PhD Thesis: Edna Vahter's new model for visual art teaching in primary school
Tomorrow, January 21st at 12, Edna Vahter will defend her PhD thesis at the Institute of Educational Sciences. The practical outcome of the thesis is a visual art teaching model, including models for lesson divisions and a wholesome model of study processes, meant for primary school.
Tomorrow, January 21st at 12, Edna Vahter will defend her PhD thesis at the Institute of Educational Sciences. The practical outcome of the thesis is a visual art teaching model, including models for lesson divisions and a wholesome model of study processes, meant for primary school. The thesis also brings out main guidelines to support teachers in planning and implementing modern art teaching processes.
Until now, art teaching in the primary school has concentrated on practical activities and follows the teacher's examples, explains Edna Vahter, and adds: "Nowadays art teaching has started to focus on research and development of ideas, as well as thought processes and reflection."
Based on her thesis, Edna Vahter recommends that art teachers and art teaching developers see to that art teaching would incorporate both responding and creating. When giving art lessons, all important teaching components must be considered - research, knowledge and understanding, planning and developing ideas, creating, reflection and grading. Watching works of art and talking about them can be a natural part of art teaching already in primary school, and grading can be based on various learning results, which would give the pupils more objective feedback.
"Art is one area of human activity, so art teaching can support visual education and develop thinking, co-operation, and self-expression skills to support the pupil's personal development and helping them to manage living in today's world," says Edna Vahter.
Edna Vahter's PhD thesis 鈥濴ooking for Possibilities to Improve the Visual Art Teaching in Primary School" was supervised by Associate Professor Katrin Poom-Valickis from Tallinn University and Associate Professor Emeritus Samuel R. Mathews from University of West Florida. The opponents of the thesis are Associate Professor Martina Paatela-Nieminen, University of Helsinki, and Professor Eha R眉眉tel, Tallinn University.
The thesis can be found in , the repository of Tallinn University Academic Library.
The public defence of the thesis will take place tomorrow, January 21st at 12 at M213, Tallinn University.