Multi-tasking is an important skill and is a skill brought about by technology that we didn’t foresee. It’s easy to understand if you have worked for a company on their computer software that was at times slow moving. When you use a computer as a tool at your work and you are forced to wait between functions or screens you find ways to make good use of your time. You may be able to complete other office duties that can be done in while waiting for the screen or function without any difficulty. This is the way that technology has, you could way, forced our kids to multi-task, of course they may be using several computer applications at once, along with texting friends, which you could call hyper-tasking. I believe to be a successful multi-tasker they have to be good at balancing the tasks they are doing. In Chapter 4 of “Wired” by Larry Rosen the idea of deciding which activities to perform at the same time may seem absurd to our teenagers as they have been making these types of decisions for years and balancing tasks may seem natural for them. Of course they aren’t always making correct decision like in texting while driving but I think poor judgment aside they are being efficient with their time while excelling in many areas of life. They can be good multi-taskers and be learning to create balance in their lives at the same time.
When teaching Art we need to include instruction in “developing craft” as discussed in chapter 5 of “Studio Thinking”. Studio classes need to start with instruction in handling and taking care of tools, equipment and supplies. Art classrooms should display rules for clean-up and the teacher needs to cover this the first day. Don’t expect the students to know what to do, but with a few guidelines they leave things clean and organized for the next students and that will make studio time go smoother for everyone.
The practice of making Art or “developing craft” (Hetland) has many aspects and steps that can be followed. Instruction on many different techniques in the medium are included in a studio class. Students are inspired to follow further research and practice in using a technique that they are interested in. Learning to use a medium to express themselves is in part learning to practice techniques and aesthestic judgment in expressing themselves creatively. A part of developing craft is developing creative ideas. Students could be led to use visual images they find or take pictures of and collect them to give them creative ideas for studio practice. Practice in technical skills need not be creative when gaining proficiency in the technique is what the student is working on. They might need practice with the medium before they feel comfortable using their own ideas. This is where the lesson gives students opportunities to continue a desired practice and less importance is given on innovation. Then when the student feels they have mastered a degree of technical skill they then can see many ideas of what they want to do with this new talent. Then their collection of images and observations will help them see what interests them and will help them come up with creative ideas for their projects.
Part of understanding Art is learning to observe the world around us. Using digital cameras students can capture an image in their world in the viewfinder. Artists used a viewfinder without a camera to frame in the part of the image they want to capture in a drawing or painting. Today we can use the camera viewfinder to easily observe different perspectives of our visual world. In chapter 9 of “Studio Thinking” students look through a paper viewfinder for design elements, breaking down the image into shapes, colors, lines and textures. Looking at the world in different ways develops skills in observation. Using the light boxes example also given in “Studio Thinking” is a good way for students to practice seeing light and shadow and using it in a composition. Our young kids are bombarded with many images, quickly moving in front of them, and learning to really look at the world is now and has always been an important part of Art Education.
Resources:
Rosen, L. (2010). “Rewired: Understanding the net generation and how they learn.” New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan.
Hetland, l. (2010). “Studio thinking: The real benefits of visual arts education.” New York, NY: Teachers Press.
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