This article examines how it is possible to use the aesthetic process to enrich teaching practices in preschool and elementary school education. What is under scrutiny is the aesthetic dimension of a core curricular subject, the ultimate goal being to achieve an understanding of curricular content through aesthetic learning processes. For this…

Educational achievement has been shown to be negatively correlated with recidivism among those released from prison (Nuttall, Hollmen, and Staley, 2003). The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of a prison art rehabilitation program, Rehabilitation Through the Arts (RTA), on inmate participation in voluntary educational programs. RTA…

Farhana Sheikh is co-author of "Mincemeat", a play about a World War Two intelligence operation, and its connection to the world of the homeless. In this article, she reflects on some themes of the play, in the context of the continuing British preoccupation with the war, and discusses the play's attempt to represent the upper echelons…

There is substantial evidence that teaching science through creative methods increases pupils' motivation and their enjoyment of science. This has been found to be particularly true for those pupils who are not always self-motivated and who find learning easier when less formal techniques are used. Drama is an excellent method of bringing…

Since the formation of atomic bonds is active, the authors sought a way of learning through drama or kinetic activity. To achieve this goal, they developed an activity called Romance of the Atoms. The activity requires students to use computer-animation technology to develop short cartoons that explain atomic classification and bonds. This…

In this paper, the authors consider early results from their ethnographic research in urban drama classrooms by parsing the aesthetic and social imperatives at play in the classroom. Moved by the observation that teachers and students alike seem to be pursuing elusive aesthetic and social ideals, the authors draw on Judith Butler's notion of…

Audio description (AD) has been introduced as one solution for providing people who are blind or have low vision with access to live theatre, film and television content. However, there is little research to inform the process, user preferences and presentation style. We present a study of a single live audio-described performance of Hart House…

In this article, the authors experiment with an interdisciplinary, partly empirical investigation into the reception of a community-based theatre production created by three generations of Turkish migrants in the Netherlands. Although community arts has been experiencing a boom of sorts in the Netherlands and local funding agents increasingly call…

Only a few of the author's music students are dedicated to music as a possible career. Most squeeze their lessons in between soccer tournaments and play practices, homework and a social life. As their only musical outlet, the author feels a double responsibility. Her goal is to open children's minds and hearts to the world of music--for them to…

This is a story of the intertwining of moral education with religious education in a professional lifetime. It is told episodically. Instead of the purported intellectual respectability of total separation of one from the other, even elimination of one by the other, it favours their mutual critique. It begins with strong sentiment, inspired in…

This paper examines the role of story in educational research as an empowering method of inquiry. By stepping back and remembering why, the author retells a professional story of practice between her and a colleague, exploring Vivian Gussin Paley's story play in a Grade 1/2 inner city classroom. Moving in and through past and present experiences…

Garro's one-act play offers an unusual combination of corpses and animate actors on stage thus combining life and death in the same body. Garro's piece presents students with an approach to "embodying" Mexican culture and its notions of death. The fusion of death and cultural practices in Mexico is a crucial part of the ongoing project for…

In this article, the author considers Hamilton's idea of "basic understanding" of a theatrical performance. The author finds it hard to grasp this conception. He worries, although perhaps only on the basis of misunderstanding, that Hamilton's conception of the basic understanding of theatrical performances will not do the work he wants it to do as…

James Hamilton's "The Art of Theater" is a careful and imaginative scrutiny of the art of theater done at the very highest level. In this article, the author comments on a number of issues raised by Hamilton's work. These include: the definition of theatrical enactment; the place of pretending and imagining in theatrical performance; the nature of…

In this essay, Hamilton responds to criticisms of his book "The Art of Theater" (Malden, MA: Blackwell, 2007). Acknowledging that he expected that the central proposals in "The Art of Theater" would seem a little strange to philosophers, he reiterates his belief that the three general facts of any theatrical performance are its presentation, its…