A cross-curricular approach to teaching art at the elementary level: Does it work?

摘要

Due to the complex nature of art, students can often become overwhelmed when asked to complete a detailed, in-depth art project on their own. This feeling of being overwhelmed with the requirements set forth can oftentimes lead incomplete or rushed art projects, with poor craftsmanship. Cross-curricular teaching, a constructivist approach to the curriculum, has been successfully utilized in many areas of study. Interdisciplinary teaching approaches are thought to increase student learning and comprehension. The Plowden Report (CACE, 1967: para 555) asserts that, "children's learning does not fit into neat subject categories." This study was implemented in order to ascertain if a cross-curricular teaching approach would prove to be beneficial and ultimately lead to art projects that showed greater craftsmanship on the part of the fourth grade students under the study. Moreover, would such an approach lessen the lack of interest observed by the researcher and would this approach foster greater interest on the part of the students under study in completing the art projects assigned. The study was completed in a fourth grade art classroom setting in which there were twenty-four students. Twelve of the twenty-four students were active participants in this study. Data were collected through teacher/researcher checklists with observations, pre and post-treatment assessments, self-assessments, pre and post-treatment attitudinal surveys and pre and pot-treatment interviews. Data results would indicate that students increased not only their completion rates, but craftsmanship and interest in the project itself, through the cross-curricular teaching approach.