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Teachers' and Mothers' Perceptions of Using Creative Arts to Develop Children's Potential for Critical Thinking Author Nilson, Caroline, Fetherstone, Catherine, McMurray, Anne Published 2013 Journal Title The International Journal of Arts Education Copyright Statement © The Author(s) 2013. The attached file is reproduced here in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher. For information about this journal please refer to the journal’s website or contact the authors. Downloaded from http://hdl.handle.net/10072/55786 Link to published version http://ijae.cgpublisher.com/product/pub.230/prod.8 Griffith Research Online https://research-repository.griffith.edu.au VOLUME 7 ISSUE 1 The International Journal of Arts Education __________________________________________________________________________ Teachers’ and Mothers’ Perceptions of Using Creative Arts to Develop Children’s Potential for Critical Thinking CAROLINE NILSON, CATHERINE FETHERSTON AND ANNE MCMURRAY ArTsInsocIETy.com THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ARTS EDUCATION http://artsinsociety.com/ First published in 2013 in Champaign, Illinois, USA by Common Ground Publishing University of Illinois Research Park 2001 South First St, Suite 202 Champaign, IL 61820 USA www.CommonGroundPublishing.com ISSN: ISSN Pending © 2013 (individual papers), the author(s) © 2013 (selection and editorial matter) Common Ground All rights reserved. Apart from fair dealing for the purposes of study, research, criticism or review as permitted under the applicable copyright legislation, no part of this work may be reproduced by any process without written permission from the publisher. For permissions and other inquiries, please contact <[email protected]>. The International Journal of Arts Education is a peer-reviewed scholarly journal. Typeset in CGScholar. http://www.commongroundpublishing.com/software/ Teachers’ and Mothers’ Perceptions of Using Creative Arts to Develop Children’s Potential for Critical Thinking CarolineNilson,MurdochUniversity,WesternAustralia,Australia CatherineFetherston,MurdochUniversity,WesternAustralia,Australia AnneMcMurray,GriffithUniversity,Queensland,Australia Abstract:Usingaqualitativenaturalistic,interpretivedesign,thisstudysoughttoinvestigate theimpactofchildren’sparticipationinacreativeartsprojectonthedevelopmentofcritical thinking dispositions. Focus groups and individual interviews were undertaken to identify mothers’ and teachers’ perceptions of children’s critical thinking development in the context ofcreatinganartpiece.Datawereanalysedusingathematicanalysis.Thefindingsrevealed thatcreativeartsparticipationwasabletoexcitechildren’simaginationandmobilisecreativity leadingtoanincreasedawarenessofselfandothers,includingtheenvironmentaroundthem. Teachersbelievedchildrenrequiredmoretimeforfreeplaytodeveloptheirimagination,while mothers perceived that time and curriculum constraints reduced children’s opportunities for integrationofartsintotheirotherstudies.Thesefindingshaveimportantimplicationsforthe developmentoffutureeducationcurriculainadditiontothedevelopmentofcollaborativeini- tiativesbetweenschoolsandcommunityorganisations. Keywords:CreativeArts,CriticalThinking,BarrierstoCreativity,MobilisationofImagination, CommunityConnectionandEngagement INTRODUCTION Theconceptofcriticalthinkingisderivedfromthethreebasicanalyticaldimensionsof logic,criteriaandpragmatism,fromwhichachildcandeveloppreciseintellectualand emotionaljudgment.Inpractice,criticalthinkingistheabilitytoassesstheauthenticity, accuracy,and/orworthofknowledgeclaimsandargumentsthroughcareful,precise, persistentandobjectiveanalysisofanyknowledgeclaimorbelief(Ennis1991,1996). Criticalthinkingdispositionsdevelopthroughartasstudentsengageintheactofdeveloping unique,individualisedsolutionstosolvingaestheticproblems(Eisner1998).Therefore,aesthetics and learning are inexorably linked to how we perceive and make decisions about the world aroundus(Dewey1934;Eisner1985;Read1943). Analysisofalltypesofknowledgerequirescriticalthinking.Educationismultidimensional andfostersthedevelopmentofknowledgeandunderstandinginarangeofdisciplinesthatcan befurtherenhancedwheninfusedwiththearts(Deasyetal.2002;Richmond2009;Robinson 2009; Smithrim and Upitis 2005). Art fulfils the psychological need for sense, imagination, feeling, spontaneity, language judgment and self–awareness (Efland 2004; Richmond 2009; Reid1985).Theaimofthispaperistoreportonastudythatidentifiedcriticalthinkingdispos- itionsandabilitiesinacohortofprimaryschoolagedchildren,havingbeenexposedtoacre- ativeartsactivity.Itisbasedonthecontentionthattheartscandevelopstrengthsincritical thinking(Efland1990,1996,2004;Eisner1985;LowenfeldandBrittain1970)andisdistinct TheInternationalJournalofArtsEducation Volume7,Issue1,2013,http://artsinsociety.com/,ISSNISSNPending ©CommonGround,CarolineNilson,CatherineFetherston,AnneMcMurray,AllRightsReserved, Permissions:[email protected] THEINTERNATIONALJOURNALOFARTSEDUCATION from other literature in the field, which has focused predominantly on the development of criticalthinkinginsecondaryandtertiaryagedstudents.Thefindings,derivedfromanatural- istic,interpretivestudymethod,areissuesofreal–worldsignificance,whichwillappealtopolicy makers, and planners concerned with future education curriculum and the development of community–generatedartsactivities.Thepaperwillprovideabackgroundtotherelevanceof thestudyanddiscussbrieflythemethodologicalapproachincludingsampleandaccess,data collectionandanalysis,inadditiontoprovidinganoverviewofhowthetheoreticalframework guidedthestudy.Anindepthdiscussionisprovidedalongsidethefindings,andissupported byselecteddata.Thepaperconcludeswithrecommendationsforimplicationsandfurtherre- search. Background ExpansionoftheartsinschoolshasbeenrecommendedbytheAustralianCurriculum,Assess- mentandReportingAuthority(2011)(ACARA),indicatingagreaterawarenessoftheroleof arts in children’s cognitive development. This national initiative also reflects the widespread understandingthatcognitiveskillsdevelopintheearlyyearsconcurrentwiththedevelopment ofotherskillssuchasmobility,emotionandcommunication(Vygotsky1962).However,despite thepolicycommitmenttoincreaseartseducationinAustralianschoolcurriculathepositioning oftheartswithinschoolsiscurrentlyvariablewithsomechildrenreceivinglittleexposurein thisarea.Theimpactofexposingyoungchildrentocreativeartsandthesubsequentdevelopment of critical thinking dispositions and attributes, along with the environments that nurture aptitudesandattitudestowardcriticalthinkingisanunderresearchedarea.Understandingthe mechanismsofhowcreativeartsimpactonthecultural,socialandeconomicaspectsofcom- munitylifeisofcriticalimportancetopolicymakersandplanners,schoolsandtertiaryeducation institutionsandcommunityartsorganisations.Consequentlytheauthors’aimwastoexplore mothers’andteachers’perspectivesofthedevelopmentofcriticalthinkinginagroupofyoung schoolchildren,aged8–9yearsold,participatingintheMandurahStretchFestival(Festival) inWesternAustralia,managedbytheCityofMandurah(City). Methodology Asaninterpretivestudy,theresearchwasdesignedtoidentifyandinterpretperceptionsand meaningsarisingfromartsactivitiesinthecontextofchildren’scriticalthinkingdevelopment. The study was guided by the Super–Streamlined Concept of Critical Thinking Framework (SSCCTF)(Ennis2010),whichwasusedinthestudytoassistwiththeinterpretationofrelevant literature,linkthestudytopreviousknowledge,developthesemi–structuredinterviewquestions, reference the findings and validate the significance of the research. The SSCCTF frames an analysisofdecision–makingprocessesandcharacterdispositionsandabilitiesrequired“todecide whattobelieveordo”,andtoidentifythedispositionsandabilitiesoftheidealcriticalthinker (Ennis1991,6).Theaimwastoexploreparticipants’viewsonthechildren’suseofimagination, decision–makingandproblemsolvingastheydevelopedandreflectedontheirartandshared theirideaswithothers. TheSampleandAccess Following approval from Murdoch University Human Research Ethics Committee and the WesternAustralianDepartmentofEducationEvaluationandAccountabilityOffice,thethree primaryschools(oneprivateandtwogovernment)andanIndependentArtGroup(IAG)par- ticipatingintheFestivalwereapproachedtorecruittheparticipantsforthestudy.Eachschool wasassignedanartist–in–residencebytheCity,withtheaimofengagingthestudents,teachers andartistsinacreativepartnership.Thesampleconsistedofvoluntaryparticipantscomprising 2 NILSON:TEACHERS’ANDMOTHERS’PERCEPTIONSOFUSINGCREATIVEARTSTODEVELOPCHILDREN’SPOTENTIALFOR CRITICALTHINKING bothteachersandartists–inresidenceinvolvedinfacilitatingthestudents’artworkdevelopment andmothersofthechildreninvolvedintheartprojects. DataCollection Theresearchquestionexploredthroughthefocusgroupandinterviewdiscussionwas:How doescreativeartinfluencethedevelopmentofcriticalthinkinginacohortofchildrenbetween eightandnineyears,livinginthePeelregion?Dataconsistedoffirsthandobservationsand teachers’andmothers’self–reportedperceptionsregardingchildren’scriticalthinkingdevelop- mentthroughthecreativeartsexperience.Focusgroupswereconductedtoencouragegenuine discussion among participants (McLafferty 2004), whilst providing an opportunity to probe foropinionsorattitudesatadeeperlevel.Unstructuredobservationsinthiscontextpermitted the co–construction of knowledge between researcher and the participants (Mulhall 2003). EachschoolandtheIAGcontributedanindividualcreativeartpiecetodisplayattheFestival inlinewiththe2010theme‘LifestylesandImagination’.Theartpiecesweredisplayedinthe City’sMallandthePerformingArtsCentreanddepictedhistoricalfeaturesofthecitysuchas theSontoyBallroom,theMandurahMovieTheatreandtheSmartStreetMall,whichwasthe city’shubduringthe1950’s.AdditionalindicatorsofartsactivitiesincludedaDVDofvideo footageandstillphotographscontributedbyoneprivateschoolandletterswrittenbystudents fromoneofthegovernmentschools. DatafromtwofocusgroupsandfourindividualinterviewsweregatheredinJune2010,at theendoftheFestival.Onegroupconsistedoftwofulltimeteachersandoneartist–in–residence whohadbeeninvolvedindirectingtheartactivityandtheotheroffivemothersofthechildren participatinginthecreativeartactivity.Afurtherfourindividualinterviewswereconducted withtwoteachersandtwomotherswhowereunabletoattendthefocusgroups.Discussions exploredtheirperceptionsaboutthedevelopment,displayandengagementgeneratedbythe artactivities,withparticulardispositionsandabilitiesthatwerelinkedtocriticalthinking. DataAnalysis Interpretive analysis of the data was implemented using the computer–based program, Ar- tichoke™ (Fetherston 2007). Both the video and audio files were entered into the database. The framework of familiarization, identifying a thematic framework, indexing, charting, mapping and interpretation was followed (Srivastava and Thomson 2009). Familiarisation withthedatawasachievedinArtichoke™Analyseandbyfrequentlylisteningtothetape–re- cordedinterviewsandwatchingthevideofootage.Recurrence,repetitionandforcefulnesswere thethreepointsofreferenceusedtoidentifythemes(Overcash2004).Datawereindexedusing thecodesapplicationinArtichoke™bysifting,highlightingandsortingoutquotesandmaking comparisons to represent relationships between levels of coding in the analysis (King and Horricks 2010). Charting, mapping and interpreting were conducted by taking quotes from theiroriginalcontextandrearrangingthemunderthenewlydevelopedthematicframework. FindingsandDiscussion Themes and sub–themes generated from the analysis are presented in Table 1. Supporting evidence in the form of verbatim quotes from interviews and letters written by students is presentedbelow. 3 THEINTERNATIONALJOURNALOFARTSEDUCATION Table1:ThemesandSub–ThemesGeneratedfromTeachers’andMothers’Perceptionsof Children’sCreativeArtsExperiences Themes Sub–Themes 1. • Constrainingfactorslimitingthecreativeartsexperienceinthe Environmentalfactorsin- home. fluencingchildren’scre- • Limitedtimeallocationforcreativeartsinschoolprograms. ativity • Thelackofcreativeartsexpertinstructionacrossthespanof theschoolcurriculum. • Fundingrestrictionsintheeducationalenvironment. 2. • Beinggiven“permission”byteachers. Processesinmobilising • Factorsmobilisingchildren’screativity. children’screativity • Providingchildrenwithcreativeartsopportunitiesoutsideof thelimitedschoolprograms. • Strategiesinworkingwithchildrentoexcitetheirimagination. 3. • Childrenbecomingawareofthemselvesthroughcreativity. Childrengrowing • Childrenextendingtheirawarenesstoothersandtheenviron- throughtheexperienceof mentaroundthem. creativearts 4. • Connectingthecreativeprocesstoothersubjects. Childrendevelopingcon- • Childrenconfidentlytalkingabouttheconstructionoftheirwork fidence anddefendingtheirchoices. • Visibleindicatorsofproblemsolvinginthedevelopmentoftheir work. • Perseveringwiththetasktoobtainthedesiredresultsandeffects. 5. • Takingprideinthecontributiontheyhavetooffertoacom- Children’screativitycon- munityevent. tributingtocommunity • Feelingasenseofbelongingandconnectiontothecommunity vibrancy throughart. EnvironmentalFactorsInfluencingChildren’sCreativity Teacherswereconcernedthatmanypre–primaryandprimaryagedchildrentoday,appearto notreadilydisplayimaginativedispositionsthatwouldenablethemtogenerateoriginalideas orthoughts.Theirperceptionssuggestthatinitiallythechildrenarepassivetopursuingpurpose, problem solving, decision–making and imaginative processes. The teachers explained this passivityonthebasisthatchildrenintheirearlyyearsarenotbeingexposedtoenoughfree–play inboththeirhomesandpre–primaryeducationsettings: Ireallythinkthatplayisabigpartofit…it’stheirplayathome.Alotofthattalkingand creativeplayandfindingoutthosethings...there’snotthatkindoflearninganymore… thereisnotthatkindofoutlettojustgodownthestreetorfindabitofbushorsomething likethatandplay…it’squitestructured…they’llgotosomeone’shomeormightbeinfront oftheplaystation.It’snotthesameanymore,justeasyimagination…youhavetodragit outofthemalotmore.Ithinkthatbeforewhentherewasafreestructureofplayitwas easier(T3). 4 NILSON:TEACHERS’ANDMOTHERS’PERCEPTIONSOFUSINGCREATIVEARTSTODEVELOPCHILDREN’SPOTENTIALFOR CRITICALTHINKING Teacherscommentedthateducationinpre–primaryandearlyprimaryfocusesonformaledu- cation,ratherthanallowingchildrentodevelopattributesofcreativityandimagination: Play has been taken away in pre–primary, breaking away from the traditional teaching andthat’swhereyougetthesekidscominginthathavealreadystartedformallearning andtheyshouldreallystillbeplaying…stillbeusingtheirimagination…andthat’swhere it’s wrong…I really disagree with it…I don’t think it helps the children socially…they haven’tdevelopedthatbackground…Idon’tthinkteacherswereeveraskedwhetherchildren shouldstartformallearningearlier.Ispoketosomeofthekindyteachersearlierthisyear andtheyalsofeelthatthereisnotenoughtimetofreeplay(T1). Thisfindingisimportantinrelationtootherresearch(BoddyandCartmel2011),whichhas foundthatchildren’screativeplayisfundamentalinthedevelopmentofpersonalpower,and if this is cultivated in early life, they are more likely to have self–initiating behaviours and a capacityforinventivenesswhenadults. Mothersperceivedthatcurriculumandtimerestraintsoncreativeartsactivitiesreducedthe children’s experiences to enable full engagement in thoughtful and reflective practices. They alsobelievedthatartsactivitiesweresupportedinthepre–primaryandearlyprimaryyearsand thenforgottenuntilthesecondaryyearswheretheartswereelective,butonlytothoseconsidered tohaveability: Youknowthatsaying…apicturepaintsathousandwords…it’strueandthat’swhatthe kindykidsarelearning…picturesmainlyandthat’showtheylearn…theyexperience…they talkandsoon…whyisthatnotfollowedthroughtothehigherlevels…they’velostitalong the way, it’s a real shame…I wonder what has happened to that link from lower levels…some brains need it, they see things differently...it hasn’t been followed thro- ugh…theyarenotgivingitthesameattentionasMaths,English,Sport(M1). Ihopetheymaximisetheuseofit(creativearts)eventually…noteverychildissportyor anacademic…artisanotheravenueforthechildrenorallofthemtoexpressthemselves indifferentwaysandI’mjustsoforit(M1). Mothersalsobelievedthatartsinthecurriculumwerejust‘fillers’inrelationtotheacademic subjectsandthattheproductoftheartworkappearedtobemoreimportantthantheprocess: Theyaretaughtfromanearlyage…theyhaveportfoliosthattheyhavetotakehome…the teacherkeepssayinghowimportantitisthattheymustlookfantastic…Ithinkthechildren looseabitoftheirowninterpretation…theteachersays‘it’sgoingintoyourportfolio,it’s gottolookgood’…theirowninterpretationislost(M4). Theproductapproachwasofmajorconcernasbothteachersandmothersproposedthatthe childrenbypassedtheprocess,onlytoproducearesultthatpleasessomeoneelse.Thisemerged fromdiscussionsregardingtheirperceptionsofthechildren’sdecision–makingandrepresentation skills: Therewasanactivitythatourchildrendidinpre–primaryanditstandsoutinmyhead foraparticularreason…theteachergotthemtodrawaself–portrait…andtheycouldn’t doit,alotofthemwerestickfiguresetcetera…someteacherscan’tdrawmuchbetterthan thatbecausenoonehastaughtthemhowtodoit(M8). Thesefindingsaresupportedbyothers(McArdieandPiscitelli2002;Orbeck2004)whosuggest that most teachers do not have the skills base to teach the foundation of art practice and 5 THEINTERNATIONALJOURNALOFARTSEDUCATION thereforesticktowhattheyrefertoasthe‘bagoftricks’whichproducesmanypiecesof‘multiple sameness’foundonclassroomwalls: Itcomesdowntotheteachers...someteachersarenotarty,sotheydon’tliketoteachit…if youhaveachildwhohashadafewteachersthataren’tartyanddon’tparticularlylikeit then they are more inclined to not understand it as much or get exposed to it as much (M4). IthasbeenacknowledgedthatwhiletheartshasbeenidentifiedinAustraliaasoneofthekey eightlearningareas,particularlyinprimaryschool,generalistbeginning–teachersstruggleto provideeffectiveartseducationduetopoorartsbackgrounds(Dinham2007). Bothgroupsofparticipantsdecriedthelowprioritygiventofundingforthearts,includingthe lackofpurposebuiltfacilitieswithappropriatefacilitatorsandfundingforprojects.Inequity inaffordabilityofcommunitycreativeartsprogramswasalsoreported: Thereisnofunding…veryfewschoolshavegotspecialisedartteachers…veryfewschools haveevengotawetareawheretheycandoartwork…youknow…I’vehadtogooutinto the yard and do it…and sometimes there has been no running water and we’ve had to bucketit(T5). She(daughter)wasalsopartofanother(extracurricular)artclass…itisalovelyfeelgood group…it’s a wonderful community thing…interestingly enough it’s probably the same typeofchildrenthataredoingit…ifyouwanttotalkaboutsocioeconomicgroupsthat aredoingit…it’sprobablythat…becauseitisabout$120aterm,sothat’sanotherissue thatlimitsthearts…limitspeoplefromaccessingit(M7). ThissupportscommentsmadebySirKenRobinson(2009)whohasreportedhisdistressabout thehierarchaleducationsystemthatpositionsmathematicsandscienceatthetopandartsand thehumanitiesatthebottomoftheprioritylist.However,extracurricularprogramsareexpens- iveandpossiblyoutofreachformanyAustralianfamilies,despiterecognitionoftheirvalue inchildren’smotivation,self–discovery,contextandmeaningfullearning. ProcessesinMobilisingChildren’sCreativity Teachers reported not only a passiveness in the children, but an initial reluctance to display autonomytodeveloptheirownideas.Thesechildrenrequired‘permission’tobegintousetheir imaginationsandthinkfreely: Theysaythattheyhavetodoabrowncow,theyhavetodoablackandwhitezebra,they can’tdoapurplezebra…notinallcases…buttheysaytomethattheyarenotallowedto do this and they are not allowed to do that and so when they come here and especially whentheyfirststartandtheyareverytimidtoreallyexpress,totakethechanceofusing thatdifferentcolourbecausetheyarescaredI’mgoingtotellthemoff…Achildwillcome up and say ‘am I allowed to do this…could I cut this, this way?’…I say…’you can do anythingyouwant…thatisyourartwork…youaretheartist…thiscomesfromyou…this comes from inside’…’Oh!’…they say…’I won’t get in trouble?’…that’s the big one…’I won’tgetintrouble?’…It’sgivingthempermission(T4). Thefindingssuggestthatwhenchildrenoperateinconvergent(restrictive)thinkingenvironments, wheretheyaretaughttoconformtospecificideas,theywilloften‘shutdown’toprotecttheir creativeintegrity.Inparticular,thefindingssuggestthatchildren’screativeimpulsesaresquashed byrejection,criticism,failureorpressuretoconform: 6 NILSON:TEACHERS’ANDMOTHERS’PERCEPTIONSOFUSINGCREATIVEARTSTODEVELOPCHILDREN’SPOTENTIALFOR CRITICALTHINKING The children are caught in a box…they can’t get out and do what they really want to do…orbewhotheyare…orhavetheemotionsthattheyreallywanttohaveandbeex- pressive…theythinkthatpeoplewilllaughatthem…theydon’tthinkitlooksright…and thenafterawhile…ittakesquitealotoftimeforthemtoletgo…Itellthem…’youare allowedtoexpressyourself,youareallowedtododifferentthings’…theyjusthavetokeep checking…theyask…’canweputabelton,canweputaheadbandon,woulditbealright ifwehadasticklikethis’…Ialwayssay‘Yes!’…Iftheymakeamistake,Itellthemtoalways ‘useyourmistakes,useyourmistakestoyouradvantage’(T4). It’stheexpectationthattheparentswantbut…that’stheworstpart,saying‘mykidcan dothatandyourscannot’sortofthing.Iexplain(tothechildren)thatyou’veentereda zone where nothing is wrong…there are no good ideas or bad ideas…they are just ideas…youarenotmarkedonit…Idon’tthinktheycanactuallygraspwhatitmeansto hear this dude sitting there saying that nothing is wrong…they are like…’what–ever!, anyway,quick,Ibettergetitright,Idon’twanttogetitwrong’…’soI’lldowhateveryou didandthispersonisgoingtodo…whateverwebothdidandthewholeclassdoesexactly thesamething’…becausetheyarepetrified;coztheyjustwanttoberightandsucceedand notgetintotrouble(T1). Mydaughterfeelslikeshecan’tdosomethingunlesssheistaughthowandshewillalways ask‘isthistherightway’…’amIdoingitright’…likewiththeactivitythattheyweredo- ing…shewouldhavebeencheckingconstantlywiththeartistthatwasdoingitwithher…to make sure that she was doing it right…or looking at what other people are doing…she wouldn’tliketothinkthatwasn’tdoingitcorrectly…soshefeelslikeshealwayshasto checkbeforesheisconfident(M4). Thefindingsalsosupportotherresearchers(SchirrmacherandFox2009)whosuggestwhen environments override children’s autonomy and creativity they become dependent on others forsolutionsandanswers. Withlimitedprovisiontoavarietyofartsexperienceinthelaterprimaryschoolcurriculum, thefindingssuggestedthatmothersthoughtitwasnecessarytoseekalternativessuchasextra- curricularartsprograms.Interestingly,someparentswhodidinvolvetheirchildreninextracur- ricular programs also discovered that this might have created inadvertent pressure on their child: I have a couple of children who only paint for their parents…umm…like they want to come,buttheypaintfortheirparents…andiftheydon’tthinkthatitwillmeetuptotheir parentsstandardswhentheyarrivethey’llthrowitinthebin(T4). Otherresearchers(Andersonetal.2003),suggestthatnegativepressurescanresultinthechild’s enjoyment in the experience and therefore they are less likely to reap the associated benefits suchaspositivepeerinteractionandskillsdevelopment. To excite the children’s imaginations and creativity, a primary strategy employed by the teacherswastoallowforchildren’sinputintothedevelopmentoftheartwork.Byencouraging the children to use metaphors and analogies in descriptions and making comparisons, the teachersencouragedthechildrentounderstandnewprinciples,conceptsandtheories: Mytakeonimaginationisthatit’saresponsetocertainconditions…ifIkeepthrowing ideas at them then it’s not fertile ground for them to develop imagination…I just keep askingquestionsoncewe’vesetascene…asanexample;weareatthebeach…Iask‘who isthere?’…fromthereIcontinuetodrawonthemtodevelopthestory…atthestartthey 7

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leading to an increased awareness of self and others, including the environment It is based on the contention that the arts can develop strengths in critical . with the data was achieved in Artichoke™ Analyse and by frequently . anything you want…that is your art work…you are the artist…th
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