An Examination of an Analogic-Metaphoric Approach to Museum Education and Art Appreciation
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University of Massachusetts Amherst ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst Doctoral Dissertations 1896 - February 2014 1-1-1983 An examination of an analogic-metaphoric approach to museum education and art appreciation. Marilyn JS Goodman University of Massachusetts Amherst Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations_1 Recommended Citation Goodman, Marilyn JS, "An examination of an analogic-metaphoric approach to museum education and art appreciation." (1983). Doctoral Dissertations 1896 - February 2014. 3879. https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations_1/3879 This Open Access Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. It has been accepted for inclusion in Doctoral Dissertations 1896 - February 2014 by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. For more information, please contact [email protected]. UMASS/AMHERST 31EDbbQ1353Tt)t)4 AN EXAMINATION OF AN ANALOGIC- METAPHORIC APPROACH TO MUSEUM EDUCATION AND ART APPRECIATION A Dissertation Presented By MARILYN JS GOODMAN Submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Massachusetts in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF EDUCATION February 1983 Education Marilyn JS Goodman 1983 All Rights Reserved AN EXAMINATION OF AN ANALOGIC- METAPHORIC APPROACH TO MUSEUM EDUCATION AND ART APPRECIATION A Dissertation Presented By MARILYN JS GOODMAN Approved as to style and content by: 7f"i / 1 J Richard D. Konicek, Chairperson of Committee Liane Brandon, Member Ms Charles S. Chetham, Member Mario D. Fantini, Dean 9 School of Education iii DEDICATION To my mother, who, when I was seven years old, took me to the Museum of Modern Art and asked me how I felt about the paintings. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS There are always so many sources of information and inspiration that one could never possibly thank them all. Several friends and colleagues, however, clearly stand out and are deserving of note. Of those with whom I have worked, Ellen Berezin, Curator of Education, and Jeanne Pond, Associate Curator of Education at the Worcester Art Museum, both offered their extensive knowledge and expertise. Their willingness to explore alternative museum education models with youth and adult groups visiting the Worcester Art Museum helped provide the structure for the pilots of this study Jacqueline Ross, a remarkable teacher-friend, gave countless hours of reading and reviewing student workbooks without ever losing her sense of humor and awareness of the creativity in the minds of children. Bill Young graciously gave his assistance and support when and where it was sorely needed. A special thanks to Loretta Chekani, whose personal and professional contributions are far too numerous to cite. This work is an expression of her spirit, drive, and most of all, friendship. v . ABSTRACT An Examination of an Analogic-Metaphoric Approach to Museum Education and Art Appreciation (February, 1983) Marilyn JS Goodman, B.F.A., Hunter College of the City University of New York M.A.T. (Fine Arts), Assumption College Ed.D., University of Massachusetts Directed by: Professor Richard D. Konicek Although the museum provides contact with original artworks which can enhance the aesthetic experience of young people, several factors often preclude such direct experiences. The non-art trained classroom teacher is often without sufficient prior art historical knowledge, curriculum materials, or guidance from an art or museum educator to easily make works of art meaningful to students This study reviews literature pertinent to the history and trends in art and museum education, art appreciation, and the aesthetic experience. Assuming that each individual will have a personal response to works of art based on prior experiences, an approach involving individual perceptions, reactions, and emotions was used to extend aesthetic sensitivity, specifically, Synectics vi . techniques employing analogy and metaphor, originally conceived for industrial and scientific invention, were translated into a framework for elementary art and museum appreciation The purpose of this study was to develop an art appreciation workbook, based on the analogic-metaphoric model, which could be used with upper elementary grades. This study also determined the feasibility of the use of such a workbook by non-art trained classroom teachers without the assistance of an art or museum education specialist. Moreover, this study determined whether these students could successfully use such a workbook and if their response would be thoughtful, imaginative, and related to personal feelings and experiences, rather than cursory value judgments or descriptive inventories of subject or style. Data was collected from 43 completed student workbooks involving 129 responses to three artworks. Data regarding teacher usage was collected from evaluation questionnaires and interviews with the participating teachers All teachers reported facility with this method and that they would utilize such workbooks for art appreciation if available. Student responses indicated vii not only appropriateness for the level bat also significantly high responses based on clearly identifiable personal, emotional responses to works of art. viii TABLE OF CONTENTS DEDICATION iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENT . v LIST OF TABLES !!*.!*.!!.". *.*.*.*.*.!*. xi LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS xii Chapter I. INTRODUCTION 1 Statement of the Problem 4 Art appreciation and the aesthetic experience 12 Synectics, analogy, and metaphor and creative problem solving 15 Purpose of the Study 20 Significance of the Study 21 Methodology 22 Limitations of the methodology 24 Delimitations of the Study 25 Chapter Outline 26 II. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE 28 Introduction 28 Historical Perspective 30 The Educational Role of the Art Museum 34 Changing Attitudes Towards Art Appreciation 45 Recent Trends 55 The museum and society 57 Current thoughts on museum education 61 Recent Museum Educational Programs 72 Programs geared toward youth or school groups 74 Studio 75 Improvisation 8° Lectures and guided tours 83 Verbalization, visualization, and inquiry 85 Didactic exhibitions 88 Offsite, outreach programs, and community based museums 93 Basic skills through the arts 94 Programs for specific audiences 97 Teacher training models 100 Interdisciplinary programs 107 ix Art Appreciation and the Aesthetic Experience hq Art appreciation 113 Responding to art * 121 The aesthetic response 130 Personal feelings, affect, and cognition 138 Synectics, Analogy and Metaphor, and Creative Problem Solving 141 Synectics 147 Metaphor and analogy 151 Summary 160 III. METHODOLOGY 16 3 Introduction 163 Background 163 Instrumentation and Data Collection .... 166 Teacher response 174 IV. RESULTS OF THE EVALUATION AND DESCRIPTION OF DATA 179 Introduction 179 Teacher Responses 180 Questionnaires 181 Interviews 189 Student Responses 200 Summary 218 V. SUMMARY 221 Introduction 221 Conclusions 224 Recommendations, Implications, and Suggestions for Future Research 233 BIBLIOGRAPHY 240 APPENDICES 257 X LIST OF TABLES 1. Data Regarding Classroom Grade Levels and Class Size * ‘ 2. Amount of Time *. *. *. *. Spent Using Workbook iq 4 3. Responses to Questionnaire Related to Teacher Use 185 4. Responses to Questionnaire Related to Student Use 5. Teacher Overall Reactions to the Workbook *. *. 190 6. Strengths of the Workbook 191 7. Uses of Workbook Beyond Art Appreciation and/or Correlation with Other Curriculum Areas . 193 8. Non-Art Trained Teacher Use 194 9. Teacher Descriptions of Student Responses .... 195 10. Appropriateness for Grade Level 197 11. Teacher Art Appreciation Activities Used with Students 198 12. Categories of Student Responses to Waterloo Br idge Using Suggested Analogies 205 13. Student Responses to Waterloo Bridge Reflecting a Person, Place, Thing, or Specific Event . 208 14. Student Responses to Waterloo Bridge Reflecting a Psychological and/or Physiological State . 209 15. Student Responses to Waterloo Bridge Reflecting Subject Matter and/or Style (Descriptive) . 210 16. Categories of Student Responses to The Hull and The Mission 211 17. Student Responses to The Hull Reflecting a Person, Place, Thing, or Specific Event . 212 18. Student Responses to The Hull Reflecting a Psychological and/or Physiological State . 213 19. Student Responses to The Hull Reflecting Subject Matter and/or Style (Descriptive) . 214 20. Student Responses to The Mission Reflecting a Person, Place, Thing , or Specific Event . 215 21. Student Responses to The Mission Reflecting a Psychological and/or Physiological State . 216 22. Student Responses to The Mission Reflecting Subject Matter and/or Style (Descriptive) . 217 23. NAEA Membership Survey Determining Involvement and/or Interest in Museum Education 253 24. NAEA Membership Survey: Classification of Museum Programs by Institutional Collaboration . 259 25. NAEA Membership Survey: Classification of Museum Programs According to the General Nature of the Educational Experience 260 xi LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS !• Visit to a Library , Pietro Longhi 167 2. Waterloo Bridge * , Claude Monet 16Q ’ 3. The Hull , Hyman Bloom 4. The Mission * * , Alice Baber 170 1 I xii . CHAPTER I Introduction The founding of art museums in the United States was concurrent with the rise of systematic art teaching in the 1870s. From the beginning, the museum was looked upon as an educator. Its purpose was to be an example of morality, a social teacher (Parker, 1971) and a place where "class" art could be converted to "mass" art (Kaufman, 1971