Capacity to teach the arts is a problem reported by many teachers in primary (elementary) school settings in Australia. This paper reports on research which explored how to build primary school teachers' capacity in arts-based pedagogy. It outlines the design and development of a co-mentoring program between arts mentor practitioners and…

This meta-analysis assessed the effectiveness of mandala coloring, compared with free drawing, on state anxiety in adults. A systematic search for studies yielded eight studies, which constituted a total of 578 participants, with 289 in the mandala coloring group and 289 in the free drawing group. The results indicated that coloring mandala…

This case study of a community youth theatre project interweaves reflective descriptions of practice, data excerpts and analysis to examine young people's exploration of cultural identity through theatre in a regional city in Australia. The process undertaken to create this work is theorised in relation to concepts of cultural difference and…

Australian and international research has identified that many generalist teachers have limited confidence and experience in teaching the Arts in the early years of schooling and education. There is also a significant gap in the provision of quality professional learning programs for teachers. Research has identified that appropriate training and…

This paper explores how aligned arts and play experiences can extend child and family engagement in a public outdoor space. The importance of outdoor play for children is strongly advocated and in response local governments provide playgrounds and recreational open spaces. To extend further the experiences afforded in such spaces some local…

For youth in disadvantaged schools, university expectations and participation are often limited by access to social and cultural capital that support expectations. This study investigated the utility of creative arts outreach initiatives (CAI) in supporting students' university expectations and building cultural capital in homes, schools and…

Many studies have highlighted the capacity of community arts programs to re-engage those young people considered at-risk of disconnection from future education and/or employment. "Evolution" is an artist-guided visual arts program established for young people challenged by mental health and social issues that aims to foster re-engagement…

Gifted students have been provided the opportunity to study three core subjects through an academically selective virtual high school in western NSW, Australia. At the same time they continue to attend their local public high school for their other subjects. This article presents the mechanisms that have provided this opportunity, and describes…

The City of Melbourne's ArtPlay is open to children and young people aged 3-13 years, and provides a wide range of artist-led programs that serve a broad community within and outside the municipality. Its sister facility, Signal, caters for young people 13-22 years. An Australia Council of the Arts funded Creative Community Partnership Initiative,…

In the international higher education environment there is evidence of continuing growth and interest in creative and performing arts programs. While there is similar growth in the creative industries sector where these students will seek to develop a career, as well as further validation of the importance of creativity in the future workplace,…

"Proceedings of International Conference on Social and Education Sciences" includes full papers presented at the International Conference on Social and Education Sciences (IConSES), which took place on October 13-16, 2022, in Austin, Texas. The aim of the conference is to offer opportunities to share ideas, discuss theoretical and…

This article explores project-based cross-cultural and cross-institutional learning. Using Web 2.0 technologies, this project involved more than 240 students and eighteen academic staff from seven international universities. The focus of this article relates to a project-based learning activity named "The Gift". At each institution the…

This timely book takes up the challenge of maintaining programs in the arts in the face of unrelenting pressure from two directions; the increasing focus on literacy and numeracy in schools, teamed with the cut-backs in public funding that often affect the arts most severely. Drawing on the wealth of evidence already available on the impact of the…

Background: The high school production offers our students a creative way to develop their literacy, numeracy and social skills to mention a few. Why then do we permit anyone to teach the production and usually expect teachers to volunteer? Purpose: To do research into why the school production should be adopted as an integral part of our…

In recent decades a number of Australian artists and teacher/artists have given serious attention to the creation of performance forms and performance engagement models that respect children's intelligence, engage with themes of relevance, avoid the cliches of children's theatre whilst connecting both sincerely and playfully with current…