The connection between practice and in-depth learning in art and craft education Arts and Crafts

Abstract

In this ongoing project, we aim to explore the role of practising (‘øving’) in the Norwegian school subject Arts and Crafts. Through qualitative interviews we seek to gain insight into how teachers in Arts and Crafts experience practising. Traditionally, practising is linked to the repetition of technical skills, but we base ourselves within the concept of deep learning; as connected to embodied, relational, creative and affective forms of learning (Aggerholm & Standal, 2021; Dahl, 2021; Dahl & Østern, 2019; Engelsrud, 2021; Winje & Løndal, 2020; Østern & Bjerke, 2021; Østern et al., 2019). More specifically, we are interested in exploring what practising is in Arts and Crafts and how the teachers arrange for students to practise over time and in depth. For this purpose, we frame our analysis in terms of practising (Bollnow, 1969, 1978; Brinkman, 2012). Practising as an educational phenomenon is characterized agency, content, goal-directedness, verticality, effort, uncertainty and repetition. The perspective thus emphasizes the pupils as being actively involved in creative and performative activities where they improve their practical knowledge(Aggerholm et al., 2018). The project has a phenomenological approach as we seek insight into primary school teachers’ personal teaching experiences (Gill, 2020; Kvale & Brinkmann, 2021). In the autumn of 2021, interviews were conducted with a total of 9 teachers who teach Arts and Crafts at various primary and secondary schools in Norway. Data is analyzed and discussed in the theoretical perspective shown above. Through our analysis we explore how practising, embodied learning and practical knowledge are enacted in the teachers’ pedagogical practice. For example, the teachers are concerned with the meaning of practise, time constraints as a limiting factor, and exemplify how pupils develop practical knowledge such as craft skills and the ability to work in practical contexts within Arts and Crafts. The project contributes to the further development of practical didactics