ABSTRACT ART EDUCATION AND STUDENTS WITH EMOTIONAL DISABILITIES: HIGH SCHOOL CASE STUDIES OF POSTMODERN LEARNING, SOCIAL INTERACTION DEVELOPMENT, AND ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT Kelly Gross, Ph.D. School of Art and Design Northern Illinois University, 2017 Kerry Freedman, Director The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of inclusive postmodern visual arts education for students with ED. The research examines arts learning, social skill interaction development, and general academic achievement. Previous research in the field of special education has focused almost exclusively on behavioral interventions from behaviorist or cognitive approaches for students with ED. Instead, this research focuses on the ability of students to build art skills and change behaviors through constructivist pedagogical approaches. These mixed-methods case studies were implemented over a period of two semesters with four students, four teachers, and two high schools. From the two data sites, seven sets of data were collected: observations, artwork, interviews with students and teachers, GPA, class rank, and graduation status. A mixed-methods case study allowed for investigation into both the individual experience and the larger group experience while addressing the lack of quantitative research on this population in relation to art education. The findings from this study indicate that over time the students in visual arts developed fluency and skills in artmaking, which led to confidence in their work and better peer relationships. The artwork students produced illustrates how they observed, interpreted, and represented themselves through visual media. Data from this research suggest that exposure to art may help students envision other ways of being through learning about their peers and exposure to visual media. The findings from the transcript analysis correlate with the data regarding visual arts participation improving students’ ways of seeing the world and their habits of mind, in that both sets of data indicate that sustained engagement in the arts provides the largest differences in ways of thinking and behaviors. NORTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY DE KALB, ILLINOIS DECEMBER 2017 ART EDUCATION AND STUDENTS WITH EMOTIONAL DISABILITIES: HIGH SCHOOL CASE STUDIES OF POSTMODERN LEARNING, SOCIAL INTERACTION DEVELOPMENT, AND ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT BY KELLY GROSS © 2017 Kelly Gross A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY SCHOOL OF ART AND DESIGN Dissertation Director: Dr. Kerry Freedman ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Many people have played an invaluable role in supporting me throughout the process of attending graduate school and completing this dissertation research. My family and friends have been the greatest support throughout this entire process. My aunt, Dr. Patricia Gill Webber, inspired me to pursue a doctorate. My mother, Gwen Caranchini, led by example, always fighting for what she believed in. My children for the many holidays, vacations, and bedtime stories that I missed, yet whose excitement for me to finish this process never diminished. Many friends have helped make this dream come true: Dr. Kryssi Staikidis, David Dornblaser, Sussana Perret, the Fisher family, and countless others. Finally, I would like to thank my husband, Steve Gross, whose unwavering support allowed my pursuit of a doctorate; without him, none of this would have been possible. I would also like to thank the committee for working with me through this long process. Dr. Boughton, your advice in regards to analyzing artwork and your guidance through an initial pilot study were insightful and supportive. Dr. Johnson, you have been a great source of information regarding research methods for students with emotional disabilities and developing contacts with local teachers. Dr. Walker has been an excellent source of advice regarding the statistical analysis. Dr. Freedman, I want to thank you for your guidance and leadership through the planning, research, and writing process. You have believed in me and challenged me, and for that I am extremely grateful. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF TABLES ………………………………………………………………………….. x LIST OF FIGURES ……………………………………………………………………......... xii LIST OF APPENDICES ……………………………………………………………………. xiv Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION …………………………………………………………………… 1 Researcher Background ………………………………………………………….. 1 Historical Context of the Study ………………………………………………….. 2 Art Education in Public Schools …………………………………….............. 3 Special Education in Public Schools ………………………………………… 6 Approaches to Special Education for Students with ED …………………….. 9 Inclusive Art Education ……………………………………………................ 10 Problem Statement ……………………………………………………………….. 13 Research Questions ………………………………………………………………. 15 Significance ……………………………………………………………………… 16 Conceptual Framework …………………………………………………………... 16 Constructivism ……………………………………………………….............. 17 Social Competency…………………………………………………………… 19 Art Education and Cognitive Development …………………………………… 21 Postmodern Approaches to Art Education …………………………………….. 22 iv Chapter Page Definition of Terms …………………………………………………………........ 24 Methodology ……………………………………………………………………… 26 Organization of the Study ………………………………………………………… 28 2. LITERATURE REVIEW ……………………………………………………….......... 29 Learning Theory and Its Application in the Fields of Special and Art Education… 30 Behaviorism and Its Impact in Special Education ……………………….. 30 Applications of Behavioral Learning Theory in Special Education ……… 32 Cognitive Learning Theory ……………………………………………….. 35 Constructivism and Socio-Cultural Learning Theory…………………….. 36 Constructivism in Art Education …………..……………………………... 38 Students with ED …………………………………………………………………. 40 Characteristics and interventions …………………………………………. 40 Social skills development………………….………………………………. 43 Critical Components of Contemporary Art Learning …………………………….. 46 Development of Art Skills ……………………………………….………. 46 Development of Conceptual Thinking Through Art ………..……………. 49 Art Education and Academic Achievement ……………………………… 51 Developing Social Skills Through Art……………………………………. 53 Art Education and Students with ED ……………………………………………… 55 Conclusions from the Literature …………………………………………………... 58 3. METHODOLOGY …………………………………………………………………… 61 Research Questions ………………………………………………………………. 62 v Chapter Page Description of the Pilot Studies …………………………………………………... 63 Pilot case study ……………………………………………………………. 63 Art Skills ………………………………………………………….. 64 Art Concepts ……………………………………………………… 64 Evidence to Support the Development of Art Skills and Concepts.. 65 Social Skills ………………………………………………………. 66 Conclusions from the Pilot Case Study …………………………... 66 Pilot for Benchmarking System …………………………………………... 68 Conclusions from Pilot Benchmarking System …………………... 70 Description of the Data …………………………………………………………… 71 Location and Sources of the Data ………………………………………… 71 Selection Criteria: Schools, Teachers, and Students ……………... 72 High Schools: Selected Sites …………………………………….. 73 Teacher Participants …………………………………………….... 74 Student Participants ……………………………………………..... 75 Data Collection Procedures ………………………………………………………. 75 Qualitative data …………………………………………………………… 77 Interviews with Teachers ………………………………………….. 77 Interviews with Students ………………………………………….. 78 Artwork ………………………………………………………….... 78 Observation Field Notes ………………………………………….. 79 Quantitative Data …………………………………………………………. 79 vi Chapter Page Observation Statistics …………………………………………….. 79 Descriptive Statistics ……………………………………………… 80 Data Analysis Procedures ………………………………………………………… 81 Qualitative Data Analysis…………………………………………………. 83 Observation Field Note Analysis ………………………………….. 83 Interview Analysis ………………………………………………… 84 Artwork Analysis …………………………………………………. 85 Quantitative Data Analysis……………………………………………….... 86 Observation Statistics Analysis …………………………………….86 Descriptive Statistics Analysis …………………………………….. 87 Limitations ………………………………………………………………………... 89 Ethical Considerations ……………………………………………………………. 90 Description of the Internal Validity ……………………………………………..... 90 Description of the External Validity …………………………………………….... 91 Conclusion ………………………………………………………………………… 91 4. SOCIAL INTERACTION DEVELOPMENT AND ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT DATA …………………………………………………………………........................ 93 Social Interactions ………………………………………………………………... 95 Student Picasso …………………………………………………………… 96 Picasso Student Engagement ……………………………………... 99 vii Chapter Page Picasso Positive Peer-to-Peer Interactions ……………………….. 102 Picasso Positive Student-to-Teacher Interactions ………………… 104 Student Vinci ……………………………………………………………... 108 Vinci Student Engagement ……………………………………...... 112 Vinci Positive Peer-to-Peer Interactions ………………………….. 115 Vinci Positive Student-to-Teacher Interactions …………………... 117 Student Ross …………………………………………………………….... 121 Ross Student Engagement ……………………………………....... 125 Ross Positive Peer-to-Peer Interactions …………………………... 126 Ross Positive Student-to-Teacher Interactions ……………….….. 128 Student Flay ………………………………………………………………. 132 Flay Student Engagement..……………………………………....... 135 Flay Positive Peer-to-Peer Interactions …………………………… 137 Flay Positive Student-to-Teacher Interactions.……………………. 139 Implications from the four case studies ………………………………….. 142 Statistical Analysis of the Impact of Inclusive Art Participation for Students with ED ………………………………………………………………………………… 143 Descriptive Statistics for the Variables ……………………………………. 146 Relationship Between Mean Cumulative GPA and Number of Art Classes