Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

What Do We Expect from In-depth Arts Integration? Criteria for Designing “Aesthetic Teaching” Activities

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Artistic Thinking in the Schools

  • 868 Accesses

Abstract

It seems that when the arts are included in contemporary formal education, they mainly have two educational roles: either that of a teaching discipline or that of a teaching medium. A third rarely used role, in which the arts are ways of (aesthetically) approaching the taught subject, might lead to an “aesthetic teaching”. In this chapter, “aesthetic teaching” is examined methodologically, in an effort to link its conceptual framework with classroom practice. Correlations are then sought between various contemporary theoretical principles and the expected outcomes from aesthetic teaching. Thus, some of the basic characteristics that should govern aesthetic teaching activities are revealed. Evidence that arose from pilot implementations of such activities contributes to this process. This study concludes with an articulation of a new, more analytical definition of aesthetic teaching, as a situation that encourages both educators and children to approach the taught subject in a multisensory-productive, connotative-creative, multilogical-multifaceted, aesthetic and motivational way. The last section, on the basis of this definition, deals with the specific criteria for designing aesthetic teaching activities.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Albers, P., & Harste, J. (2007). The arts, new literacies, and multimodality. English Education, 40(1), 6–20.

    Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, E. (2016). Learning from an artistically crafted moment: Valuing aesthetic experience in the student teacher’s drama education. International Journal of Education & the Arts, 17(1). Retrieved from http://www.ijea.org/v17n1/.

  • Bamford, A. (2006). The wow factor: Global research compendium on the impact of the arts in education. New York: Waxmann Verlag.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bal, M. (1998). See signs: The use of semiotics for the understanding of visual art. In M. Cheetham, et al. (Eds.), The subjects of art history: Historical objects in contemporary perspective (pp. 74–93). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Barthes, R., Lavers, A., & Smith, C. (1967). Elements of semiology. New York: Hill and Wang.

    Google Scholar 

  • Biscotte, S. (2015). The necessity of teaching for aesthetic learning experiences in undergraduate general education science. The Journal of General Education, 64(3), 242–254.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blanken-Webb, J. (2014). The difference differentiation makes: Extending Eisner’s account. Educational Theory, 64(1), 55–74.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blumenfeld-Jones, D. S. (2012). Curriculum and the aesthetic life: Hermeneutics, body, democracy, and ethics in curriculum theory and practice. New York, NY: Peter Lang.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bresler, L. (2002). Out of the trenches: The joys (and risks) of cross-disciplinary collaborations. Council of Research in Music Education, 152, 17–39.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bresler, L. (Ed). (2007). International handbook of research in arts education (Vol. 16). Springer Science & Business Media.

    Google Scholar 

  • Broda, M. B. (2010). Multiple intelligences. Essay, 3(13), 24–30.

    Google Scholar 

  • Broudy, H. S. (1994). Enlightened cherishing. An essay on aesthetic education. Urbana & Chicago: University of Illinois Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Burnaford, G., Brown, S., Doherty, J., & McLaughlin, H. J. (2007). Arts integration frameworks, research and practice: A literature review. Washington, DC: Arts Education Partnership.

    Google Scholar 

  • Burton, J., Horowitz, R., & Abeles, H. (1999). Learning in and through the arts: Curriculum implications. In E. Fiske (Ed.), Champions of change: The impact of the arts on learning (pp. 35–46). Washington, DC: The Arts Education Partnership and the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities.

    Google Scholar 

  • Catterall, J. (2005). Conversation and silence. Transfer of learning through the arts. Journal for Learning Through the Arts, 1(1), 1–12.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cho, C. L., & Vitale, J. L. (2014). Art that is heard and music that is seen: Cultivating student engagement through interactive art strategies. What works? Research into practice, Ontario association of deans of education. Research Monograph #53, 1–4.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cobb, P., Confrey, J., DiSessa, A., Lehrer, R., & Schauble, L. (2003). Design experiments in educational research. Educational Researcher, 32(1), 9–13.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cope, B., & Kalantzis, M. (2000). Multiliteracies. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cope, B., & Kalantzis, M. (2015). The things you do to know: An introduction to the pedagogy of multiliteracies. In B. Cope & M. Kalantzis (Eds.), A pedagogy of multiliteracies: Learning by design (pp. 1–36). London: Palgrave.

    Google Scholar 

  • Crotty, Y. (2014). Promoting a creative educational entrepreneurial approach in higher education. International Journal for Transformative Research, 1(1), 75–100.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1991). Flow: The psychology of optimal experience. New York: Harper Collins.

    Google Scholar 

  • Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2014). Applications of flow in human development and education: The collected works of Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi. Dordrecht: Springer.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Deasy, R. (Ed.). (2002). Critical links: Learning in the arts and student academic and social development. Washington, DC: Arts Education Partnership.

    Google Scholar 

  • Deasy, R. (Ed.). (2003). Creating quality integrated and interdisciplinary arts programs: A report of the arts education national forum. Washington, DC: Arts Education Partnership.

    Google Scholar 

  • Denac, O. (2014). The Significance and role of aesthetic education in schooling. Creative Education, 5, 1714–1719.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dobbs, S. M. (1998). Learning in and through art: A guide to discipline-based art education. Los Angeles: Getty publication.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dorn, C. (1999). Mind in art: Cognitive foundations in art education. Mahwah, N.J.: Lawrence Earlbaum Associates.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Dorn, C. M. (2000). The renewal of excellence. Arts Education Policy Review, 101(30), 17–18.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Duncum, P. (2002). Visual culture art education: Why, what and how. Journal of Art and Design Education, 21(1), 14–23.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eco, U. (1976). A theory of semiotics. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Efland, A. (2002). Art and cognition: Integrating the visual arts in the curriculum. New York: Teachers College Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Efland, A. (2004). The arts and the creation of mind: Eisner’s contributions to the arts in education. The Journal of Aesthetic Education, 38(4), 71–80. https://doi.org/10.1353/jae.2004.0033.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eisner, E. W. (1985). Aesthetic modes of knowing. Learning and teaching the ways of knowing (pp. 23–25). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Eisner, E. W. (1999). Does experience in the arts boost academic achievement? Clearing House, 72(3), 143–149.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eisner, E. W. (2002). The arts and the creation of mind. New Heaven, Conn.: Yale University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Eisner, E. W. (2004). What can education learn from the arts about the practice of education? International Journal of Education & the Arts, 5(4). Retrieved from http://www.ijea.org/v5n4/.

  • Eisner, E. W. (2006). Two visions of education. (The Arts Education Collaborative Monograph no. 2). Pittsburgh PA: Arts Education Collaborative.

    Google Scholar 

  • Emerson, R. M., Fretz, R. I., & Shaw, L. L. (2001). Participant observation and fieldnotes. In P. Atkinson, A. Coffey, S. Delamont, J. Lofland, & L. Lofland (Eds.), Handbook of ethnography (pp. 356–357). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

    Google Scholar 

  • Eurydice. (2009). Arts and cultural education at school in Europe. Brussels.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fiske, E. B. (Ed.). (1999). Champions of change: The impact of the arts on learning. Washington, DC: The Arts Education Partnership and the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gale, R. (2005). Aesthetic literacy and the “living of lyrical moments”. Journal of Cognitive Affective Learning, 2(1), 1–9.

    Google Scholar 

  • Garces-Bacsal, R. M., Cohen, L., & Tan, L. S. (2011). Soul behind the skill, heart behind the technique experiences of flow among artistically talented students in Singapore. Gifted Child Quarterly, 55(3), 194–207.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gardner, H. (1983). Frames of mind: The theory of multiple intelligences. New York: Basic Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gardner, H. (1999a). Intelligence reframed. New York: Basic Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gardner, H. (1999b). The happy meeting of multiple intelligences and the arts. Harvard Education Letter, 15(6), 1–6.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gardner, H. (2006). Multiple intelligences: New horizons. New York: Basic Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Garrett, C. E. (2013). Promoting student engagement and creativity by infusing art across the curriculum: The arts integration initiative at Oklahoma City University. About Campus, 18(2), 27–32.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gazzaniga, M. (2008). Learning, arts, and the brain: The Dana consortium report on arts and cognition. Washington, DC: Dana Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gelineau, R. P. (2012). Integrating the arts across the elementary school curriculum (2nd ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Goff, R., & Ludwig, M. (2013). Teacher practice and student outcomes in arts-integrated learning settings: A review of literature. Washington, DC: American institutes for research.

    Google Scholar 

  • Goodman, N. (1978). Ways of worldmaking. Indianapolis: Hackett.

    Google Scholar 

  • Granger, D. (2006). Teaching aesthetics and aesthetic teaching: Toward a Deweyan perspective. Journal of Aesthetic Education, 40(2), 45–66.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Greene, M. (1981). Aesthetic literacy and general education. In J. F. Soltis (Ed.), Philosophy and education, 80th yearbook of the national society for the study of education (pp. 115–141). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Greene, M. (2001). Variations on a blue guitar: The Lincoln Center Institute lectures on aesthetic education. New York: Teachers College Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Griffin, S. M., Rowsell, J., Winters, K-L., Vietgen, P., McLauchlan, D., & McQueen-Fuentes, G. (2017). A reason to respond: Finding agency through the arts. International Journal of Education and the Arts, 18(25). Retrieved from http://www.ijea.org/v18n25/.

  • Hallam, S. (2010). The power of music: Its impact on the intellectual, social and personal development of children and young people. International Journal of Music Education, 28(3), 269–289.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hartley, J. (2002). Communication, media and cultural studies: The key concepts. London: Routledge.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Haynes, F. (2004). Seeing education as metaphorical relation. Change: Transformations in Education, 7(2), 35–47.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hellenic Pedagogical Institute–Hellenic Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs. (2003, March 13). Ministerial decisions 21072a/C2 and 21072b/C2. Cross-curricular thematic framework and curricula of primary and secondary education [available in Greek]. Official Government Gazette 303 v.A’ and 304 v.B’. Athens: National Printing Office.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hetland, L., Winner, E., Veenema, S., & Sheridan, K. (2013). Studio thinking 2: The real benefits of visual arts education (2nd revised ed.). New York: Teachers College Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ho, K. L. C. (2017). In search of an aesthetic pathway: Young children’s encounters with drama. Early Child Development and Care, 187(1), 1–12.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Horowitz, R., & Webb-Dempsey, J. (2002). Promising signs of positive effects: Lessons from the multi-arts studies. In R. Deasy (Ed.), Critical links: Learning in the arts and student academic and social development (pp. 98–100). Washington, DC: Arts Education Partnership.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hyde, K. L., Lerch, J., Norton, A., Forgeard, M., Winner, E., Evans, A. C., et al. (2009). Musical training shapes structural brain development. Journal of Neuroscience, 29, 3019–3025.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jensen, S. (2015). The nature of imagination in education for sustainability. Australian Journal of Environmental Education, 31(2), 289–292.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kress, G. (2007). Thinking about meaning and learning in a world of instability and multiplicity. Pedagogies: An International Journal, 2(1), 19–34. https://doi.org/10.1080/15544800701343604.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • LaJevic, L. (2013). Arts integration: What is really happening in the elementary classroom? Journal for Learning through the Arts, 9(1). Retrieved from: http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1018332.pdf.

  • Levin, J., Levin, S., & Waddoups, G. (2014). Multiplicity in learning and teaching. Journal of Research on Computing in Education, 32(2), 256–269. https://doi.org/10.1080/08886504.1999.10782277.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lindstrom, L. (2012). Aesthetic learning about, in, with and through the arts: A curriculum study. International Journal of Art and Design Education, 21(2), 166–179.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lynch, P. (2007). Making meaning many ways: An exploratory look at integrating the arts with classroom curriculum. Art Education, 60(4), 33–38.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Macintyre Latta, M. (2004). Traces, patterns, textures: In search of aesthetic teaching/learning encounters. In D. M. Callejo-Perez, S. M. Fain, & J. J. Slater (Eds.), Pedagogy of place (pp. 79–96). New York: Peter Lang.

    Google Scholar 

  • Markovic, S. (2011). Components of aesthetic experience: Aesthetic fascination, aesthetic appraisal, and aesthetic emotion. I-Perception, 3, 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1068/i0450aap.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Melnick, S., Witmer, J., & Strickland, M. (2011). Cognition and student learning through the arts. Arts Education Policy Review, 112(3), 154–162.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Miller, J. P. (2007). The holistic curriculum. Toronto: OISE Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nakamura, J., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2002). The concept of flow. In C. R. Snyder & S. J. Lopez (Eds.), Handbook of positive psychology (pp. 89–105). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Narey, M. (Ed.). (2008). Making meaning: Constructing multimodal perspectives of language, literacy, and learning through arts-based early childhood education. USA: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nattiez, J. J. (1976). Fondements d’ une sémiologie de la musique. Collection Esthétique. Paris: Union générale d’ éditions.

    Google Scholar 

  • OECD. (2012). Education at a glance 2012. OECD indicators: OECD Publishing.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Oreck, B. (2002). The arts in teaching: An investigation of factors influencing teachers’ use of the arts in the classroom. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Seattle, WA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Parsons, M. (1990). Aesthetic literacy: The psychological context. Journal of Aesthetic Education, 24(1), 135–146.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Parsons, M. (1992). Cognition as interpretation in art education. In B. Reimer & R. A. Smith (Eds.), The Arts, education, and aesthetic knowing: Ninety-first yearbook of the national society for the study of education, part 2 (pp. 70–91). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Parsons, M. (2004). Art and integrated curriculum. In E. Eisner & M. Day (Eds.), Handbook of research and policy in art education (pp. 775–794). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pike, M. (2004). Aesthetic teaching. The Journal of Aesthetic Education, 38(2), 20–37. https://doi.org/10.1353/jae.2004.0020.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Posner, M., & Patoine, B. (2009). How arts training improves attention and cognition. Retrieved from: Cerebrum. http://dana.org/news/cerebrum/detail.aspx?id=23206.

  • Potts, A. (1996). Sign. In R. Nelson & R. Shiff (Eds.), Critical terms for art history. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Read, H. (1943). Education through art. London: Fabre and Fabre.

    Google Scholar 

  • Reimer, B., & Smith, R. (Eds.). (1992). The arts, education, and aesthetic knowing. Chicago: National Society for the Study of Education.

    Google Scholar 

  • Richmond, S. (2009). Art’s educational value. Journal of Aesthetic Education, 43(1), 92–105.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rooney, R. (2004). Arts-based teaching and learning. Review of the literature. Washington, DC: WESTAT Rockville, Maryland. Retrieved from https://www.kennedy-center.org/education/vsa/resources/VSAarts_Lit_Rev5-28.pdf.

  • Rosenblatt, L. (1986). The aesthetic transaction. Journal of Aesthetic Education, 20, 122–128.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rosenblatt, L. (2005). Making meaning with texts: Selected essays. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

    Google Scholar 

  • Russell-Bowie, D. (2009). Syntegration or disintegration? Models of integrating the arts across the primary curriculum. International Journal of Education & the Arts, 10(28). Retrieved from http://www.ijea.org/v10n28/.

  • Russell, J., & Zembylas, M. (2007). Arts integration in the curriculum: A review of research and implications for teaching and learning. In L. Bresler (Ed.), International handbook of research in arts education (pp. 287–302). Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Springer.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Sean, M., & Ihanainen, P. (2015). Aesthetic literacy: Observable phenomena and pedagogical applications for mobile lifelong learning. European Journal of Open, Distance and e-Learning, 18(1), 15–34.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shernoff, D. J., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2009). Flow in schools: Cultivating engaged learners and optimal learning environments. In R. Gilman, E. S. Huebner, & M. Furlong (Eds.), Handbook of positive psychology in schools (pp. 131–145). New York: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith, R. A. (1991). Philosophy and theory of aesthetic education. In R. A. Smith & A. Simpson (Eds.), Aesthetics and arts education (pp. 134–148). Urbana & Chicago: University of Illinois Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith, R. A. (1995). On the third realm—integrated and interdisciplinary learning in arts education. Journal of Aesthetic Education, 29(1), 1–4.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, R. A. (2005). On reviewing: A response to Mary Ann Stankiewicz. Journal of Aesthetic Education, 39(1), 93–99.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smithrim, K., & Upitis, R. (2005). Learning through the arts: Lessons of engagement. Canadian Journal of Education, 289(1/2), 109–127.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sotiropoulou-Zormpala, M. (2012a). Aesthetic teaching: Seeking a balance between teaching arts and teaching through the arts. Arts Education Policy Review, 113(4), 123–128. https://doi.org/10.1080/10632913.2012.719419.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sotiropoulou-Zormpala, M. (2012b). Reflections on aesthetic teaching. An approach to language arts in early childhood curriculum. Art Education, 65(1), 6–10.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sotiropoulou-Zormpala, M. (2016). Seeking a higher level of arts integration across the curriculum. Arts Education Policy Review, 117(1), 43–54. https://doi.org/10.1080/10632913.2014.966288.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Strand, K. (2016). Composition in an integrated arts program. Music Educators Journal, 102(3), 66–70.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Suttie, J. 2012. Can schools help students find flow? Greater Good, April 16. Retrieved November 19, 2015, from http://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/can_schools_help_students_find_flow.

  • The New London Group. (1996). A pedagogy of multiliteracies: Designing social futures. Harvard Educational Review, 66(1), 60–93.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Upitis, R. (2011). Art education or the development of the whole child. Toronto: Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario.

    Google Scholar 

  • Veblen, K., & Elliott, D. J. (2000). Integration: For or against? General Music Today, 14(1), 4–12.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vygotsky, L. (1933). Play and its role in the mental development of the child. Retrieved August 2005, from www.marxists.org/archive/vygotsky/works/1933/play.htm.

  • Winner, E., Goldstein, T., & Vincent-Lancrin, S. (2013). Art for Art’s Sake? The impact of arts education. OECD Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Winner, E., & Hetland, L. (2007). Art for our sake. Boston Globe. Sept 2, E1-2. Retrieved November 19, 2015, from http://www.boston.com/news/globe/ideas/articles/2007/09/02/art_for_our_sake/?pageD3.

  • Whitin, P., & Moench, C. (2015). Preparing elementary teachers for arts integration. Art Education, 68(2), 36–41.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Crete, Rethimno, Greece

    Marina Sotiropoulou-Zormpala

Authors
  1. Marina Sotiropoulou-Zormpala
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Marina Sotiropoulou-Zormpala .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore

    Pamela Costes-Onishi

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2019 Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Sotiropoulou-Zormpala, M. (2019). What Do We Expect from In-depth Arts Integration? Criteria for Designing “Aesthetic Teaching” Activities. In: Costes-Onishi, P. (eds) Artistic Thinking in the Schools. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-8993-1_8

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-8993-1_8

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore

  • Print ISBN: 978-981-13-8992-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-981-13-8993-1

  • eBook Packages: EducationEducation (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation