This document describes a study to assess the change in students' responses toward the visual arts as a result of their participation in an entrance level art course. The course was structured to provide the students with an understanding of art skills, a recognition of excellence in art objects, and knowledge of diversity of delivery through…

This report summarizes the findings of a research project involving a consortium of American art museums that joined forced to understand themselves better from the perspective of their visitors. The project had three objectives: (1) to identify staff expectations and impressions of public expectations about art museums; (2) to evaluate public…

Increased attention to the importance of the arts in general education demands that we carefully define what we mean by "art" when we argue that it should be included in the school curriculum. Education in the arts has traditionally meant education in the making of art, but while only a few students will go on to produce artistically in…

Two studies investigated: (1) the art preference of young children for realistic, stylized, and abstract styles; and (2) the influence that exposure to art has on these style preferences. Analyses revealed that exposure increased preference for the selected painting as well as preference for other paintings in that style. (PCB)

A fact-oriented handbook examines the overall picture of the educational and training opportunities for artists in the Federal Republic of Germany. Because of space limitations, this document presents a few typical examples of arts curricula rather than the total curriculum for the different types of schools in the 11 federal states. Subjects…

The effect of verbal contextual information on junior high school students' categorization of differences among photographic art was examined. Photographs of varying levels of abstraction were presented to the viewers both with and without correct and erroneous titles that referred to descriptive or interpretive information. Twelve students…

Explores feminist pedagogy's liberating relevance to the theory and practice of contemporary art education, on the premise that feminism can ameliorate the marginal statuses of women, art, and education. Discusses feminism's impact on education, feminist pedagogy as an alternative instructional model with its emphasis in collaboration,…

This paper focuses on two questions: (1) Can visual arts be an effective way for students to express what they have learned in social studies?; and (2) Can creative activity improve motivation, participation, attitude, and enhance learning in social studies? The sample for study was drawn from 75 fifth-graders in 3 classes in a school located in a…

In post-medieval times, art became sacrosanct rather than special as it had been regarded in previous cultures. This notion still drives art education and prevents the inclusion of entire cultures in contemporary curricula in art education. The myths that any society lives with, whether religious, political, or economic, are embedded in that…

While the capacity to recognize and appreciate beauty may be inborn in all of us, participation in the arts as an audience or artist usually involves a learning process. What is the relationship between childhood and early adult experiences with the arts and later participation? In 1982, with funding from the National Endowment for the Arts, the…

Until recently, little scholarly attention has been paid to the art found in children's books. This study describes a project with a fifth grade class in an effort to increase their ability to critique book illustrations. Ten slides from picture books were shown to one experimental and one control group. Students were asked to critique the…

The purposes of this study were to describe and define nonschool education according to curricular elements, suggest relationships between school and museum curricular elements and perspectives, and construct a heuristic device for curriculum elements and perspectives that will guide further study. Using a curricular model from "A Study of…

Examines studies, especially those of Viktor Lowenfeld, which suggest that coloring books are harmful to the creative expression of children. Proposes an alternative hypothesis that views coloring books as useful teaching tools to help children understand and appreciate art. Calls for further research into the issue. (KM)

This paper presents research using a computer with a video disk player to do aesthetic analysis of the work of Vincent Van Gogh. A discussion of the video disk system, and of several software systems including: (1) Dr. Halo, (2) Handy, (3) PC-Paint, and (4) Pilot are outlined. Several possible uses of the computer with interactive video disks for…

Reports on a study of the planned, written, and actual art curricula of 40 selected middle schools. Finds that, although design principles and art appreciation were identified as part of the curriculum, both the written and implemented curriculum was highly oriented toward art production. (CFR)