Postprocessors (Analysers)

195

State in clear terms why the arts should be granted major status in every child's schooling?

iii. As the teacher, you may not be able to provide materials for your students, because of lack of sponsorship from your school. Non- availability of materials and tools should not deter you. A practical solution is the use of local alternatives where possible. Involving the children in the preparation of some of these materials is also a way out of the problem and the exercise can sustain their interest in art making and add a valuable part of their training.

It is true that some materials might not be readily inaccessible to you, but you can make use of those that are readily available to the best of your ability, if you adopt the habit of substituting locally available materials in your own locality for imported ones. For instance, the lack of pencils in infant or pre-nursery classes need not be a hindrance. Since little children at that stage are fascinated with drawing or tracing patterns with their fingers or a stick in mud or sand; you can introduce them to sand art, for example. The result will be far more pleasing to him than making a thin line with a pencil on a small sheet of paper.

You will be surprised to see that arranging natural objects (stones, shells, seeds, leaves and flowers) that the children collected themselves will be more intriguing to them than being told to use ready-made paper, plastic or wooden shapes bought at substantial cost.

iv. One very important factor to take note of is the fact that smaller children handle bigger materials better. This is because they have not developed full control of their muscles which is needed for fine work. This control will develop with time as they do their drawing and other type of handwork.

Learning to invent and organize things, playing games and so on, all these help to develop this muscle control. In the interim, they can be given

197

projects in modeling with a large lump of clay. Making something big is more suitable for small hands than trying to shape ideas using a tiny piece of plasticine.

v. Experimenting with a variety of art materials is a delightful exercise for children. Using chalks, pastels, charcoal, and pencils of different softness broadens the artistic possibilities that began previously with the use of crayons and markers in the early stages of a child’s development. Using an assortment of materials allows a child to explore different media and it offers them the opportunity to learn how each material behaves. The aim of the teacher at this level is not to transform the child into a professional in the use of any or all of these media, but to give the child the opportunity to develop their creativeness and appreciation for artwork and art making.

vi. An art teacher can promote artistic expression by allowing the children to use the media they have experimented with in ways that are really distinctive. A teacher must teach the children to know that drawings are not always supposed to look as realistic as photographs. They should be taught that their creative output only represent their personal perception of the things they see in their environment.

vii. A good art teacher should help the students understand that art is self expression and that there is no good or bad art. The children need to know that there is nothing wrong with what they choose to express and how they go about it. It is the duty of the art teacher to inculcate in the students the fact that experimentation and the development of meaning are inherent in art making. The art teacher is expected to teach the children to begin to understand these concepts through their own artistic efforts.

viii. To promote a child's long-term appreciation of art, he or she needs to be exposed to different aspects of the visual art at an early age. This can be in

the form of quality children's picture books that have beautiful illustrations.

These should be made available in abundance in school libraries.

ix. Excursions to art galleries and museums are also useful in this regard because they can enlarge a child's introduction to a variety of artists, styles, and content. Therefore, the school authorities should sponsor their students on excursions to places where they can learn about art. Visits to artists at art shows, art fairs or art studios can also be a way to show children how artists work or handle different media. Veteran artists could be invited to schools to give lectures and seminars on art. These are effective ways of teaching pupils to appreciate art.

x. Direct and indirect criticism of a child's drawings should be avoided because children's responses to their own drawings and their opinion of the level of their capability are often affected by the attitudes of their peers and teachers who react to their art works. Drawings and objects created by very young children are sometimes unintelligible to adults and as such, they are easily misinterpreted by them. Despite colour choice or content, the creative objectifications of young children are just artistic expressions and may present a variety of emotions, representations, and themes that are explored and then discarded. It is advisable for the teacher of art to ask the child first what he or she has created before commenting on it. A wrong interpretation of or a wrong comment about a child’s work, can have adverse effect on the child. For instance, by commenting on the beautiful cow the child drew when the child actually intended it to be a depiction of a goat can offend the child’s feelings. And not only can such a comment erode a child's self-esteem, it can actually destroy a young talent. It is better for the teacher to commend the child for his or her effort in creating something superb and then request the child to explain what he or she has produced. This will give the teacher a correct insight as to the nature of the

199

artwork created. The teacher can then extol the work in response. For example, if the child creates a drawing of red and purple scribbles, the teacher should merely comment on the beautiful colours and not try to identify what they represent. The teacher can then request the child to interpret the work after which he or she can commend the effort and continue to engage the child in discussion about the object drawn, choices of color, reasons for drawing the particular object and how the child fells about creating the work.

Criticism can occur constructively when children enroll in technical art classes. There is a context in the art education setting for mastery of art media and technique. The normal preschool or elementary classroom is not the place for this kind of critique. Many children have been so severely criticized by teachers that refuse to even handle art materials again and some are even turned away from appreciating anyone else's art.

The question of standards must not be forgotten. The teacher must ensure that each child produces work of a standard which is high according to that particular child’s ability. Indolent children may repeat motifs, particularly if such motifs were admired by a viewer the first time it was done, simply to avoid the trouble of thinking of a new motif. If this is the case, the teacher must help each child to think anew. You should note that interest is a key factor in this case. For instance, children may demonstrate serious attention to drawing a picture of a busy market place when they may not be interested in drawing a chair. With topics of their own choice, they will express their ideas more accurately and better and when they cannot get their desired results they would voluntarily call for the teachers help as long as they know the teacher is truly interested in their work. The teacher will