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I never considered the reasons behind teaching art in school, rather it coming down to developing skills of students who were already considered artistic.

This week gave me a greater understanding of the reasoning behind this subject and the huge number of benefits it has on students.

The main point that I discovered this week is that art education has changed over time due to what is considered of value in today's society, and when values change so will the education taught around the arts.

"Arts education is in the curriculum to achieve certain educational outcomes at appropriate times" (Dinham 2019)

The reason that art is taught in today's society has been developed over a long period of time both academically and socially.
The nature of art education as described in the lecture and text are as follows:

1. It distinguishes us as humans.
2. It is a necessary part of our existence.
3. It's a means of expression and communication.
4. It is an engagement of our aesthetic sensibilities.

To summarise this in my own words is that it helps define who we are as an individual through time and place, it enables us to express our emotions and feelings and encourages us to look at the world through different lenses.

I also watched the YouTube video with Sir Ken Robinson: "Do Schools Kill Creativity?" (link attached)

I absolutely loved this video! Not only is he an obvious entertainer, but the point raised resonated with me for this week and I had to tell my dad about these on our afternoon walk.

Sir Robinson suggested that creativity is as important as literacy and the value of being creative is considered less in comparison to the definition of academic.

Subjects that are most likely to give you a job are ones that are seen as of higher value. He stated that most creative people don't think they are good enough for universities and that we need to radically change our idea of intelligence as creativity is as important as any other subject.

So why teach art? Why is it a part of the curriculum in schools? What do we as educators need to understand about the subject in order to give its full potential?

The answer to me is quite simple is that a creative mind is an open mind, which will ask questions not be afraid to give the wrong answers, and therefore develop skills that will have a positive effect on other subjects and the student's learning. It gives students the ability to have self-awareness, creativity, cultural awareness, and self expression.

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Sir Ken Robinson - SCHOOLS KILL CREATIVITY.

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"Students learn by symbolically representing their world through drama"

I have used the above photo to represent this week as my little brother from a young age would often become different characters to relay a story. He has the most vivid imagination. Through his understanding of these characters and the world around him he created beautiful stories which in turn helped him learn as an individual.

Teacher in role and Mantle of the expert have given me a greater understanding of how drama is used within the curriculum and how it can foster learning (not just within a drama class).

Characterisation is such a powerful tool as it allows teachers to directly participate and influence from the inside, and makes it easier to present challenging topics and different points of view. It can allow students to be supported in a make-believe situation by their teacher working parallel/ alongside them, which makes them more likely to participate.  (Dinham 2019).

My initial thoughts on this technique was positive as I am a very visual and imaginative learner. As a student, teachers who adapted this approach effectively I remember vividly and, in my opinion, fostered a great learning environment.  It was a chance where I was able to relate to the teacher and my peers on not just an “academic level” but discuss ideas and opinions on certain topics.

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“In the drama process there are no mistakes, only experiences we can learn from”

Drama is open-ended and allows students to think outside the box to express themselves in ways that they may not think they can. It is accessible to all age groups and is learning that will challenge and also support students to develop the meaning of the world around them. (Dinham, 2019).

Dramatic elements aren’t just about the action they the capacity to move and transform participants and audiences. It can affirm and challenge values, cultures and identities (SCSA, 2016).

Drama is both real life and imagination which can overlap at times. It has the ability to bring community to the classroom, enables students to symbolically show feelings and also offers consequences for certain behaviours.

Drama includes a wide range of experiences, such as dramatic play, improvisation, role-play, text interpretation, theatrical performance and multi-modal/hybrid texts. All of which draw on different contexts from cultures and societies that are past and present. (Dinham, 2019).

The linked website Patch; is a theatre company which “focussing on a reimagined style of design rich theatrical experiences that put children and their curiosity first”

Students are involved in dramas that are inspired by storybook and science where light is the main part of the pieces. The light is the who, what and how of students telling these narratives through dance. It also provided the audience with a chance to join in.  This company and companies alike provide inspiration and rich theatre experiences to diverse audiences.

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Why can children remember what happened on television but can remember what happened in class?

Media is subjective to an individual and how we interpret it is due to our ethics, values, and our enjoyment (Dinham, 2019).

“The skills most relevant to media arts applications are those related to artistic expression” (Dinham, 2019)

Media is considered useful in all learning areas to enhance understanding in and out of the classroom (Dinham, 2019).

Media is the most recent addition to the arts curriculum and my initial reaction when starting this module was, I was less confident compared to dance and drama. However, what I have learnt is that I actually use media art every day as a tool for my own education! I use apps on my phone each day, I read blogs, listen to podcasts, put nursery rhymes on for my son and constantly take photographs and videos. All of which are forms of media art (Light bulb moment for me).

Media is a subject that explores and experiments with codes and conventions within the curriculum. These skills include technical, symbolic, audio and written. (SCSA, 2016). All of which facilitate higher-order thinking for students.

The skills which I feel confident using present-day are written; as I feel I am able to select appropriate texts to engage and enhance a viewpoint. Music is a massive part of my life, in fact, I sing and write my own song and used to teach guitar to younger children. I have an understanding that music conveys mood, and different sound effects offer different meaning to the individual. The two skills I feel less confident with are technical and symbolic. Upon learning I feel these two have more levels and could constantly be refined due to technology always changing.

As a pre-service teacher, I believe I need more understanding of the cautions of media. The advantages speak for themselves however the use of media requires a sound understanding of copyright codes and to recognise content to enhance learning, rather than become a distraction. In order for me to develop this knowledge, I wish to do further research over the next four years and be exposed to as much content in this area that I can. I also believe by keeping up with technologies is a massive part of this learning area to ensure that my students are exposed to past and present media pieces.

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Maggie and I loved to dance, and we always did it together. Being only fifteen months apart there wasn’t much that we didn’t do together (Much to her disgust ha-ha). I actually remember the day she decided to give up ballet, it wasn’t too much of a surprise as Maggies ballet dancers were often a mixture of Hip-hop, Irish dancing and not to the beat (Don’t worry she also admits this). But after two weeks of not having my older sister in classes, it just wasn’t the same and I also gave up. We still danced, but at home, around the garden and didn’t get told off for disrupting the class.

The task of creating a dance to a simple piece of music I really had no choice but to drag my sister into it.

We choice Chitty Bang- Bang as it was a childhood favourite and came up with three sequences of movements to the chorus. This was a lot more challenging than I first thought. I had to take into account the time and tempo of the song, the use of space, and the type of movements we would be using that helped tell the story. Before we rehearsed it, I had to make sure I knew the dance before teaching and was aware of the elements of dance that I would be using.

After completing this task I realised how great this subject is for education (again not just as a hobby, but a learning tool). Learning, thought, creativity, and intelligence doesn’t just come from the brain alone, but from the entire body (Dinham, 2019). Movement combinations increase memory, order, and sequencing skills. Creating dances also increases self-esteem which is so very important to learning (SCSA, 201). The importance of movement for children is a need and having experienced first-hand within my placement this semester the positive effects that music and dance have on students’ development, I feel it is important for dance to be included in all curricula.

The Australian Curriculum states.

"Dance is an expressive movement with purpose and form"

Benefits of Dance in education.

- Increase in cognitive development = body and mind are connected

- creativity, communication, critical thinking & collaboration

- Through these creative processes students use their imagination

- Problem solving with peers

- Discover solutions to problems.

- Health benefits (being active, strengthen muscles, increases flexibility)