INTRODUCTION TO

INDUSTRIAL ARTS
DEFINITION, HISTORY, AND RELEVANCE
JOHN W. GARDNER

 If we indoctrinate young people in an elaborate set of fixed beliefs, we are

ensuring their early obsolescence. The alternative is to develop skills and habits of
mind which will be the instruments of continuous change and growth on the part
of the individual.
DEFINITION OF INDUSTRIAL ARTS
ART

 Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that

involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency,
beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally
agreed definition of what constitutes art, and ideas have changed over
time
INDUSTRY

 economic activity concerned with the processing of raw materials and

manufacture of goods in factories.
• MANUFACTURING
• PRODUCTION
• FABRICATION
• CONSTRUCTION
 INDUSTRIAL ARTS
 Industrial arts as a curriculum area is defined as those phases of general education which
deal with industry its organization, materials, occupations, processes and products and with
the problems resulting from the industrial and technological nature of society.

 Industrial arts is a subject taught in elementary and secondary schools that aims at
developing manuals skill and familiarity with tools and machines.

 The practical arts, such as engineering, metalworking or carpentry. Commonly referred to as

“Technology education”
HISTORY OF INDUSTRIAL ARTS

 Industrial arts began as early as prehistoric times when human beings first
developed tools, according to the Journal of Technology Education. Formal
instruction for industrial arts arose during the late 1800s and consisted of manual
training for trades in manufacturing. Industrial arts education became popular in
the 1900s as an alternative for students seeking to learn a trade. Known as
vocational school, the purpose of industrial arts classes included teaching
student’s specific skills such as automotive repair or furniture design. Today, the
meaning of industrial arts encompasses a wide variety of technical specialties.
WHY IS INDUSTRIAL ARTS STILL
RELEVANT?