Search results

Drawing from research on art integration, we discuss why visual arts and social studies can be powerful partners in promoting critical thinking skills. Because this is an increasingly visual society, visual literacy is becoming progressively more important. Through the visual arts, students have the opportunity to analyze and evaluate information, which are critical academic and citizenship skills. The integration of these two content areas and skills facilitates effective use of the limited time teachers have with students. In order to demonstrate the integration of art and social studies, we provide a lesson plan on Western Expansion.

This paper aims to present recently published resources on information literacy and library instruction through an extensive annotated bibliography of publications covering all library types.

This paper annotates English-language periodical articles, monographs, dissertations and other materials on library instruction and information literacy published in 2017 in over 200 journals, magazines, books and other sources.

The paper provides a brief description for all 590 sources.

The information may be used by librarians and interested parties as a quick reference to literature on library instruction and information literacy.

In this innovative practice paper, we will illustrate how discursive practices of Visual Thinking StrategiesTM (VTS) can foster leadership development capacity of college students. We will show how VTS aligns with constructionist perspectives to post-heroic leadership grounded in discursive approaches to leadership development. This arts-based pedagogy advances leadership development through dialogue and sense-making.

The chapter offers a case-study grounded in a professional development program for middle- and high-school teachers of history and/or social studies. The featured program supported American history teachers integrating the study of Picturing America images into academic subjects. Employing a dynamic Seattle-area academic and teaching partnership with the Seattle Art Museum, the Goodlad Institute for Educational Renewal, and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), the project elaborated on Picturing America’s democracy theme. This theme, combined with visual thinking methods of exploring artworks, helped teacher link Picturing America’s masterpieces to their history curriculum, content standards, and individual responsibilities to promote informed civic participation. The program made innovative use of the Picturing America images to explore such historical concepts as freedom, equality, and inclusion. The purpose of the initiative was to enhance teaching innovation and curriculum and to help participants become influential teacher-leaders who can advocate for greater curricular emphasis on the combination of art and civic concepts. A signature feature of this effort was the focus on dissent as a lens through which to view key curricular concepts such as liberty, community, and informed citizenship.

The purpose of this paper is to provide secondary social studies practitioners with a research-based adaptable lesson plan aligned with the National Council for the Social Studies Thematic Strands and its C3 Framework incorporating the digitized collection of the National Gallery of Art and Visual Thinking Strategies to foster historical understanding through a student-driven process of online gallery curation.

The author describes the connections between constructivist learning and technology integration in the classroom, linking technological, visual, and social studies literacy. The internet mediates student experience. It is both text-based and image-saturated; therefore, it is important for students to develop fluency with the written word and visual literacy. To remain technologically relevant, teachers must harness the potential of the internet to aid students with the development of their analytic and evaluative skills. The paper outlines an adaptable method for incorporating technology and art into social studies classroom practice in order to build visual literacy, historical understanding, and skills in evidence-based research.

The National Council for the Social Studies has outlined various analytic, communicative, and evaluative skills that students should acquire for social studies literacy. This paper provides insight as to how utilizing digitized collections of artwork has the potential to engage students in active, constructivist learning in order to acquire social studies literacy.

The paper is of value to secondary practitioners who wish to incorporate visual art, technology, and constructivist learning techniques in their classrooms.

The purpose of this paper is to understand young children’s knowledge of visual literacy elements as well as their ability to comprehend newly introduced visual literacy concepts. The study also examined existing support for visual literacy programs from parents and educators.

The study explored the knowledge of basic visual literacy elements of young children enrolled in two private schools in the New York City metropolitan area. The authors interviewed 17 children, aged four to six years old, about fine art paintings using a semi-structured interview format. Children’s responses were qualitatively analyzed to determine their initial level of visual literacy and their ability to learn and retain the concepts of visual literacy after receiving basic instruction. The children’s educators and parents completed online questionnaires that were quantitatively analyzed to determine their level of support for visual literacy programs.

The findings show that young children exhibited extensive knowledge of simple visual literacy elements (color, shape, line), and limited understanding of more abstract elements (perspective and salience). Children’s knowledge of visual elements improved after instruction. Parents and educators expressed support for incorporating visual literacy instruction in early childhood education.

The study relied on a sample of children and adults drawn from two private schools. The sample’s demographics might have affected study findings. More studies are needed using a larger and more diverse sample.

The study suggests that young children are ready to receive instruction on visual literacy elements using art images. Children reacted positively to the images and were engaged in the discussions about them, supporting the use of fine art paintings as an instrument to introduce visual literacy concepts to young children. Survey of children’s parents and teachers indicated strong interest in, and support for such programs.

With the increase of visual information production and consumption, it is important to introduce visual literacy early in life. The study advances research in methods for developing visual literacy instruction for young children.

There are no previously reported studies that have examined pre-kindergarten children’s knowledge of basic visual literacy elements and reactions to visual literacy instruction.

In an effort to advance visual literacy (VL) education, the purpose of this paper is to develop and test a VL instruction program for 2.5-4-year-old children in a public library setting.

The study was designed as a series of VL workshops for young public library visitors. Each workshop collected information about children’s existing VL knowledge, introduced them to new visual concepts, and measured their engagement and comprehension of the newly acquired material. The study data were collected via questionnaires and observations.

Most of the children who participated in the study workshops showed a solid baseline knowledge of colors, lines, shapes and textures and were actively engaged in instruction. After the instruction, children generally showed an improved understanding of the newly introduced VL concepts and were able to answer questions related to the new concepts, recognize them in images, and apply them in art projects.

The study relied on a relatively small sample of library visitors in an affluent neighborhood. The findings are influenced by variations in the topics and delivery methods of instruction. The study findings might not be generalizable beyond the US context.

The study methods and findings would be useful to VL educators who work with children.

As information continues to proliferate in non-textual contexts, VL is becoming an increasingly important educational goal. The study advances a VL agenda and advocates for introducing VL early in life.

The authors are not aware of any other study that tested VL instruction on a group of very young children in a public library.

In the following theoretical article, the author generates a theory of Leadership Pedagogy and its connection to Creative Arts Education.

The article analyzes Leadership Theory across three pillars: Socio-relational, Cognitive and Creative, and how these areas underscore thoughtful and caring pedagogy and inclusive teaching in undergraduate education.

Drawing on the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL), the article advocates for a flexible, multifaceted approach to curricular design rooted in theoretical pluralism, prioritizing interdisciplinary methods to bridge theory and practice in Creative Arts Education.

The article concludes with implications for future research and collaboration connecting Leadership Studies and the Arts.

In addition to imparting pedagogical content knowledge, teacher educators have the special responsibility to help future practitioners understand critical, contemporary social issues in our ever-globalized world. The purpose of this article is to describe one teacher education effort that heeds calls from learned societies and accreditation agencies to prepare preservice teachers for their inevitably global classrooms.

The authors – both instructors of a semester-long, required course in a social studies teacher education program – reflect on their practice, outline guiding principles and provide pedagogical examples that encourage preservice teachers to consider complex topics found within global education, while simultaneously helping them reflect on their own positionality.

Most preservice teachers embrace global perspectives in education if provided with opportunities to identify curricular relevance, acknowledge multiple viewpoints, practice continuous reflection, explore global awareness and citizenship, and understand the imperative of accepting responsibility to prepare global citizens.

This manuscript shares successful classroom strategies and learning exercises that have resulted in preservice teacher growth. Teacher educators can and should “globalize” course curricula, equipping social studies teachers with the knowledge, aptitude and skills necessary to teach the next generation of global citizens.

The teacher education course described herein offers a practical approach for preparing a cadre of educators ready to teach in our globalized world.