Katelyn Durst

ARTS 555
06/082016

Learning Through Art Summary:

Part B

Learning Through Art is an annual residency program run by Guggenheim Museum in New York
City that exposes 1,500 students to art through interactive and and student focused art learning
and art making experience. Teaching artists incorporate language such as calling students artists
to allow accessibility with the subject to everyone. Student voices are heard , valued and focused
on during each residency. Students are are introduced ti a diverse number of artists and creative
techniques. It seems that students are given opportunities to reflect on what an art piece means to
them as seen in the Yellow Cow where teaching artist, builds off of student answers to questions
about the art piece to find out what it means to them. Students are not given a right or wrong
answer instead they are encouraged through interaction with their teachers and other students to
use their unique image of the world to explore an art piece like only they could and how that can
create the art they create. For example in Pathway Trough Red Hooks Project, student artist were
exposed to the concept of time within their own lives and their communities. Through this

project they were able to learn more about their own person life as well as how they fit into the
history of their ever changing community.

Learning Through Art additionally implemented an impressive body of research in their

program. This research was centered around the ability to show the validity of arts programming
and curriculum in the development of skills like literacy, critical thinking and problem solving.
The first study conducted by LTA was Teaching Literacy Through Art (2002-2006). This study
used observation, case studies, interviews and test scores from 500 third grade students to
discover if the skills gained through art could transfer into the skills needed for critical thinking
with literacy. LTA concluded that its students performed better in the tested skills of extended
focus, hypothesizing, providing multiple interpretations, schema-building, giving evidence and
using thorough descriptions. The next study, Art of Problem Solving from 2006-2010 sought to
find the link between problem solving skills and participation in LTA by fifth grade students.
Students were observed through six problem-solving areas chosen by a team of specialists, which
showed heightened flexibility, resource recognition, imagining and connection of ends and aims.
The final Facilitating Creativity Study (2007)implemented the observation and compilation of
the best practices that teaching artists used to encourage creativity. This was conducted through
the observation of teaching styles, performing pre- and post-interviews, and analyzing artwork.
The researchers found that teaching artists consistently model artists processes, treat students as
artists, implement cross-modal thinking, use language and questions thoughtfully, and involve
the classroom teacher. These studies clearly show the need for schools to inceptor cross-

curriculum in classrooms and the need to conduct and access this programming as it relates to
students and teachers implementing its practice.

References
"Learning Through Art." Learning Through Art. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 June 2016.