The BIG Culture Lesson
• Outcomes
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Hispanic Arts & Culture
The BIG Culture Lesson was developed as part of the FIA’s BASIC program (Bringing the Arts to Students, Instructors, and Curricula). Focusing on Hispanic Arts & Culture, the BIG Culture Lesson was a yearlong collaboration between the Flint Institute of Arts and Washington Bilingual Elementary School, a low performing school in Flint, Michigan. It was funded by a $19,450 BIG Culture Lesson grant from the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts. Additional funding for the BASIC program was received from BankOne, the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, the MetLife Foundation, the James A. Welch Foundation, and the Joy Allaun Trust.
During the 2004-2005 school year, two FIA artist/educators and two Washington Elementary second and third grade teachers worked to infuse the core curriculum with visual arts experiences to improve student learning and enhance teaching skills. The program included three professional development programs for FIA and Washington educators involved in the program; 9 two-week units that provided core curriculum and visual arts activities related to books the second and third graders read during the school year; one family program featuring a demonstration by Oaxacan woodcarver Efrain Fuentes; and two exhibitions of student work, one at Washington School and the other at the FIA. A summer enrichment program for students and their families, extending learning experiences throughout the summer, also occurred.
Project Goals
The primary goals for the BIG Culture Lesson program included:
- Make meaningful study of the visual arts integral to the core curriculum by building support for learning in the arts as an equal part of the core curriculum and by addressing life issues that extend beyond specific disciplines and have lasting importance.
- Change teaching from an isolated, individual endeavor to a collaborative effort in order to build capacity of teachers to design curriculum, conduct authentic assessment of student learning, and improve the quality of the learning and teaching environment.
- Fuse education in the visual arts with general school reform by documenting and sharing the impact of the BASIC program on student learning and school culture.
BIG Culture Lessons
During the school year, Washington Elementary and FIA instructors collaborated to develop and present nine units that integrated visual arts activities with the core curriculum. Each of the units began with a book focusing on an aspect of Hispanic arts and culture. Language arts, social studies, science, health, and visual arts content was developed around each book. For information on each of these units, click here
Family Programs
Family and community-oriented programs, including a Meet the Artist family day, two exhibitions, and a summer enrichment program, provided multiple opportunities for participants to develop visual arts skills and knowledge and share their experiences with their families and the community. For more information, click here
Teacher Workshops
The collaborative nature of the BIG Culture Lesson program enabled Washington School and FIA educators to design curriculum to improve the quality of the learning and teaching environment. Three professional development workshops enabled the educators to refine their teaching skills by helping them develop new strategies for addressing diverse learning styles and providing information and examples of how to incorporate visual strategies into their teaching. Authentic assessment models were also demonstrated and the educators had opportunities to work together to design authentic assessment materials to assess student learning as well as the effectiveness of their teaching. For more information on the teacher workshops, click here
Outcomes
Overall, the FIA expected: 1) effective collaboration between the Washington Elementary teachers and FIA art educators; 2) improvement of student learning resulting from Washington Elementary and FIA educators participating in three professional development workshops focusing on developing teaching strategies for diverse learning styles, utilizing visual strategies in the classroom, and employing authentic assessment to ascertain student learning and improve instruction; 3) increased awareness of the visual arts as basic to education and of how direct participation in the visual arts improves the quality of life; and 4) the development of effective methods for future FIA/school collaborations.
These outcomes were measured through written evaluations completed by Washington Elementary teachers and administrators, FIA art educators and administrators, 2nd and 3rd graders participating in the program, the students’ parents, and community members; journals kept by Washington Elementary and FIA educators involved in the program; portfolios of student work; and informal interviews with program participants, parents, and community members. It was expected that:
1. Washington Elementary teachers and FIA art educators would rate the effectiveness of their collaboration at least 4 on a 5-point scale. Five of six teachers and administrators involved in the program rated the collaboration extremely effective (5), one person rated the collaboration very effective (4).
2. Traditional and authentic assessment data would indicate that teaching skills and student learning have improved, the contribution of visual art instruction to the core curriculum has been demonstrated, and authentic assessment is recognized as integral to quality instruction. Five of six Washington Elementary teachers and FIA art educators rated the impact on student learning extremely effective (5), one person rated the collaboration very effective (4). All six rated the impact of the program on their teaching skills extremely effective (5). Written evaluations and in informal interviews validated the importance of the visual arts to basic education. For example, one person from Washington Elementary stated “The teachers have integrated the art, books and their ideas in designing lessons that apply to cross-curriculum learning. The students have responded in a positive way and have shown growth in learning. The morale of the classes is more positive and school climate has improved.” An FIA art educator said: “The goals looked good on paper but looked daunting to accomplish. The commitment by teachers was essential to the process. I know the children would respond to the art lessons, however, I was surprised at the overall impact in their learning as evidenced by their class work and teacher comments.”
3. Students, teachers, parents and the community would report that their understanding and enjoyment of the visual arts has increased to at least 4 on a 5-point scale. Written evaluations completed by students, teachers, and parents at the end of the school year and written evaluations completed by program participants and community members at the family festival indicated the following: 100% of the children surveyed enjoyed participating in the visual arts activities; 98% of the adults attending the family festival agreed (24%) or strongly agreed (74%) that their understanding and enjoyment of the visual arts had improved.
4. 50% of Washington Elementary teachers not involved in the program would indicate that they would like to participate in similar programs in the future. 100% of the teachers indicated interest in a future collaboration.
The data listed above indicates that the BIG Culture Lesson program met or exceeded our initial expectations. The strongest aspect of the project was the impact on the 2nd and 3rd graders. In an informal interview, one teacher explained that she couldn’t believe the effect the art activities had on raising the self-confidence of her students. Several who were struggling with reading and writing found success with the art activities. This success gave them the confidence to persevere in the academic areas and, as a result, their reading and writing skills improved greatly.
Another positive aspect of the program involved the collaboration. Instructors at Washington Elementary and the FIA indicated that they weren’t sure of how successful the collaboration would be. While it took several months for them to figure out the best way to work together, by the end of the project they were amazed at what they had achieved and were eager to keep the program running another year.
The least successful aspect of the project regarded school support, both in terms of funding and endorsement. Initial contact indicted that Title 1 funds were available for the program as long as a connection to the core subjects could be made and that there would be no problem getting funding. While the Washington School teachers and FIA art educators and project manager were able to establish the integrity of the collaboration and demonstrate the academic and life skills the visual arts activities developed (problem solving, perseverance), it took until May of 2005 to get a meeting with the school district’s Title 1 coordinator. By then, the Title 1 funds for the year had been expended. The FIA was able to find additional funding to compensate for the reduction in program fees initially promised by the school. As a result, the BIG Culture Lesson program was completed as planned.
Gallery
Click here to go to view student artwork.
Links
Click here for links to web resources.
