Article Topic - Torbett - Carroll Text - Faciliting Aesthetic and Critical Inquiry

One of the "missing links" that I feel lay prevalent in the studies involving visual culture lies within the portion pertaining to the engagement of students to art objects.  By this, I mean allowing students to actually "see art."  And in saying that, I am referencing physical pieces or works of art.  With technology and the internet today, Museums are seeing less and less traffic, and a more saddening fact is that museums are being viewed as places to go see old things.  I chose to use an article for this segment of Carroll text which "hones" in on a study in the United Kingdom in which students were taken to an art museum and were engaged with actual authentic art. The article is titled, Promoting Positive Attitudes in Children Towards Museums and Art:  A Case Study of the Use of Tate Kids in Primary Arts Education, by Koula Charitonos, from the Open University in United Kingdom.

As I stated above, the article deals with the challenges of getting learners to the museums to view actual art.  It also focuses on promoting positive attitudes in children towards museums and art and also addresses to what extent the use of Museum Web Sources can enhance learning and engagement.

The study introduces the United Kingdom museums to be the most fluently visited museums by teachers.  The case study research focused on children, the Tate Kids, and sought to understand their perceptions of events by describing participants' experiences and thoughts about a particular situation.  The children were asked to write a definition of what a museum was on a sheet of paper.  The overall perception was that a museum was 'a  learning place.'  The children were asked to create meaning maps which showed that museums were collectively related to knowledge in general. The study also showed that the Tate kids referenced the museum as something tangible, and that there was no virtual mentions in the meaning maps. Reference was made to the museum that "old retired people were there," and that museums can be boring, as they were made to sit down for long periods of time while someone talked.

During the reading, and interesting quote from a student named Maria caught my attention. She states that she doesn't like museums and viewing because "I don't get the picture, I don't really get the picture...and I don't know if the artwork is good."  She also said, "Art isn't treated as in school."  This may be linked to the fact that children view art as a practical activity, rather that completed works. Th children seem to think that art done is school is more 'authentic.' (Charitonos) 

The final question asked to the Tate Kids was "What do you think art is?"  After visiting the museum, the consensus was that art is not purely practice, that it is also viewing.  One student even said, "Art is for everyone."  You may draw a picture and you may not like it but someone else might like it and get stuff from it.  

The rest of the article/study (which I will not detail), states the importance of using art museums Web media to drive students to the museums to view actual art.  It also promotes using this media (Web) to encourage the viewing of art in a classroom setting, rather than focusing solely on art making.  I believe this ties in with making meaning through art.  We must have a strong sense of vocabulary when viewing, so it would be necessary to take art further in the classroom than just making.  Making meaning of art will enhance and encourage the iKids to take a stroll at their local museums and galleries.