Research in Visual Arts Education - The National Society for ...

MULTIFACETED APPROACH TO VISUAL ARTS EDUCATION
the art student must add another year of “book learning”. There are four
art learning programmes: visual art, design, dance and music. Design has
three defined areas, multi-media design, general design and textile design. All
students in upper secondary schools in Iceland have the choice of diverse
art courses as electives (up to 24 units – i.e. 17 % of the units required for
matriculation exams).
A review of the National Curriculum Guide for Compulsory School 1999
has been performed since 2005 and a new curriculum guide took effect on
August 1 st 2007. The most noticeable change regarding the arts seems to be
the change of the word/concept visual art (myndlist) back to image education/imaging
skills (myndmennt), the name first used in the curriculum
guide from 1977, at which time it replaced the word drawing. In 1999 the
word myndlist replaced it, but this time we are back to myndmennt [image
education]! These words might describe change in emphasis. Myndmennt
puts emphasis on competence in visual literacy while myndlist refers to the
discipline visual art with its whole spectrum i.e. creation, historical context,
aesthetic and evaluation (Ásthildur Björg Jónsdóttir, 2003). However
the rationale for the change in the curriculum is said to be purely to keep
the conformity with the other art subjects’ names: tónmennt/music, textílmennt/textile,
myndmennt/visual art. So far there has been no open discussion
about this among the teachers.
As in the curriculum guide from 1999, the art spectrum here (2007) includes
five art disciplines: visual art, textile art, music, dance and drama.
In compulsory school the first three are independent mandatory subjects
during the first eight school years but elective in grades 9 and 10. Dance
and drama are integrated with other subjects or organized as short courses
and electives. The curriculum guide suggests minimum hours allotted to the
arts (2x40 minutes per week in visual art) but individual schools have the
freedom to organize their teaching in a different manner. Individual school
curricula must show implementation of their teaching in the arts.
The changes in the newly reviewed National Curriculum Guide are likely
to effect art education in compulsory schools in Iceland in some ways (and
possibly already have done so). There are no predetermined classroom hours
and no criterion schedule. Teaching arrangements are the responsibility of
individual schools including teaching the art subjects in a so-called carousel
manner 8 even though that might result in fewer lessons per pupil per year!
8 By carousel manner it is meant that each art subject might be taught every day for two or more consecutive
weeks to be followed by the same for the next art subject and so on, instead of the 2x40 minutes per
week throughout the school year. This is pretty much in the hands of the head master of the school
and often results in fewer hours for art than the allotted minimum.
NORDIC VISUAL ARTS EDUCATION IN TRANSITION 115