an art and opened up new avenues. I couldn't work anymore in
a
- school that wasn't totally immersed in the arts." - Middle
School
- Principal
-
- OVERVIEW
-
- In a July 1999 study, researchers from Columbia
University
- revealed the positive effects of arts classes on upper
elementary
- and middle school students. Instead of seeking a direct
connection
- between arts classes and test scores in particular subjects,
the
- researchers attempted to "determine what cognitive, social,
and
- personal skills are developed through arts learning,
[and] if these
- competencies have a more general effect on learning."
-
- The authors produced statistical data about the impact of the
arts
- upon students' higher-order thinking skills, students'
self-
- perceptions, and the overall environment of a school. The
authors
- named the skills fostered through arts experiences "habits
of
- mind."
-
- STUDY METHOD
-
- The authors studied the arts experiences of 2046 students in
grades
- four, five, seven, and eight in 18 public schools throughout
New
- York, Connecticut, Virginia, and South Carolina. Students
listed
- their years of experience in each of the arts (visual art,
music,
- dance, and drama) on a questionnaire, and the students
were
- divided into quartiles based on their arts experience.
-
- All students completed tests designed to measure
- thinking skills, academic habits, and self-image. All teachers
in
- the study completed surveys to evaluate school
environment,
- perception of student behavior, classroom arts practices,
and
- attitudes toward the arts.
-
- The authors also interviewed administrators, subject
specialists,
- and teachers of all subjects, and they observed classes in
session.
-
- RESULTS
-
- "High Arts" refers to students in the highest quartile of
arts
- experience. "Low Arts" refers to students in the lowest
quartile of
- arts experience.
-
- The following statistics indicate the percentage of
students
- achieving a high score on tests of thinking skills:
-
- CREATIVITY
- High Arts 37%
- Low Arts 12%
-
- FLUENCY
- High Arts 31%
- Low Arts 17%
-
- ORIGINALITY
- High Arts 31%
- Low Arts 15%
-
- ELABORATION
- High Arts 41%
- Low Arts 11%
-
- RESISTANCE TO CLOSURE
- High Arts 35%
- Low Arts 16%
-
- EXPRESSION
- High Arts 37%
- Low Arts 9%
-
- RISK TAKING
- High Arts 37%
- Low Arts 11%
-
- IMAGINATION
- High Arts 41%
- Low Arts 14%
-
- -----
-
- The following statistics indicate the percentage of
students
- achieving high scores on a survey of self-confidence:
-
- PHYSICAL ABILITY SELF-CONFIDENCE
- High Arts 30%
- Low Arts 20%
-
- PHYSICAL APPEARANCE SELF-CONFIDENCE
- High Arts 27%
- Low Arts 24%
-
- PEER RELATIONS SELF-CONFIDENCE
- High Arts 29%
- Low Arts 23%
-
- PARENT RELATIONS SELF-CONFIDENCE
- High Arts 35%
- Low Arts 24%
-
- GENERAL SELF-CONFIDENCE
- High Arts 37%
- Low Arts 27%
-
- READING SELF-CONFIDENCE
- High Arts 40%
- Low Arts 20%
-
- MATHEMATICS SELF-CONFIDENCE
- High Arts 30%
- Low Arts 15%
-
- GENERAL SCHOOL SELF-CONFIDENCE
- High Arts 36%
- Low Arts 19%
-
- TOTAL NON-ACADEMIC SELF-CONFIDENCE
- High Arts 33%
- Low Arts 24%
-
- TOTAL ACADEMIC SELF-CONFIDENCE
- High Arts 41%
- Low Arts 18%
-
- TOTAL SELF-CONFIDENCE
- High Arts 34%
- Low Arts 18%
-
- The researchers note that the arts exposure level of the
students
- tested is not directly related to the socioeconomic status of
the
- students.
-
- -----
-
- Teachers of All Disciplines Discuss
the Effects of Arts Learning
-
- Previously we discussed the results of a 1999 Columbia
University study describing the impact of arts education
- on 2,046 children in grades four through eight. The study
found
- that students with the most experience in the arts scored
highest on
- tests of creativity, expression, and problem-solving.
-
- The following information examines the results of surveys
and
interviews that the authors of the study conducted with
elementary
and middle school teachers of all subjects. The teachers are
from
- eighteen public schools in New York, Connecticut, Virginia,
and
South Carolina.
-
- TRANSFER OF ARTS ABILITIES
-
- Through these interviews and surveys, the authors found
five
- specific types of abilities that teachers described as coming
from
- arts experience. These five "dimensions of ability" are the
ability
- to:
-
- 1) Express ideas and feelings openly and thoughtfully.
-
- 2) Form relationships among different items of experience
and
- layer them in thinking through an idea or problem.
-
- 3) Conceive or imagine different vantage points of an idea
or
- problem and to work toward a resolution.
-
- 4) Construct and organize thoughts and ideas into meaningful
units
- or wholes.
-
- 5) Focus perception on an item or experience and sustain this
focus
- over a period of time.
-
- The abilities listed above can transfer to all studies
and
- disciplines. The following situations occur in classrooms and
in
- real-life events, and they are identified through this study
as
- contexts in which arts-related skills are especially useful.
These
- situations include:
-
- 1) A need for pupils to figure out or elaborate on ideas on
their
- own.
-
- 2) A need to structure and organize thinking in light of
different
- kinds of experiences.
-
- 3) Knowledge needs to be tested or demonstrated in new
and
- original ways.
-
- 4) The learning task involves persistence, ownership, empathy,
and
- collaboration.
-
- ARTS AND SCHOOL CLIMATE
-
- The surveys and interviews of teachers also provided some
data
- about the impact of the arts on the climate of the school.
"High
- Arts" refers to schools in which the students receive the most
arts
- exposure; "Low Arts" refers to schools in which the
students
- receive the least arts exposure.
-
- TEACHERS HAVE GOOD WORKING RELATIONSHIPS WITH EACH OTHER:
- High Arts: 47%
- Low Arts: 34%
-
- TEACHERS HAVE GOOD RAPPORT WITH STUDENTS:
- High Arts: 83%
- Low Arts: 38%
-
- TEACHERS PARTICIPATE IN PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
ACTIVITIES:
- High Arts: 81%
- Low Arts: 38%
-
- TEACHERS CONSIDER THEIR TEACHING INNOVATIVE:
- High Arts: 81%
- Low Arts: 38%
-
- ARE THE ARTS EXTRA-CURRICULAR OR CORE?
-
- The authors found that the answer to this question varied
from
- school to school.
-
- In many schools with strong arts programs the arts
teachers
- frequently collaborated with classroom teachers of other
subjects.
- In one school, students learned about Vietnamese art, music
and
- literature, read letters from soldiers who served in the
Vietnam
- War, and visited the Vietnam War Memorial. The students
then
- wrote a play based upon these experiences.
-
- In schools with limited arts exposure, or in schools in which
the
- arts were not connected with the content of other
disciplines,
- teachers and administrators considered the arts separate from
the
- "core" curriculum.
-
- CONCLUSION
-
- The arts help to develop students' skills in problem
solving,
- empathy, and creativity. These skills are useful in all
disciplines
- and situations. The arts also have a positive impact on
teachers'
- attitudes and school climate.
-
- The arts deal with human expression, and students learn to
work
- with each other, express ideas and thoughts, and take
ownership of
- their work. Students in the arts must present their work
publicly,
- either through performance or exhibition, and this makes the
arts a
- unique discipline.
-
- The arts are most effective when they are connected with the
rest
- of the school curriculum and when students are allowed to
explore
- topics from both an artistic and an academic perspective.
Through
- connection with other subjects the arts become a central part
of the
- learning experience, drawing upon the content of other
disciplines
- and adding depth and quality to the learning process.
-
-
- Source: "Learning In and Through the Arts: Curriculum
- Implications" by Judith Burton, Robert Horowitz, and Hal
Abeles,
- from the Center for Arts Education Research Teachers
College,
- Columbia University, July 1999.
-
- This study is published in the compilation "Champions of
- Change," with a link at http://www.pcah.gov
-
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