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Do you think the word criticism’ is positive, negative or other?
Please explain, in your own words, why you think this?

"Negative, because I hear criticism and I think it means to criticize someone which is bad."

"Negative, because I hear criticism and then think to be mean."

"Negative, because it is when someone talks bad about you."

"Negative, because it’s finding flaws in something that people do."

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It emerged, after this lesson/data collection point and another the following day, that Paula had misunderstood the aims of my research and informed me that "formal art analysis does not have a place of priority in my curriculum". Paula and I talked this through and decided equipping students with the tools and confidence to annotate their work and to research artist's of interest and how these relate to their work is of the utmost importance in regard to writing/talking about art (at Junior Cycle).

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Students were asked a series of questions to assist them in the 'analysis stage of Feldman's model of art analysis. Not one student achieved in doing this correctly.

Explain how what you see is being used, is placed/arranged, ask yourself:

- How is line being used?

- Is texture used effectively?

- Is tone achieved, how?

- How does colour impact the piece?

-  Are there relationships between the elements?

- Is my eye drawn to something in particular, how is this done?

"The texture of the surface of the sand relates to the colours of the wall, and the butterflies are blending into the colour of the theme."

"I can tell it’s a sunny day from the shadows, the artist uses light to make it 3D"

"I can tell there’s a hole in the ground because of the dark. There are shadows behind the butterflies so I can tell it’s a sunny day."

"I can tell it’s a sunny day because there are shadows behind the butterflies. The shadows make it 3D."

"The texture of the image is very good the colours reflecting on the wall make it 3D, the space of the objects make them stand out and so does the way the colours collide."

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After working in groups to use words, short sentences and phrases to describe & interpret Goya's Third of May, students wrote a front page news report on 'what was happening' in this image for homework.

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"I thought it was really fun because you kept saying to use your imagination. The last one was like looking for stuff in front of us, I was scared I’d get something wrong so left a lot blank haha.”

“We were the same, like we all had similar ideas about why he was getting shot but thought different things about where he was from or where the dessert was.”

“Yeah, like remember we said about contrast? So, he’s there with the light shining on him so we were all just looking at him and said we felt bad for his family and people that survived this war.”

“I definitely felt sympathy for the guy in white, and all the dead people on the floor. I think it was his face, the painter made him look innocent on his face, or maybe that’s the white too?”

“The girls all said surrender as one of their words, remember? That’s what the white is for. I felt totally sad looking at it before I even noticed the people on the ground, yeah his face.”

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- Alexander, R. (2004) Towards Dialogic Teaching: Rethinking Classroom Talk, Cambridge: Dialogos.

- Grugeon, E. & Hubbard, L. (2006) Learning through dialogue, Learning to teach in

the Primary School. London: Routledge.

- Budge, K., Beale, C. and Lynas, E. (2013), A Chaotic Intervention: Creativity and Peer Learning in Design Education. International Journal of Art & Design Education, 32: 146–156.

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Visual Literacy - Pedagogic Practices to scaffold tasks/develop V.L skills

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Visual Literacy - Pedagogic Practices to scaffold tasks/develop V.L skills

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- Schultz Eastman, G. (2017). Making Metaphor Visible: The Common Core, Poetry,
and Visual Literacy. English Journal, [online] 104(6), pp.40-46.

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- Theorists Vygotsky & Bandura.

- Hurst, B., Wallace, R., & Nixon, S. B. (2013). The Impact of Social Interaction on Student Learning. Reading Horizons, 52 (4).

- Watson, J. (2001) Social Constructivism in the Classroom.  Support for Learning [online] 16 (3), pp. 140 - 147.

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Taken from reflective journal 07/11/17 "...the students didn't really seem to regard the piece of paper I handed out to them at all, some glanced over it but none of the groups used the questions on the sheet to help them. It was only when I read the questions aloud and repeated these that it seemed to register and actually serve their purpose, help and guide the students."

Post conversation with co-operating teacher about said observations 08/11/17 "Telling Paula about what I have noted with this group and giving them written instruction or handouts she actually laughed. What she said exactly was 'I gave up on giving handouts to JC groups a long time ago as they're just left behind or shoved down the bottom of a bag never to be seen again'.
She believes that it's only through teacher-talk and conversation that (younger) students really comprehend what to do or what is being asked of them, verbal instruction and feedback is king."

Post SP Visit (Edel) journal entry 29/11/17 "I mentioned to Edel that myself and Paula have commented on how the students pay little to no attention to handouts and written instruction. She found this very interesting and thinks I should read up on 'learning through dialogue'. It made me think back on all my groups and it really is when we talk as a group or go through things 1:1 through conversation do things seem to really click. Cora admitted the other day that she hasn't once looked at the 'bible' Coursework handout I gave at the start but knows exactly what should be on each page because I'm 'always going on about it', i.e. speaking aloud about it."

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*In response to being asked about their preferred method of learning in the classroom (autonomously vs. group, silently vs. through dialogue)

“Working in groups was the best but what helped me the most I think was how you always asked questions, and then another one, to help us look at the right things or certain spots in the art and that. We all kind of asked each other those questions when helping each other then.”

“It was having a set of words to help us and then all those questions you asked, we asked each other or read them out loud off the sheet, so we didn’t skip anything.”

“Being able to ask the girls for help and having words, ideas and questions there to help you. And then you coming around and sitting with us Miss, that kind of made me feel like we weren’t doing it wrong ‘cause you were so nice, even if we said something stupid.”

“Well, for me it was definitely being able to look at something and being able to chat to my group about it, and all of us giving our answers together like on the post-it’s and that..."

"Yeah like being told to chat amongst your group and make decisions together without the pressure of having to get up in front of the class and give proper answers and reasons made it easier to come up with ideas about the art..."

"Casual is a good word *Polo* haha, ‘cause you came around and sat with us table by table to talk about what we found and it was more like a chat than your teacher quizzing you. "

“I thought I was bad at them all too though but when we were all able to chat about it and then you came down and chatted with us too I was like ‘yeah actually, I do know what I’m on about here’ haha.”

*Individual responses to their preferred way of learning, through reflecting on each activity we did*

·        (Polo) “All of it helped when you compare them to eachother, like I think it was important to try things on your own first and then realise it’s better in a group, then learning the right way to describe a painting by hearing everyone else’s ideas, giving it a go yourself again and then having your friends help you make it better.”

·        (Coco) “Exactly what *Polo* said, I loved writing the Newspapers on our own at home because it was just our imaginations, but then when it was a famous art piece it was great to talk to the girls and remember the right names and words and stuff together. My artist statement was so, so long before and then in the group it got shorter and better. I wouldn’t have been able to read that big long yolk.”

·        (Emo) “Working in groups was the best but what helped me the most I think was how you always asked questions, and then another one, to help us look at the right things or certain spots in the art and that. We all kind of asked each other those questions when helping each other then.”

·        (Nico) “I felt like a real celebrity or something then when the girls were all like and what were you trying to show?’ haha, but it really did help ‘cause sometimes you forget to include stuff. Always happens me in essays and that.”

·        (Grow) “It was having a set of words to help us and then all those questions you asked, we asked each other or read them out loud off the sheet, so we didn’t skip anything.”

(Snow) “Being able to ask the girls for help and having words, ideas and questions there to help you. And then you coming around and sitting with us Miss, that kind of made me feel like we weren’t doing it wrong ‘cause you were so nice, even if we said something stupid.”

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Response to “OK, so you would say that not only being put into groups helped but mostly being allowed and encouraged to pair up with your pals?”

·        (Nico) “100%.”

·        (Polo) “Yes, definitely Miss.”

·        (Coco) “We’re all friends in the class like, the whole year like, but I’m able to talk to some of the girls more easy than others. Me and *Polo* hang out outside of school all the time so I was able to tell her what I thought about her work no bother haha.”

·        (Emo) “Same as us, we do everything together, like everything Miss, so I trusted the girls to know what I was trying to get at and be able to help me without hurting my feelings or anything.”

·        (Grow) “Exactly, like I’d no problem telling *Emo* and *Snow* how to fix it without slagging them or anything.”

(Snow) “I would not have been able to do this project without the girls help, especially the writing stuff!”

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- Mercer, N. & Hodgkinson, S. (2008),  Exploring talk in schools: inspired by the work of Douglas Barnes. Los Angeles: SAGE.

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Through experiencing these different lessons first-hand, reviewing the work submitted by students and speaking with them after it appears that they were far more comfortable to look at and analyse a work of art in the subsequent lessons. The main contributing factors were as follows; working in groups, being allowed to chat and discuss ideas before writing answers, classroom climate, teachers oral encouragement and reinforcement for students to think and write creatively and imaginatively based on the information they see in front of them. The comparative counteracting factors were identified as follows; individual reading/writing task was too lengthy, confusing and intimidating, pressure to 'get answers right' hindered authentic contributions, titling and explaining each 'step' of Feldman's method was too much information and confusing for this age group.
Once a focus was shifted from systematically addressing each step/reading guidelines & questions on handouts, students naturally addressed the steps; Description, Interpretation & Evaluation. This was achieved through listening to the same questions being asked aloud by teacher as they were working, working in small groups where discussion and negotiation were imperative and being asked to use their imaginations/previous knowledge to draw conclusions.

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The manner in which the Formal Analyses activity was presented to the students was certainly a large factor in it's lack of success. Through using another educators model, another educators recommended artwork (Dali - Landscape with Butterflies) and yet another educators recommended classroom based activity, the teacher was inept in carrying out the activity effectively. The subject matter of the artwork was unrelated to our project and uninteresting, there was too much information and inappropriately phrased questions and guidelines given on a handout which discouraged students and blindsiding the students to partake in a new learning activity with little-no explanation on how and why to do discouraged them even further. The preconceived idea of analysing or critiquing artworks being a negative act was intensified following this exercise. Students continually referred to this exercise, when discussing the subsequent(s) as hard, unpleasant, and having made them feel incompetent.

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Through daily observations and conversations with both students and my co-operating teacher, it was identified that the students enjoy and appreciate the approval to talk during art class. Through promoting social interaction and dialogue among peers as a learning method, students became more active, engaged and competent participants in the artwork analysis focused lessons. I noticed a shift in the atmosphere of the classroom, the quality of work improved and the level of participation and enthusiasm rose significantly. It was during these lessons, along with many others (including all other groups) that I noted, and talked to both Paula and Edel about, that the students did not seem to refer to or regard any typed handouts, guides, question or instruction sheets. Through doing a very similar exercise (group analysis of an artwork) and asking the prompting questions aloud, repetitively throughout the exercise (rather than giving a sheet with these written, per group), the students actively listened to what was being asked, responded accordingly in their written work, asked me to repeat questions, formed some of their own questions to ask one another, etc. It appears that the students respond better to oral/aural rather than written communication in the classroom.

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The learning activities carried out to aid the students in their ability to look at and talk/write about art were varied in terms of an autonomous/group approach, focus on talking aloud/writing quietly, the combining of these different approaches and the order in which they were carried out if combined. It was apparent from observation and review of student work that oral discussion and decision making among small groups was the most effective and favoured approach for enabling the students to look at and analyse works of art. This claim was concurred with via the student voice when asked about their preferred method and why. Students voiced that it heightened their enthusiasm and confidence to partake (meaningfully) in the tasks, it made it less intimidating and thus hard, it made it more enjoyable and overall impacted their ability to competently carry out these learning tasks. The students identified the group dynamic and who the members in each group were to be a very important factor which I had originally not considered, this reiterates my assumption that the students learn best in social/interpersonal scenarios and construct knowledge through interaction with others.