Every student is unique.  There is no 'average' learner.   The Universal Design for Learning framework (UDL) has been developed to help teachers design a curriculum to meet the needs of these unique individuals. 

The CAST framework is informed by neuroscience:

"The three basic principles are built upon the knowledge that our learning brains are composed of three different networks, recognition, strategic, and affective. The Guidelines align these three networks with the three principles (recognition to representation, strategic to action and expression, and affective to engagement). This empirical base in neuroscience provides a solid foundation for understanding how the learning brain intersects with effective instruction." (CAST, 2020)

This framework maps perfectly onto the learning of a research based art practice, as exemplified in The Art Practice Archive.  The research based art practice is about the individual making sense of the world from their unique point of view, following their creative impulses, and expressing themselves uniquely: 

• Artists record personal experiences and observations
• Artists formulate questions for investigation around subjects that matter to them, personally.
• Artists hypothesize using their experiences/observations and imagination.
• Artist research ideas and make uniquely individual and original connections between them.
• Artists learn from a multitude of artists, their ideas and ways of working, and develop a unique amalgam of these 
• Artists experiment with ideas and materials - they are unique creators - bending, breaking, blending in novel ways.
• Artists are self-critical - they develop their meta-cognition or ability to think about thinking and feeling.
• Artists are self-reflective - they learn to understand and deal with these thoughts and emotions that arise from reflection, and they make connection with, but also challenge their prior knowledge and ways of looking at the world. 
• Artists synthesize or combine their research in novel material forms - embodiments of the ideas they wish to share with the world - concrete artifacts of the process that can be felt or experienced.

These elements of a research based art practice are reflected in the key NS Visual Art Curriculum outcomes:

• independent planning of artistic inquiry  (on subjects that matter to them, personally)
• working with and assessing different materials and techniques  (self-critical, self-reflective)
• developing work from personal observation, experience, and imagination
• creating work informed by other artists  (developing a unique amalgam of good practices)
• creating work of personal importance
• critiquing and reflecting on personal work 

Clearly, in both school curriculum terms, and beyond (we want our students to become artists - 'life-long learning'), the learning must be student centered, and meet the unique needs of all 'artists to be' - a 'universal design for learning'.

The blended visual art classroom should be designed to facilitate and scaffold this research based practice.  Click on the icons below to find out more about the connections between this approach and UDL.

Learning a Research Based Art Practice Using the Universal Design for Learning Framework

This interactive diagram has been adapted from the CAST UDL Guidelines  (CAST, 2020)

REFERENCES

CAST (2020). The UDL Guidelines. Retrieved July 13, 2020,
​from http://udlguidelines.cast.org/?utm_medium=web&utm_campaign=none&utm_source=cast-about-udl

​

Google provides a simple definition of creativity:

Despite this seemingly simple definition (although 'imagination', 'original' and 'artistic' can be slippery), the word 'creative' is often used in a very vague way.   There is a clue to this confusion in the 'mentions chart' provided by Google.  The word is very new in everyday usage, and it seems people from varied industries, and disciplines, are racing to lay claim to it.   Much of the interest in creativity within schools was stimulated by a series of books and lectures by the 'education guru' Ken Robinson, and most famously his TED talk, "Do Schools Kill Creativity?" (65 million views!)  We can guess the answer.  But, whilst Robinson's critique is well received, and his constant call for 'creativity' do not fall on deaf ears, surprisingly little practical tools are given to focus in are this slippery concept. Of all the books that I've read on the subject (there is list of the better ones below) one of the most useful has been one exploring the concept with insights from neuroscience. "The Runaway Species" is a collaboration by  neuroscientist David Eagleman and composer Anthony Brandt.  The book looks at the work of many creatives in history, and in particular the visual arts, and tries to find the basic elements of the process.  These are described as 'Bending, Blending, and Breaking'.  In this video, they talk about some of the findings in the book:

Besides 'Breaking, Blending, and Bending', what are the elements of creativity necessary for a research based art practice?.  The following diagram is an initial attempt to map some of these elements:

REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING

Eagleman, D., & Brandt, A. (2017). The runaway species: How human creativity remakes the world. Catapult.

​Gardner, H. (2008). 5 Minds for the Future. Harvard Business School Publishing.

Fuentes, A. (2017). The creative spark: How imagination made humans exceptional. Penguin.

​Kaufman, S. (2013). Ungifted: intelligence redefined. Basic Books (AZ).

Kaufman, S. B., & Gregoire, C. (2016). Wired to create: Unraveling the mysteries of the creative mind. Penguin.

Robinson, K. (2006). Do schools kill creativity. Ted Talk. TED. com

Robinson, K., & Aronica, L. (2016). Creative schools: The grassroots revolution that's transforming education. Penguin books.

Wilson, C. (2014). The outsider. Diversion Publishing Corp..



​
​

The blended learning model is ideal for students learning research based art practice.  The students must work independently as much as possible, with easy access to research tools and technologies.  The teacher scaffolds the individual research with regular student-teacher tutorials, and peer models of practice are available in the art practice archive, and professional models on artist's websites; the tutorials allow the teacher to help the student to develop unique and personal questions for inquiry.  Similarly, teachers make themselves available for one-to-one assistance in problem solving.   Time for tutorials and other one-to-one assistance is possible because much general instruction is given via online resources (e.g. general concepts, theory, history, and basic techniques).  

READ MORE ABOUT ART IN THE BLENDED CLASSROOM HERE

It has been argued that  “learning to be an artist...is a complex process of becoming” and that having practicing artists (as opposed to traditional didactic methods) model practice is important because “witnessing and interacting with such modelling is a process of students learning the shared discourses, views and practices...it enables students to access the tacit and nuanced behaviours, languages and cultures that constitute contemporary art”  (Budge, 2016, p.243)  

Little research has been done into the importance of ‘identity formation’ in terms of becoming an artist, and yet “trying on the identity of artist...is a core part of ‘learning to be’ an artist, and close observation of other artists as models is essential in this process. (Budge, p.245).   There are two central aspects of art learning, both of which are best addressed with artists' modelling practice: “how to do” (make and talk about work), and “how to know” (the development of conceptual processes) (Budge, p.249).  The important point here is that the artist-model is not a ‘role model’ in the sense of a person to be simply imitated; neither are they a ‘master’ of the subject, in the traditional sense, as if the subject can be ‘mastered’.  These are ‘peer models’, artists that the student artist can relate to.  This means that often what is most useful is the observation of hesitations, tentative steps, uncertainty in the practice of others. There are many elements or behaviours of good practice that many artists have in common, and which can provide a useful starting point or model for the student-artist:
​

• Artists record personal experiences and observations
• Artists formulate questions for investigation
• Artists hypothesize using their experiences/observations and imagination.
• Artist research ideas and make unique and original connections between them.
• Artists learn from other artists, their ideas and ways of working
• Artists experiment with ideas and materials - bending, breaking, blending  (Eagleman, 2017)
• Artists reflect critically on their work and develop their meta-cognition or ability to think about thinking and feeling.
• Artists learn to understand and deal with these thoughts and emotions that arise from reflection, and they make connection with, but also challenge their prior knowledge and ways of looking at the world. 
• Artists synthesize or combine their research in material forms - embodiments of the ideas they wish to share with the world - concrete artifacts of the process that can be felt or experienced.

REFERENCES/FURTHER READING

Budge, K. (2016). Learning to be: The modelling of art and design practice in university art and design teaching. International Journal of Art & Design Education, 35(2), 243-258. 

Eagleman, D., & Brandt, A. (2017). The runaway species: How human creativity remakes the world. Catapult.  

Marshal, J., & D’Adamo, K. (2011). Art practice as research in the classroom: A new paradigm in art education. Art Education, 64(5), 12-18

In this introductory video, I set out a rationale for making peer modelling videos of inquiry based art practice.  The motivation-meaning cycle model that I've developed may help to put these videos in perspective.  
​

LINK TO FURTHER RESEARCH ON PEER MODELLING

REFERENCES FOR FURTHER READING ON INQUIRY BASED LEARNING

Armstrong, C. L. (1986). Stages of inquiry in producing art: Model, rationale and application to a teacher questioning strategy. Studies in Art Education, 28(1), 37-48.  

Barrett, E., & Bolt, B. (2007). Practice as research: Approaches to creative arts enquiry. IB Tauris & Co Ltd. 
 
Busch, K. (2009). Artistic research and the poetics of knowledge. Art & Research: A Journal of Ideas, Contexts and Methods, 2(2), 1-7. 

Crawford, M. (2017). Inquiry Based Art Research and the Development of Artistic Autonomy in the High School Setting.   
Eisner, E. W. (2002). The arts and the creation of mind. Yale University Press.  

Erickson, M., & Ramson Hales, L. (2018). Increasing art understanding and inspiration through scaffolded inquiry. Studies in Art Education, 59(2), 106-125.   

Heid, K. (2008). Creativity and Imagination: Toots for Teaching Artistic Inquiry. Art Education, 61(4), 40-46.   

Jeffers, C. S., & Parth, P. (1996). Relating controversial contemporary art and school art: A problem-position. Studies in Art Education, 38(1), 21-33.   

Learning, A. Learning and Teaching Resources Branch (2004) Focus on inquiry: a teacher’s guide to implementing inquiry-based learning. Alberta, Edmonton: Ministry of Education http://www. learning. gov. ab. ca/k_12/curriculum/bySubject/focusoninquiry. pdf.     

Marshal, J., & D’Adamo, K. (2011). Art practice as research in the classroom: A new paradigm in art education. Art Education, 64(5), 12-18.   

Pentassuglia, M. (2017). “The Art (ist) is present”: Arts-based research perspective in educational research. Cogent Education, 4(1), 1301011.   

Siegesmund, R. (1998). Why do we teach art today? Conceptions of art education and their justification. Studies in art education, 39(3), 197-214.     

Shields. S., Fendler, R., & Henn, D. (2020). A Vision of Civically Engaged Art Education: Teens as Arts-Based Researchers. Studies in Art Education, 61(2), 123-141.   

Sullivan, G. (1993). Art-based art education: Learning that is meaningful, authentic, critical and pluralist. Studies in Art Education, 35(1), 5-21. 

Sullivan, G. (1996). Critical interpretive inquiry: A qualitative study of five contemporary artists' ways of seeing. Studies in Art Education, 37(4), 210-225.  

Sullivan, G. (2006). Research acts in art practice. Studies in art Education, 48(1), 19-35. 

Sullivan, G. (Ed.). (2010). Art practice as research: Inquiry in visual arts. Sage. 
​
Walker, M. A. (2014). From theory to practice: Concept-based inquiry in a high school art classroom. Studies in art Education, 55(4), 287-299.