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SCIENTIA
2008
The Journal of the Honors Program
About the Author
Elizabeth Damiano is receiving her Bachelor of Arts in Art Education. After graduation,
Elizabeth plans to attend Mount Saint Mary College in Newburgh, New York, for graduate school
to attain her Masters in Special Education. Elizabeth has been a member of Marywood’s student
chapter of the Pennsylvania Art Education Association for the past three years, and is currently
the secretary. Elizabeth is also a member of the Delta Epsilon Sigma National Honor Society for
Catholic Universities. Elizabeth would like to first and foremost thank the Lord for allowing all
things to become possible in her life. She would also like to thank all of the faculty members at
Marywood who have enriched her college experience within the past four years. Lastly, Elizabeth
would like to thank her family for their continuous love and support.
Grading the Visual Arts at the Elementary School Level
Elizabeth Damiano
“Each second we live is a new and unique moment of the universe, a moment that will never
be again. And what do we teach our children? We teach them that two and two make four,
and that Paris is the capital of France. When will we also teach them what they are? We
should say to each of them: Do you know what you are? You are a marvel. You are unique.
In all the years that have passed, there has never been another child like you. Your legs,
your arms, your clever fingers, the way you move. You may become a Shakespeare, a
Michelangelo, a Beethoven. You have the capacity for anything. Yes, you are a marvel. And
when you grow up, can you then harm another who is, like you, a marvel? You must work,
we must all work, to make the world worthy of its children.” - Pablo Picasso
Abstract
There has been much debate regarding the Visual Arts grading methodologies in the elementary
school system. Some art educators are avid believers in allowing children to be completely self
expressive, with little to no structure provided for them in the classroom. They maintain that less
structure enables each individual child to develop his/her uniqueness. Others, conversely, believe
that the arts should be treated just like any other subject matter, and, therefore, instruction should
include quizzes and tests, notes and handouts, with strict guidelines and rules for each lesson.
This debate has led to recent changes regarding Visual Arts standards of assessment.
Introduction
“You study, you learn, but you guard the original naïveté”-Henri Matisse
Assessment is a difficult area in the educational system upon which to find agreement,
and the consensus is even less evident in the visual arts. What exactly is the difference between
receiving an A or a D grade in art? What do these grades actually mean in regard to children’s
growth in creativity and expression? Are the grades based on individual growth and learning, or
solely structured around a teacher’s rubric system? Questions such as these are what make
assessment in the visual arts so difficult.
This thesis’ purpose is to look at grading in the Visual Arts at the elementary school
level. Chapter One elucidates the psychologist and art educator Viktor Lowenfeld’s stages of
artistic development during the elementary school years. These stages are then compared to
children’s holistic development at each stage. Chapter Two covers the different implications of
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grading in the art system. Further, it looks at the pros and cons of grading and offers different
methods of assessment for art educators. Lastly, Chapter Three consists of research that has been
conducted by the author. The research in Chapter Three concerns art educators in the states of
New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. A questionnaire is employed with the intent of
analyzing the opinions of a sample of art teachers to see if there is any consensus on grading
procedures in the Visual Arts at the elementary school level.
I. Stages of Artistic Development
In his book Creative and Mental Growth, the art educator and psychologist Viktor
Lowenfeld describes an individual’s artistic stages of development. This thesis references stages
of artistic development. However, many art educators and psychologists have developed their
own artistic stages comparable to his.
Lowenfeld established the stages of artistic development over two decades ago, yet his
theory still informs us of the artistic learning theories. Modern psychologists and art educators
have used Lowenfeld’s research and findings as a blueprint and basis for their own examinations
in the field of art education: recent researchers echo exactly what Lowenfeld said years ago.
Therefore, this thesis uses Lowenfeld’s research and stages of artistic development, since that is
where the seeds of recent research were sown.
These artistic stages are akin to children’s developmental patterns as well: “[T]hese
developmental stages are not merely developmental stages in art, but are developmental stages in
the whole growth pattern and that the art product is merely an indication of this total growth”
(Lowenfeld, 1982). Therefore, it should not be a surprise that the psychologist Jean Piaget’s
theory of human development parallels Lowenfeld’s artistic learning theory.
Lowenfeld claims there are five artistic developmental stages, beginning at age two: the
scribbling stage, the pre-schematic stage, the schematic stage, the gang age, and the pseudonaturalistic stage. While all five stages are important to consider, this thesis will concentrate on
the pre-schematic stage, the schematic stage, and the gang age, because they are all developing
as children are in the elementary school. While the family’s influence on a child is an enormous
factor in the child’s development and learning behaviors, this chapter focuses on Lowenfeld’s
artistic stages as they relate to children’s learning. The family’s influence will not be discussed
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here. All of the artwork in this thesis is provided by Moscow Elementary Center in Moscow,
Pennsylvania, or from the author’s personal collection.
The Pre-Schematic Stage
The second stage of artistic development, the pre-schematic stage, usually occurs when a
child is between the ages of four and seven years. There are fewer important artistic
characteristics at the pre-schematic stage than at the following two stages. This is because
children are still very young and their developmental abilities move at a much slower rate than
those of older children. Consequently, the section on the pre-schematic stage will have fewer
details than those found in the following stages.
During the pre-schematic stage the first representational forms are seen: a radial or sun
form, a person drawn with a circle as a representation for the head, lines as symbols for legs and
arms (creating a “tadpole” shape), and letter and number shapes (Simpson, 1998). Although the
figures drawn at this stage are the same shape, children may differentiate between two different
people or genders by adding embellishments to the figure and/or changing the color of the figure.
For example, a child may draw long curly hair and eyelashes on the head of one figure to
represent “mom” and not use these embellishments to represent “dad”.
The following pictures are examples of artwork done by children at the pre-schematic
stage of development. In the first picture, the reindeer is drawn in the most basic form, with
antlers on the top of the reindeer’s head to indicate that this form is a reindeer. In the second
drawing, the child scribbles an image that represents a figure. The third image is a picture of
Santa Claus, evident in the child’s rendering of a hat on top of Santa’s head, a beard, and the
written words “HO HO HO”. The fourth image is a picture of a snowman next to a Christmas
tree. The fifth image appears to be a well developed drawing of a basketball game; however, note
that the figures are drawn simplistically:
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1.
2.
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3.
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4.
5.
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At the pre-schematic stage, children’s art does not seem altered by the real world beyond
their immediate experience. Lowenfeld’s book Creative and mental growth used research by
Barrett and Light (1976) to demonstrate this. Barrett and Light read a story to children about a
house without doors. When the children were asked to draw a house without doors, the children
did not seem affected by the story, and all of the houses had doors included in their drawings
(Lowenfeld, 1982). Although there are some instances at this stage where color is used to
indicate a particular person, often color is not very important; rather it is used to excite and
stimulate children’s artistic nature. Another significant aspect of the pre-schematic stage is the
child’s inability to relate objects to each other, but, rather, to deal with the space around them.
Rarely will somebody see a baseline used by children because they tend to draw intrinsically and
out of curiosity; they are unable to relate objects to one another. (Lowenfeld, 1982)
Holistic Development at the Pre-Schematic Stage
Judith Simpson’s book Understanding the learner treats the natural and holistic
development of children and how it corresponds to each stage of artistic development. Although
it is not necessary to study every holistic method of growth in relation to children’s artistic stages
of development, it is important to correlate a few to show why children may create art the way
that they do.
Cognitively, during the pre-schematic stage, children are beginning to develop symbolic
and representational thought. They are curious and often ask the question “Why?” because of
their constant desire to experiment. Children are in an egocentric stage, where their thoughts are
based on themselves and their own immediate interaction with the world. This explains their
inability to use a baseline to orient themselves to the objects around them (Simpson, 1998).
Lowenfeld explains that children tend to draw humans at this stage with a circle as a
representation of a head and lines to indicate arms and legs, because this is what is seen in a very
simplified form when looking straight ahead at a figure: a circle and lines as representations for a
head, and arms and legs (Lowenfeld, 1982).
The Schematic Stage
The third stage of artistic development, the schematic stage, occurs when children are
between the ages of seven and nine years old. Generally, children at this stage do not have a
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particular interest in the principles and elements of art and design: line, shape, value, texture,
direction, size, color, balance, unity, repetition, gradation, contrast, harmony, and dominance.
Children are more interested in the process of creating art; art is done purely for self expression
(Lowenfeld, 1982).
Composition at the schematic stage
A schema, or repeated image, develops at this stage in children’s art, hence the name
“schematic”. Children will often develop a schema in their artwork, but the schema will have no
personal relationship to the child. Although children will use a repeated image in their artwork,
the image does not necessarily have a connection to their lives. For example, a child may
produce a schema of a man. A child may create numerous pictures with a man doing different
activities in each picture, such as running, swimming, walking, sleeping, etc. However, there is
no correlation among the pictures. The development of the schema allows children to begin to
relate to others and to feel a part of the environment (Lowenfeld, 1982).
Compositionally, children at this stage will begin to compose objects into pictures. They
will make sure that their figures or objects fit perfectly within the page. During this stage
children begin to draw humans with distinct heads and torsos; the eyes, mouth, hair, hands,
fingers, feet, neck and the nose of humans are each represented differently. Rather than just a
body, clothing is also drawn on figures to indicate different people as well as gender and age
differences. Figures in children’s work at this stage are often in the frontal view as opposed to
side or back views. Mothers in pictures are often larger in scale than fathers and other figures in
the picture because, at this stage, mothers often play a larger role than anyone else in the lives of
children (Simpson, 1998).
In figures one and two, the girls in the drawing have an emphasis on the facial features.
In figure one, the teeth are all drawn and the head is much larger in proportion to the rest of the
girl’s body; in the second drawing the eyes and eye lashes are drawn very distinctly. Figures
three through six are all examples of children at this stage’s ability to differentiate between
genders through the usage of dress and color. Figures seven and eight are examples of the mother
drawn larger in scale in comparison to the rest of the child’s family.
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1.
2.
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3.
4.
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5.
6.
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7.
8.
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Another contributing component in the compositional aspect of the schematic stage for
children is the use of a baseline or ground line. A baseline in children’s art is seen at the bottom
of the artwork and is usually represented as grass, a floor, or street. The baseline indicates the
relationship of objects in the picture. Although a baseline is generally viewed at the bottom of
the page for children, it can also be viewed as a circular image, such as a table with family
members eating around the table. A skyline may also be found in children’s work at this stage
(Lowenfeld, 1982) (Simpson, 1998).
All of the following paintings use a baseline:
1.
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2.
3.
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4.
5.
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Space-Time Relationship at the Schematic Stage
Children at the schematic stage of development use their drawings as an indication of
time, where drawings have a pattern indicating a sequence of events. Often, the space-time
relationship is for children to tell stories in their art: different actions are presented, leading to a
particular event the child wants to create. Journeys, trips, and travel are also reasons for this
space-time relationship. Similar to comic strips, children’s “stories” may be viewed in different
pictures in order to see a completed event (Lowenfeld, 1982), (Simpson, 1998).
Color in the Schematic Stage
At this stage of their development, children begin to recognize a relationship between
color and object in their artwork. For example, children at this stage will make their grass green,
the sky blue, and the sun yellow. Each specific color is based on the realistic color of an object,
although the colors used are not the natural colors of the object. Typically, grass is not bright
green, even though children at this stage create pictures with bright green paint or crayons.
Neither is the sky a perfect blue, etc.
Children’s first real and personal relationship with an object and its color will result in
the color schema in their art. For instance, a child may be accustomed to a muddy yard. As a
result, brown may be the color of the ground in this child’s art, regardless of whether or not there
is grass shown in the artwork (Lowenfeld, 1982), (Simpson, 1998). When colors bleed together
in children’s artwork, it results in frustration for the child because the child sees this as a mistake
in the painting. (Lowenfeld, 1982). Figures 3 and 4 show how children artists in the schematic
stage used color in their composition.
Holistic Development at the Schematic Stage
Cognitively, children are beginning to think more as adults; however, they are still unable
to think abstractly. Children are able to begin to create relationships with themselves and other
objects around them. As previously indicated, this can be explained through the use of the
baseline in children’s art. Children are able to categorize information, as was evident in the
children’s ability to see the relationship between object and color, as well as their frustrations
when colors mix together without their intending them to do so (Lowenfeld, 1982), (Simpson,
1998).
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Socially, children begin to recognize appropriate and inappropriate behaviors for
different social settings, such as at school, home and play. Children begin to learn rules of what
is acceptable and not acceptable in social settings. More importantly, when in the art classroom,
“children will attempt to understand what the teacher wants, instead of just freely interacting
with materials” (Simpson, 1998).
The Gang Age
The fourth stage of artistic development is the age of dawning realism, or the gang age,
which occurs when children are between the ages of nine and twelve years. During the gang age,
children tend to become disinterested in art because of their lack of confidence as artists.
Although one more stage follows the gang age in one’s artistic development, many people
remain fixed in this fourth stage for the rest of their lives, without developing further artistically
(Lowenfeld, 1982).
At this stage, children’s desire to create art often leads to frustration when they feel they
“failed” at creating a realistic piece of art. Children become frustrated if they cannot make a
perfect nose on a figure, or make a house look three-dimensional. This frustration leads children
to create images of cartoon-like characters as a “cover-up” to their feelings of inferiority
regarding their artistic talent. They tend to feel comfortable only with a pencil as a tool because
they feel they have entire control of their artwork, they can erase their artwork and can use great
detail in their drawings (Lowenfeld, 1982) (Simpson, 1998).
Composition in the Gang Age
Compositionally, there is no longer the use of a baseline in children’s art at this stage but,
instead, a horizon line: various baselines in the picture, such as a sky drawn to the ground,
mountains, hills, and the overlapping of an image, creating near, middle, and far distance
(Lowenfeld, 1982), (Simpson, 1998).
Children begin to draw figures with great detail and from varying viewpoints. Females, at
this stage, tend to draw hearts, rainbows, animals (especially horses), domestic scenes, and
fashion models, all of which are indications of freedom, running, and joyful expressions of
growing up. Males generally draw cars, superheroes, war scenes, and sporting events, all of
which are symbols of a fast, active, and loud lifestyle (Lowenfeld, 1982), (Simpson, 1998).
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The first three drawings were done by females, as evident in the subject matter; the fourth
and fifth images were done by males:
1.
2.
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3.
4.
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5.
Color in the Gang Age
As stated earlier, children use pencil and move away from color in their artwork in the
gang age, due to their frustration in not achieving completely realistic color schemes. However,
at this stage, children begin to develop an understanding of the concept of realistic and natural
color. They can identify the difference, for example, between the blue color of the sky versus the
blue color of the ocean. Color may also be used to emphasize or convey psychological meaning
in art. For example, a child may draw a green face to resemble jealousy (Simpson, 1998),
(Lowenfeld, 1982).
Notice the use of horizon lines in the following drawings and paintings, found in Figures
1 through 8. The pencil drawings show the children’s ability to pay close attention to detail, and
the last two color images show the children’s ability and attempt to use realistic colors:
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1.
2.
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3.
4.
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5.
6.
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7.
8.
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Holistic Development at the Gang Age
Children’s cognitive growth at this stage surpasses their physical development. Children
want to create an ideal image; however, the physical development behind the work keeps the
image from being “perfect”, and children become frustrated with themselves when they feel they
failed at their artwork (Lowenfeld, 1982), ( Simpson, 1998).
Cognitively, children are able to see fully the interrelatedness of objects, thus explaining
the ability of children at this stage to create pictures that contain overlapped images in their
drawings. Children also become very curious about people. They tend to become very critical of
themselves and others; therefore, many children at this stage lose interest in the arts due to their
own self consciousness (Lowenfeld, 1982), (Simpson, 1998).
Emotionally, children come to the realization that expectations from parents, peers, and
teachers differ from one another. Similarly, children create their own ideal of right and wrong;
these ideals create frustration when children are unable to measure up to that desired outcome in
their art piece (Lowenfeld, 1982), (Simpson, 1998).
The social development of children at this age is very important and influences heavily
their artistic development. Enormous peer influence emerges at this stage, and the desire to be
accepted in peer groups becomes a predominant force in the children’s life. Rules for peer
acceptance become important, and children often find themselves following “rules” in hopes of
gaining acceptance from peers. Large groups are more important to children than individuals. At
this point, children will identify some children as “good” artists, usually those who draw
realistically and use great detail. Consequently, children who do not fit into the “good” artist
category feel inadequate and lose interest in the arts. Lastly, gender differences emerge,
explaining why subject matter for females and males is very different (Lowenfeld, 1982),
(Simpson, 1998).
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II. Implications in Art Education
“Arts…may be to learning what parental love is to a child: Often invisible, impossible to
measure, but it’s what makes all the difference”-Eric Jensen
The National Art Education Association
The National Art Education Association (NAEA) was founded in 1947 and serves in all
fifty states in the United States of America, the District of Columbia, some Canadian provinces,
and twenty-five foreign countries. The NAEA’s function is to promote art education “through
professional development, service, advancement of knowledge and leadership” (NAEA, 2008).
In April 1998, the Clinton administration developed the Goals 2000 Act, an educational
act for all academic subjects in public schools nationwide. The Goals 2000 Act was designed to
“develop clear and rigorous standards for what every child should know and be able to do”
(2008). The NAEA, in response, developed a set of objective requirements, or standards, in the
Visual Arts program in schools nationwide, ranging from grades kindergarten through twelve.
The standards are divided into four categories: Production, Art History, Aesthetic Response, and
Criticism. All four categories of the Visual Art standards must be met in all art lessons (NAEA,
2008).
These standards are designed not only to fulfill the Goals 2000 Act, but also to serve the
purpose of establishing a framework for teachers to use for evaluating artwork. For example, if a
standard is not met by the student, a teacher could then deduct points from the student’s overall
grade in the art classroom. These standards contribute greatly to the ongoing debate among
educators about grading in the Visual Arts because they are what set the basis for any evaluative
form of assessment.
Pros to Grading in the Arts
Eric Jensen’s book Arts with the brain in mind, Claudia Cornett’s book Creating meaning
through literature and the arts: An integration resource for classroom teachers, and Kathleen
and James Strickland’s article “Grading: The square peg in the round hole”, present the reader
with a plethora of reasons why people assert there should be grades given in the visual arts. One
common reason, according to Jensen and Cornett, is that other disciplines are assessed. Art
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teachers struggle to prove that the visual arts are equal in importance to other academic subjects,
such as reading, writing, math, science, and social studies. Using the same grading system for art
and other classroom subjects could gain respect for the visual arts program in the broader
academic world. In essence, the visual arts program could appear to be more legitimate when
compared with regular classroom subjects (Jensen, 2001). Another affirmation of grading that
Jensen and Cornett use is that people believe testing and assessment make students more
accountable for learning art (Jensen, 2001), (Cornett, 2007). Often, educators and administrators
need to see physical progress of each individual student’s learning, and the easiest form of this is
through grading the student. Lastly, Jensen states that more funding will be readily available to
schools that use grading in the arts.
Strickland’s article states that some educators believe it is necessary to link and balance
both the process and product of the student’s work and, therefore, grading enforces and enriches
the product (Strickland, 1998). Based on this information, educators who believe that the arts
should be graded are advocates of the formalist viewpoint; they believe that art should be looked
at based upon its physical realities and properties, as seen through the seven principles and
elements of art and design.
Problems with Grading the Elementary School Child in the Visual Arts
“Grading, whether with letter grades or numbers, is a square peg in a round hole. Grading
doesn’t exactly fit in a transactional classroom with authentic assessment and evaluation”
–Kathleen and James Strickland
Teacher’s Response to Graded Art
“At this level it would make more sense to grade the teacher, for it is the teacher who has been
able to motivate the children to do excellent work”-Viktor Lowenfeld
While it is difficult for teachers to balance creativity with academic rigor in the
classroom, it seems as though originality has almost completely been dismissed. In the article
“Ideational code-switching: Walking the talk about supporting student creativity in the
classroom,” Ronald Beghetto used M. Kennedy’s research and found that teachers often
disregard student creativity: “ ‘They give students a clear message that some ideas won’t be
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talked about, even if they seem relevant and important to students’ ”(Beghetto, 2007). Further,
Beghetto states that students often become familiar with teachers’ expectations by the time they
reach fourth or fifth grade, and they adapt their responses to fit into what the teacher wants:
“Classroom discussions become more akin to a game of intellectual hide-and-seek rather than an
opportunity to express one’s creative ideas” (Beghetto, 2007). The problem is clear: students
disregard their own creativity to fit the demands and standards of conventional learning.
Robert Albert’s article “Some reasons why childhood creativity often fails to make it
past puberty into the real world,” states that people are against grading because they believe that
the teachers’ opinion of students greatly contributes to their grading habits for each child. This is
called the halo-effect: a teacher is more inclined to grade a student higher if the teacher likes or
knows the student well, and may be apt to drop a student’s grade simply because he/she does not
like the student (Albert, 1996). In “Grading: The square peg in the round hole,” authors
Kathleen and James Strickland state that grades appear to be concerned only with the product
rather than the growth and learning process for each individual child; therefore, it is difficult for
teachers to assess all of the students’ progress and growth with one single grade. In essence,
grading tends to deemphasize the importance of learning in the classroom, or the process,
making it a secondary component to the product of a letter grade (Strickland, 1998).
Student’s Response to Graded Art
“Grading in art has no function”-Viktor Lowenfeld
In reality, students are the ones who must earn their grades; however, they are aware of
teachers’ methods of grading, and therefore are apt to work for a grade rather than being
interested in learning. Stanley S. Madeja’s article “Alternative assessment strategies for schools”
states that educators are concerned with grading in the arts because it is difficult to compute a
creative process into one letter grade, and the quantification process is too subjective (Madeja,
2004). Students are supposed to be concerned with the experience they have with the art project.
When a teacher condenses the student’s experience into one grade, the grading seems unfair and
inaccurate.
Eric Jensen’s book Arts with the brain in mind defends the belief that arts in the
elementary school should not be graded. The author claims that the value of the arts is an internal
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experience, rather than a formalist method of grading a product of an experience. Art’s natural
realm is ever changing and dynamic; it is not supposed to make sense or follow a particular
format. In essence, art “defies attempts at tidy definition” (Jensen, 2001). Further, Jensen states
that grading in the arts causes children to de-value their own creative expression, because they
are too concerned with the meeting of the teacher’s expectations: what is considered an “A” art
project, versus what is a “failing” art project.
In “Alternative assessment strategies for schools,” Stanley Madeja says that art students
are often afraid to create work that is original and inventive and, instead, will stick to creating
predictable art because they wish to attain a high grade (Madeja, 2004). Likewise, Lowenfeld
believes that grading is harmful for children in the arts because it focuses their attention on the
outcome of the project: “It can be particularly discouraging for a youngster who is beginning to
become involved in creative activity if the artwork is graded as a failure” (Lowenfeld, 1982).
Daniel Mendelowitz is quoted as saying in his book Children are artists, “There is nothing more
harmful to artistic expression than standardized expectations of behavior” (Mendelowitz, 1963).
Kathleen and James Strickland’s article also states that grading drives away the love of
learning for children, since they will be so concerned with the product rather than
the process of the assignment. As a result, this overwhelming concern and obsession with the
product leads to a higher increase in cheating (Strickland, 1998). In the visual arts, this
“cheating” may be noticeable by a child copying the artwork of the art teacher, or students
copying other peers who have already gained approval by the teacher. Daniel Mendelowitz
agrees that grades have a detrimental effect on a child’s artistic development: “Trying to draw in
a way to please others obstructs his expression and eventually he may give up attempting to
express himself at all and instead will repeat the patterns that constitute adults’ ideas of
‘correctness’” (Mendelowitz, 1963).
Methods of Assessment in the Visual Arts:
“It has to be honest, understandable, and purposeful”-Eric Jensen
Several methods of assessment in the arts focus on the process of the students’ work as
opposed to the product. Although assessment does in fact imply that work must be evaluated,
and thus the final result of the work will be assessed, there are methods of evaluation used in the
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visual arts that consider the domains of students’ artistic experience. Again, these methods may
still seem invalid to educators who firmly believe that art should be an internal experience
between the student and his/her project; in this context, any form of assessment seems worthless
and void of any meaning.
The following sources were used to consolidate methods of assessment: Stanley S.
Madeja’s article “Alternative assessment strategies for schools;” Judith Simpson’s book
Understanding the learner; Kathleen and James Strickland’s article “Grading: The square peg in
the round hole;” Eric Jensen’s book Arts with the brain in mind; and Robert Albert’s article
“Some reasons why childhood creativity often fails to make it past puberty into the real world.”
While each source discusses different forms of assessment, all share common beliefs.
Each source states good attendance is a way a teacher may assess students at the
elementary school level in the visual arts. Continuous progress and review for young children
helps them retain information; therefore, it is important for children at this age to attend art
classes regularly. Young children should be in class as often as possible in order for learning to
occur. At the elementary school level, it is true that attendance is not always controlled by the
child. The parental figures in the child’s life are responsible for the child’s attendance. Therefore,
it seems unfair to use attendance as the criterion for assessment at the elementary school level,
because it is not the child’s responsibility.
Class participation is a way one can assess students at the elementary school level in the
visual arts. Although there are shy students who may be nervous about talking aloud in class, it is
important for teachers to motivate and encourage students to desire learning. Teachers should
take note of the students who answer questions, ask questions, and offer assistance to the teacher
and/or other classmates. While teachers are walking around the class and observing the students,
they should make sure to speak with each student individually and talk about each student’s
project or any other concern(s) the child may have. This is a good time for teachers to converse
with the students who may be too shy to speak aloud in front of the class, and to discuss with
them what they have been learning.
Student self assessment is another key component in the process of evaluating students.
Including each student in his/her own assessment process allows the student to reflect upon the
artistic process and experiences that occurred during class. Since the student is directly involved
in this form of assessment, the assessment will become more meaningful to the learner than if it
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were based solely on the teacher’s observation of the student’s process and product. Student
assessment is very important and can be done through journaling or through a student/teacher
conference.
Peer feedback is another form of assessment. Although this type of assessment is
sometimes recommended, it can be detrimental to a student’s self-esteem, especially at the gang
age stage of development. As noted in Chapter One, children at the gang age are highly sensitive
to their peers. If their peers do not approve of their artwork or make fun of their work, students
may become more disinterested in art and neglect their creative thought. Peer feedback may
cause a student to become discouraged. Being mocked, and ridiculed, especially if the child is
already disliked, may adversely affect one’s artistic development. At an age when social
acceptance is one of the most important concerns for children, peer feedback seems to be an
opportunity for childhood bullying.
Lastly, using a portfolio is a way teachers can assess student learning. Madeja defines a
portfolio as being “a portable case for carrying…prints, or artwork” (Madeja, 2004). There are
also two types of portfolio: a working portfolio and a final portfolio. A working portfolio is an
accumulation of a student’s work throughout an extended period of time. It includes finished
pieces of art, as well as sketches and notes on projects. A final portfolio is a collection of the
student’s best pieces of art only. The sources deal with the working portfolio as a form of
assessment. Elementary school teachers can use working portfolios for each student by including
in them all of their work from the year and looking at growth patterns and artistic development.
The portfolio at the elementary school level allows teachers, parents, and administrators to
examine an individual student’s progress during a particular time frame and see how the child
has improved. Rather than focusing on one project, the portfolio incorporates numerous artworks
that, inevitably, present to the viewer an indicated growth pattern during an individual’s
academic year. Lowenfeld’s artistic stages of development may be observed if the portfolio
shows different stages of artistic development for a child. Such a collection provides the teacher
with examples of students’ change and growth.
122
III. Research
Methodology
The main objective of the research is to see if art educators believe that the art program at
the elementary school level should assign a letter and/or number grade as an effective form of
assessment. The study included only the Northeastern part of the United States of America, and
it was done throughout the course of six months.
The research was given to two different audiences for evaluation. First, the author
researched online different elementary schools in the states of Pennsylvania, New York and New
Jersey, known to have very strong art programs. These ten schools include: Clara E. Coleman
Elementary, East Coventry Elementary, Gidney Avenue Magnet School, Kresson School,
Moscow Elementary Center, Smith Humanities Magnet School, Theodore Roosevelt Elementary
School, Thomas J. Lahey Elementary, Union City Elementary, and Frances Willard Elementary.
After finding ten different elementary schools in the three states, the author contacted each
school’s art teacher through email and sent each a cover letter explaining the purpose of the
research and a questionnaire to be filled out by the teachers. The cover letter can be found in
APPENDIX A; the questionnaire can be found in APPENDIX B.
Next, the author contacted members of the Pennsylvania Art Education Association
(PAEA) through the site’s list server and educators in the Scranton, Pennsylvania school district.
Again, these members were contacted through email and were provided the same cover letter and
questionnaire. The reason for contacting PAEA members and Scranton educators, all of who are
currently or former art teachers at the elementary school level, was because there was a small
response from the first group of respondents. The second cover letter can be found in
APPENDIX C.
The following research represents a total of thirteen respondents. The schools involved
with the research are: Frances Willard Elementary, Maple Glen Elementary, Audubon-Number
42 Elementary, Prescott-Number 38 Elementary, Robert Morris Elementary, Whittier
Elementary, Richard McNichols Elementary, Kresson Elementary, Blackhawk Intermediate
Elementary, Cochran Elementary, Hepburn-Lycoming Elementary , Jackson Elementary , Round
Hills Elementary , Sheridan Elementary, Stevens Elementary, Stanwood Elementary , Bovard
Elementary, Moscow Elementary Center, Forest Hills Elementary, Union City Elementary, and
ACLD Tillotson Elementary. Note that all together there are twenty-one schools involved in the
123
research; that is because some of the respondents taught at more than one elementary school.
Also, one respondent was an assistant art supervisor of a school district and, therefore, he was
responsible for six different schools. Some of the questions were not answered by all of the
respondents. The findings are presented in the form of bar graphs.
Numerical Analysis:
The respondents’ answers to the following questions provide the basis for the written analysis:
1. Does your school assign a letter (A, B, C, D, F) / number grade (100%, 95, 90…65) in the
Visual Arts program?
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
No
Yes
Out of the thirteen respondents, only two stated that their school(s) did assign one of the two
forms of assessment. Eleven claimed that their school(s) did not assign such grading.
124
2. If you answered no to question 1, how does your school evaluate each child in the Visual Arts
program?
5
4.5
4
3.5
3
2.5
2
1.5
1
0.5
0
#
S/U
P/F
None
Five of the respondents stated that their school(s) awarded children grades through a number
system. For example, the number 4 represents the highest level of achievement in the art
program, and a 1 is the lowest. Four respondents said that their school(s) uses
satisfactory/unsatisfactory when evaluating children. Only one respondent said her school uses a
pass/fail system of assessing children, and one respondent said that she does not use any form of
assessment for grading in the art program at her school.
125
3. Does your school, or do you as the art teacher,
a. follow a rubric for each evaluative assignment in the art program?
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
No
Yes
Three of the respondents claimed that their schools do not use a rubric for each evaluative
assignment in art. Eight state that they do use a rubric for all assignments that they evaluate.
b. follow a specific rubric for all of the assignments in the art program?
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
No
Yes
Six respondents stated that they use a very specific rubric for each project that they evaluate.
Four stated that they do not use a specific rubric.
126
4. If you answered yes to question 3.b, what is included in the rubric?
Respondents stated that they use craftsmanship, skills specific to the assignment, creativity,
complexity of each project, and idea and planning in the specific rubric.
5. If you answered no to question 3, how does your school, or you, determine grades?
Ironically, both five and six questions have very similar responses. Respondents stated for both
questions that they grade based on the behavior of the student, class participation,
achievement/personal growth, and understanding of objectives.
6. Do you personally, as an art educator, believe that the art program at the elementary school
level should enforce a letter and/or number grading system as an effective form of assessment?
Why? Why not?
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
No
Yes
As one notes, the research indicated above shows a disagreement between the two varying
beliefs in regard to grading at the elementary school level. Some of the teachers’ responses,
when asked for their opinion, include:
127
-“I believe in assessment because children want to know how they are doing in a certain subject”
-“A letter grade helps parents and students view (art) differently”
-“If we want art to be seen as an essential part of our students’ education, then parents need to
see that it is worth grading”
-“The number or letter grade tells nothing about what the student knows and is able to do…and
so it is not a competition among children, but a competition within oneself to grow”
-“It adds ‘weight’ to the art program”
-“Assessment is not just about letter grades”
-“Without grades, teaching art might not be viewed as important as other subjects”
Therefore, it appears that the opinion on grading children in art at the elementary level
lacks a clear consensus. In general, art educators seem to “agree to disagree.”
IV. Conclusion
The purpose of this thesis was to examine the grading system in visual arts at the
elementary school level. Chapter One focused on the artistic stages of development for children
and compared this form of development with children’s natural, holistic, developmental patterns
of growth. Chapter Two’s main point was to show the readers different reasons why people are
in favor of, or are opposed to, grading in the visual arts. This Chapter further described different
methods of assessment art educators can use. Chapter Three’s purpose was to provide the results
of independent research on assessment in the art classroom. The research also investigated the
value of grades in the art program.
Based on the author’s research, it may be concluded that there are varying opinions about
grading in the visual arts. Several teachers stated that they believe that the visual arts should be
graded because of the legitimacy of what a letter grade means; others, however, stated that
grades do not offer an accurate measure of how the children experience the art process. Perhaps
one day educators will come to agreement regarding grading in the visual arts. At present,
educators continue to differ in their view of what is the most accurate form of assessment in the
visual arts at the elementary level.
128
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130
APPENDIX A
Elizabeth Damiano
42 Townsend Avenue
Newburgh, NY 12550
(845) 220-8025
[email protected]
To Whom It May Concern:
Hello! My name is Elizabeth Damiano, and I am currently studying at Marywood
University with every intent of graduating this May, 2008, with an Undergraduate Bachelor of
Arts Degree in Art Education. Further, I am working on graduating in the Honors section at
Marywood University. The Honors section requires that students write a Thesis as an
Undergraduate, and I have decided to write my Senior Honors Thesis on why the Visual Arts
should not be given a letter and/or number grade in the Elementary Schools. I have researched
online and found your school to be strong in the Visual Arts program. Therefore, I am hoping
that you, the art teacher, will be willing to help my research by filling out this questionnaire. The
questionnaire will aid in the second chapter of my thesis, which involves my personal research
on the study of grading in the arts. If you have any questions/concerns, please feel free to contact
me at any point. Similarly, if you do not wish to participate in the questionnaire, I completely
understand and would appreciate if you could let me know of your decision to not contribute.
If you do plan on completing the questionnaire, please email the finished piece to me
before December, 2007, or earlier if possible
Thank you once again for your time and playing such a vital and contributing role in my
Undergraduate studies here at Marywood University.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth Damiano
131
APPENDIX B
Please answer the following questions to the best of your ability. For questions 2 and 4, please
answer YES / NO.
1. Name of the Elementary School(s) where you teach
2. Does your school assign a letter (A, B, C, D, F) / number grade (100%, 95,
90…65) in the Visual Arts program?
3. If you answered no to question 2, how does your school evaluate each child in
the Visual Arts program?
4. Does your school, or you as the art teacher,
a. follow a rubric for each evaluative assignment in the art program?
b. follow a specific rubric for all of the assignments in the art program?
5. If you answered yes to question 4.b, what is included in the rubric?
132
6. If you answered no to question 4, how does your school, or you, determine
grades?
7. Do you personally, as an art educator, believe that the art program at the
Elementary School level should enforce a letter and/or number grading system as
an effective form of assessment? Why? Why not?
133
APPENDIX C
Elizabeth Damiano
42 Townsend Avenue
Newburgh, NY 12550
(845) 220-8025
[email protected]
To Whom It May Concern:
In December I had sent out a questionnaire for Elementary Art Education teachers to fill
out for the purpose of helping me in conducting research in regards to fulfilling my Thesis
requirements at Marywood University. The Honors section requires that students write a Thesis
as an Undergraduate, and I have decided to write my Senior Honors Thesis on why the Visual
Arts should not be given a letter and/or number grade in the Elementary Schools. The
questionnaire will aid in the third chapter of my thesis, which involves my personal research on
the study of grading in the arts. The questionnaire does ask for the elementary school that you
teach in/have taught at; however, your name and the school that you teach in/have taught at will
not be included in any of my Thesis writing; the sole purpose of this information is for me to see
the locations of the Elementary Schools involved in my Thesis.
If anyone who has not yet sent a questionnaire back to me, and would like to help by
submitting one, please do so no later than February 22, 2008. The easiest and most convenient
way for you to reply back is through email. If you wish to do so, you may mail it to the above
address. For everyone who has contributed already by filling out my questionnaire, there is no
need to re-submit one, and I thank all of you for taking the time out of your busy lives to answer
those questions for me.
Thank you everyone in advance and I look forward to hearing from you!
Sincerely,
Elizabeth Damiano
134