Bridging the Gap: Expanding Access to the Visual Arts through Distance Technology Greg W. Welch, Ph.D. UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA-LINCOLN Leslie R. Hawley, Ph.D. UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA-LINCOLN Carina McCormick, M.A. (Ph.D. candidate) UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA-LINCOLN Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art is grateful to the Windgate Charitable Foundation for supporting this research conducted by the Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families & Schools. This research serves as a reference for Crystal Bridges as the Museum develops and implements a distance learning initiative; however, it also serves as a resource for art museums, art educators, general educators, and policy makers across the country. Greg W. Welch, Ph.D. UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA-LINCOLN Leslie R. Hawley, Ph.D. UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA-LINCOLN Carina McCormick, M.A. (Ph.D. candidate) UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA-LINCOLN © 2013, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art 4 Introduction 6 Historical Developments in General Distance Education 9 Current Trends in Distance Education for Art 14 Distance Learning for Art: Motivation and Access 18 Distance Learning for Art: Beliefs and Pedagogies 20 Distance Learning for Educator Professional Development 23 Teaching Art in Schools: Challenges Faced in Rural and Urban Schools 28 Technology Access and Use in Rural and Urban Schools 32 The Intersection of Educational Policy and Art Education 36 Shaping a Vision for Distance Education for Art © 2013, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art INTRODUCTION Though visual art has the power to evoke inspiration, transformation, and understanding, this process is oftentimes aided by trained educators or guides who seek to increase these effects. To the extent that students lack experiences in reflecting on the meaning of art or the intentions of artists, such guidance may be particularly essential in ensuring meaningful art experiences. Art museums, along with the field of for similar educational programming lesser extent given the recent focus on museum education, have effectively designed to reach students that cannot technology-based distance education in developed and implemented programs feasibly engage in the on-site museum museum settings. to engage and educate youth and adult experience. Students in rural communities audiences from many different backgrounds are a particular focus of the report due to In order to support these comparisons while in the physical museum space. In geographic or financial constraints that may empirically, quantitative analyses a recent study investigating the potential restrict rural students’ physical access to art were conducted to compare features effects of guided museum visits to museums. Because distance and funding related to art access, art education, and Crystal Bridges Museum of American should not determine youths’ access to educational technology for city, suburban, Art, researchers documented numerous works of art, distance education can be a town, and rural schools. These analyses positive impacts of such visits on important valuable way to promote equity in access to were conducted using recent national academic and social/emotional outcomes high-quality visual art experiences. representative data collected by the (Green, Kisida, & Bowen, 2013). In this study, National Center for Educational Statistics. these benefits were particularly amplified This report is primarily grounded in an The results of the statistical analyses help for rural students. extensive literature review of museum support the results from the literature education, distance learning and distance review to show that there are substantial Museums have also increased their technologies, and art education in school differences in access to art education and offerings of distance education communities. Throughout the literature community art opportunities based on opportunities, but many questions remain review, attention was particularly focused on school locale. Throughout the report, we regarding how to best transmit informative the unique challenges and experiences of attempt to synthesize knowledge gathered and transformative visual art experiences art education in rural communities, whether from this analysis with that from the when the learners are not in the museum. provided by teachers within the schools literature. This report focuses on distance education or through distance technologies. Priority approaches employed by visual arts was given to literature collected from the To further study these issues, interviews museums for connecting with school domains of museum education, distance were conducted with individuals affiliated communities, including rural schools, learning, and art education in school with distance programming, whether outside the physical museum space. This communities, with particular focus given for art museums or distance-learning work builds upon the aforementioned to the use of web-based technologies as organizations. In addition, one participant study by the University of Arkansas and a means for providing distance-education represents the experience of a school art Crystal Bridges Museum of American opportunities. Mobile methods are also specialist who has successfully woven Art in an attempt to provide direction discussed in the report, but to a much distance learning provided by an art BRIDGING THE GAP: EXPANDING ACCESS TO THE VISUAL ARTS THROUGH DISTANCE TECHNOLOGY 4 INTRODUCTION museum into her own instruction. Because Instead, the report is intended to be by art museums that required closer of the emerging and dynamic nature of a useful resource for a wide range of examination. Thus, the report addresses distance education by art museums, it was art museums and art organizations as the following key areas: deemed essential to investigate current they expand, improve, or create their own distance-learning programs, as 1 Historical Developments in General practices and beliefs within the field rather Distance Education than base conclusions solely on writings well as for schools and educational institutions that may be receiving 2 Current Trends in Distance Education that may not fully represent the scope of for Art partners of such programming. current activities within the field. This is 3 Distance Learning for Art: Motivation especially relevant given that a leading and Access Though Crystal Bridges may be situated goal of this evaluation was to highlight and 4 Distance Learning for Art: Beliefs within a more rural context than many identify strategies likely to be effective for and Pedagogies other leading American art museums, rural the described purposes, including those 5 Distance Learning for Educator communities reside beyond the boundaries Professional Development approaches that may yet need further of all cities that host art museums. In Teaching Art in Schools: Challenges development. Thus, reflections from 6 addition, increased connectedness places Faced in Rural and Urban Schools those currently utilizing the technologies nearly all students within reach of museums 7 Technology Access and Use in Rural are particularly valuable for providing a and Urban Schools around the country and the world through comprehensive picture. Where feasible, distance education. It is hoped that a shared 8 The Intersection of Educational Policy results from the interview are combined with and Art Education knowledge base for these museums, findings from the literature to more fully 9 Shaping a Vision for Distance Education in the form of this report, will promote document the relevant themes of the report. for Art quality distance-education programming Additional excerpts from the interviews will The wide-ranging topics addressed make throughout the field. This hope can be be provided in a separate section. it unlikely that any single reader will be further fulfilled through the collaborative an expert in all the topics. Rather than efforts of art museums working toward The resulting report is foremost intended attempting to construct an authoritative the goal of improving equity in access to to help inform Crystal Bridges as they and static document, this report is instead enriching art experiences. tackle ambitious initiatives to expand intended to provide a common framework opportunities to experience visual art; and promote knowledge sharing as museums Through preliminary consultation with however, the goals for the report reach far and organizations seek to provide continually Crystal Bridges, we identified several beyond a single museum. improving distance-education programs, key questions about distance education particularly for rural students. BRIDGING THE GAP: EXPANDING ACCESS TO THE VISUAL ARTS THROUGH DISTANCE TECHNOLOGY 5 HIStoricAL DEVELOPMEntS IN GENERAL DISTAncE EducAtion What is Distance Education? The terms educational technology and instructional technology are often used interchangeably to describe the integration of classroom pedagogy with advances in the scientific development of hardware (e.g., televisions, computers, and communication devices). While debate continues on the impact common due to technological advances narrated slideshows, databases, web books, technological advances have on learning enabling increased access to social surveys or polls, shared calendars, and web and academic outcomes in formal networking or messaging platforms. Online site links. The synchronous approach can education settings, computer technology education—defined as any learning, formal include conferencing via audio, video,