"The Innocent Eye": changing pre-service teachers' perceptions of the teaching of visual arts

<p>"THE INNOCENT EYE": CHANGING PRE-SERVICE TEACHERS' PERCEPTIONS OF THE TEACHING OF VISUAL ARTS</p> <p>by</p> <p>WAYNE JOSEPH TOUSIGNANT</p> <p>Month of Graduation 2011</p> <p>Advisor: Dr. Karen Tonso</p> <p>Major: Instructional Technology</p> <p>Degree: Doctor of Education</p> <p>The study looks at the pre-service program at the Faculty of Education, University of Windsor from 1995 to 2009. The two main goals of this paper were to identify the perceptions and beliefs held by pre-service teachers of art education upon entering the course and at the conclusion of the course. As well as the identification of pedagogical strategies that initiate lifelong learning in elementary pre-service teachers in creative fluency and visual communication for the twenty-first century. </p> <p>A historical research methodology focused on past occurrences and events to inform this study of social priorities, expectations and limitations related to the teaching of art in the Province of Ontario. The data sources included previous surveys and artwork from the past 14 years. Findings indicated that a discrepancy still existed between what was mandated by curriculum for the arts and what was actually being taught in the classroom. The findings also confirmed the assessment by the National Art Education Association that the formal education of students continued to be skewed towards reading, writing and mathematics competencies at the expense of other subjects, including art education (NAEA, 2008). Based on the information from the surveys, the only noteworthy positive change in the teaching of visual arts over the past 14 years was in the area of media technology.</p> <p>This dissertation provided evidence that the critical period of intervention to empower students in visual communication is before a child reaches the age of eight years old. Cross-curricular, collaborative pedagogical strategies are effective for the development of creativity and visual communication through activities that allow the innate abilities of children to co-exist with formal design and realism. The findings also indicate that pedagogical practice built upon Abstract Expessionism during the period of intervention to be essential.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Ed.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

WSU Access

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Instructional Technology

Year dc:date.available

2011

Author dc:creator

• Tousignant, Wayne Joseph

Contributors dc:contributor

• Dr. Karen L. Tonso
• Dr. Timothy W. Spannaus

• Instructional Technology
• Pre-service
• Visual arts
• Other Education

Repository record dc:identifier

https://digitalcommons.wayne.edu/oa_dissertations/337

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:digitalcommons.wayne.edu:oa_dissertations-1336