This arts-based narrative research was an inquiry into how embodied dialogic spaces can provide access to dance learning reflections by students after graduating from a pre-professional dance program (DanceWorks, Berlin, and Palucca University, Dresden in Germany, and Duncan Center, Prague in the Czech Republic). Dialogic spaces, a term used by few contemporary scholars, were examined as vital spaces of openness and inclusiveness in learning. Data was collected through different modalities (textual, visual, and embodied), included surveys with alternative assessment tools, interviews, and somatic dance narratives (SDN), personal dance solos, for ‘inner’ listening and embodied exchanges between the researcher and participants. The SDNs served as vital data reporting and reflected the embodied version of all data collected within a dialogic space between the researcher and the individual participants with an Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) approach. The phenomenon of former students’ reflection on their dance learning and the research design within a dialogic space equally informed the researcher’s perspective and interpretive reporting of this study. This research argued for the need for dialogic spaces—for non-judgmental spaces prioritizing ontological over instrumental learning, not only during an education but also for identifying lifelong learning skills after an education has been completed. It aimed to explore the transformative possibilities of dialogic spaces and their impact on individual growth.

Accompanist is the old term. Collaborative pianist is the new one. Accompanist implies a mostly subservient role, whereas collaborative pianist gestures toward a more equitable relationship between the soloist and pianist, no longer a mere follower. Degree programs that prepare collaborative piano skills are growing rapidly in higher education since their inception five decades ago, encouraging a wider range of pianists to pursue an intentional career path. Becoming a seasoned collaborative pianist takes time, however. Little empirical research has investigated the preparation process. What is it like for collaborative piano majors to accumulate collaborative skills and practical knowledge? How is collaboration defined and experienced, and how helpful do students find their programs? Without understanding student experiences, the artistic well-being of collaborative pianists is at stake, and so is the field’s own ability to do its work. This qualitative study examines lived experiences of collaborative piano students in conservatory and university degree programs. As researcher, I conducted in-depth semi-structured interviews exploring topics including, but not limited to, professional identity, attitudes and dispositions, competencies and skills, struggles and challenges, power dynamics as well as teamwork with four recent graduates in the United States. It seems that issues of professionalization, an unclear definition of “collaboration,” and a lack of student agency are central to all lived experiences. An examination of these phenomena would contribute to the growth of the field, empowering its ability to do its job more efficiently and sustainably.

Using an explanatory sequential mixed methods design, this study aimed to contribute to an understanding of A) the availability of arts education programming in NYC during the 2022–2023 academic year at charter schools affiliated with Charter Management Organizations CMOs), and B) arts educators’ plans for retention and perceptions of professional satisfaction, network-level support, and school-level support. In this study, a CMO was defined as a non-profit operator that exists (as a business entity) separately from the charter schools it manages. Quantitative data was collected prior to qualitative data. In Phase 1 (quantitative data collection), an electronic survey of arts educators in CMO-affiliated schools in New York City (NYC) was conducted to measure job satisfaction, attitudes and opinions of perceived levels of support from networks and schools, and needs for further support. In Phase 2 (qualitative data collection), interviews were conducted with six arts educators to further explore the perceptions of support held by arts educators at schools associated with NYC-based CMOs. Emerging from the qualitative results were the educators’ concepts of and needs for support across three categories: structural support, peer support, and support for teacher development (including both lesson planning and lesson delivery). The roles of network-level leadership and school-level leadership (as a team and as individuals) in providing support across these three categories while also preserving teacher autonomy created a complex web of influences on charter sector teacher satisfaction and retention within the field of arts education at schools affiliated with CMOs for the teachers in this study, which has implications for theory, practice, and policy alike.

This study is an analysis of the opinions of the graduates of Denton Senior High School concerning the practical arts, namely industrial arts and home economics.

Thesis (M.Mus)--University of Stellenbosch, 2004. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Since its inception, educators across the board in South Africa have struggled to implement the new curriculum. Initial problems with terminology and availability of learning materials have been addressed, but still the resistance to Outcomes Based Education (0BE) and Curriculum 2005 (C2005) continues. Some of the reasons for the resistance point to feelings of disempowerment experienced by generalist and specialist educators who now have to teach the new Learning Area Arts and Culture. This has been attributed to, amongst others, a lack of training, resulting in feelings of inadequacy, inappropriate training for large multicultural classes and the lack of teaching resources. Another reason for the resistance has been described as a resistance to change. Many educators have found it difficult to make the paradigm shift from the previous educational system to OBE and C2005. The aim of the study is to research and explore ways of empowering educators to teach Arts and Culture. The new educational system is geared to redressing the imbalances of the past and giving more expression to the diversity of cultures represented in South African schools. Whereas the previous system was founded on exclusively Eurocentric ideology, principles and values, the new system aims at a more inclusive Afrocentric approach. However, criticisms leveled at C2005 have suggested that it is still basically Western in terms of values, terminology and methodology. This study is therefore aimed at investigating a culturally diverse music/arts curriculum, which draws on the wealth of resources, methods and modes readily accessible in South Africa. A comprehensive literature review guides the study towards a greater understanding of how cultural identities are formed out of a need to belong and how important recognition is to individuals and groups, particularly in terms of their diverse cultural expressions. Music and the arts are understood as being vitally important channels for expression of this diversity. Yet, true to the Afrocentric principle of holism, unity is found in diversity. As much common ground exists between an integrated approach and an Afrocentric approach to music/arts education, these principles are explored to determine whether they can be adapted for use in contemporary South African classrooms. An integrated project mode, which provides a balance between the specific knowledge contexts of the various Learning Areas and collaborative learning aimed at developing the natural links between learning areas to create a vibrant whole, is suggested. The researcher conducted an integrated project at her school with the common theme of "District Six" linking four Learning Areas and their components. Participatory action research using qualitative methods such as questionnaires were used to determine the feasibility of an integrated project mode of learning as a means of empowering educators to teach Arts and Culture. Subsequently recommendations were made regarding implementation. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Sedert die instelling van die nuwe kurrikulum in Suid-Afrika het opvoeders gesukkel om dit te implementeer. Die aanvanklike probleme met terminologie en die gebrek aan geskikte bronne is aangespreek, maar die weerstand het nie verminder nie. Van die redes hiervoor verwys na gevoelens van ontmagtiging onder algemene en gespesialiseerde opvoeders wat die nuwe leergebied van Kuns en Kultuur moes aanbied. Die weerstand word toegeskryf aan, onder andere, gevoelens van ontoereikendheid, onvanpaste opleiding om met groot multi-kulturele klasse te werk en 'n gebrek aan onderrigbronne. 'n Ander rede is beskryf as teëstand teen verandering. Baie opvoeders het dit moeilik gevind om die paradigma-skuif te maak vanaf die vorige stelsel na Uitkoms Gebaseerde Onderwys (UG0) en Kurrikulum 2005 (K2005). Die doel van die studie is dus om navorsing te doen en ondersoek in te stel na maniere waarop opvoeders bemagtig kan word om Kuns en Kultuur aan te bied. Die nuwe opvoedingstelsel is gefokus op regstelling van die onewewigtighede van die verlede en op 'n groter uitdrukking van die kulturele diversiteit wat in Suid-Afrikaanse skole verteenwoordig is. Terwyl die vorige stelsel gebaseer was op 'n Eurosentriese ideologie, beginsels en waardes, is die nuwe gefokus op 'n Afrosentriese benadering. Tog is daar kritiek teen Kurrikulum 2005 juis omdat dit nog altyd gebaseer is op Westerse waardes, terminologie en metodes. Die studie gaan dus oor 'n kurrikulum vir musiek en die kunste wat inspirasie put uit die rykdom van Suid-Afrikaanse bronne, metodes en modusse. 'n Omvattende literatuur oorsig voer die studie tot die begrip dat kulturele identiteit gevorm word uit 'n behoefte om te behoort en deel te wees, hoe belangrik erkenning van individue en groepe is, veral om hul diverse kulturele identiteit uit te druk. Eie aan die Afrosenstriese beginsel van holisme kan eenheid binne diversiteit gevind word. Omdat daar baie gemeenskaplikheid bestaan tussen 'n geïntegreerde en 'n Afrosentriese benadering tot musiek/kuns opvoeding, word die beginsels verken om te bepaal of dit aangepas kon word vir gebruik in hedendaagse Suid- Afrikaanse klaskamers. 'n Geïntegreerde projek-modus word voorgestel, wat 'n balans skep tussen die spesifieke kontekste van kennis in verskeie Leerareas en koöperatiewe leer wat daarop gemik is om die natuurlike skakels tussen die verskillende Leerareas te ontwikkel sodat 'n groter geheel geskep word. Die navorser het by haar skool 'n geïntegreerde projek oor Distrik Ses geloods wat vier leergebiede, insluitend hul komponente, ingetrek het. Deelnemende aksie-navorsing soos vraelyste is gebruik om die uitvoerbaarheid van die geïntegreerde projek-metode te bepaal as 'n metode om opvoeders te bemagtig om Kuns en Kultuur by skole aan te bied. Dit sluit af met voorstelle wat gemaak is in verband met die implementering van die nuwe Kurrikulum.

published_or_final_version / abstract / Linguistics / Master / Master of Arts in Applied Linguistics

The purposes of the study were to design an Arts Based/Language Arts curriculum in one elementary school at the K-3 level, and (1) determine whether this curriculum was effective in improving academic achievement, (2) determine whether teachers would be comfortable teaching such a curriculum, and (3) determine whether parents perceived their children as successful in learning arts and language arts. Samples of K-3 children were selected in one elementary school during 1986 and treated with an exploratory Arts Based/Language Arts curriculum for the 1986-87 school year. Pretest and posttest achievement data were collected with the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills and a Student Achievement Survey instrument constructed especially for the study. Pretest and posttest cognitive and creative skills data were collected with the Silver Test of Cognitive and Creative Skills. Teacher and parent perceptions of the curriculum were measured with instruments constructed especially for the study. Analysis consisted of testing for differences in pretest and posttest measures of cognitive and creative skills, ITBS test scores, and teacher's ratings on the Arts Based/Language Arts Survey. Comparisons were made on pretest to posttest differences with the Wilcoxon T-statistic, and comparisons of the differences for male and female groups were made with the Mann-Whitney U-statistic. Statistics were tested for significance at the 0.05 level. As a result Arts Based/Language Arts curriculum student cognitive and creative skills and student achievement in language arts did not improve, however teachers perceived improvement in motivation, language arts, and the arts. Findings and conclusions support the continuance of the Arts Based/Language Arts curriculum for a longer duration during which the instrument for measuring teacher perceptions could be revised and scores correlated with standardized test scores.

The purpose of this study was to ascertain which assignments from the course outline for The World of Construction should be deleted, retained, or combined with each other to form the curriculum for an eighteen-week construction technology curriculum. The study contains a brief descriptive account of the development of the Industrial Arts Curriculum Project. Questionnaires asking for the opinions of experienced teachers of The World of Construction were distributed in the Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas school districts. Respondents indicated that the majority did not agree upon which assignments should be deleted, shortened and combined, and that all of the assignments were considered to be important and essential.

This study of the feasibility of introducing certain economic concepts into secondary school industrial arts curricula reveals that most Americans understand economics poorly. The study divides economic concepts into seven major categories with which the responsible adult should be familiar. The study examines trends toward involving economics in contemporary industrial arts projects and presents selected such activities with an economic emphasis. The study concludes by distinguishing between suitable and unsuitable economic concepts for integration into industrial arts curricula.

No description available.