A Handbook for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education Enhancing academic and Practice

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Key aspects of
teaching and
learning in the
visual arts
Alison Shreeve, Shân Wareing and Linda Drew
INTRODUCTION
This chapter is concerned with issues relevant to teaching and learning in the visual arts.
As with other subject areas, it is impossible to place clear and finite parameters around
the discipline. Teachers of undergraduate and taught postgraduate art, media and design
should find much they recognise; teachers of performing arts, publishing and
communication will probably find some aspects of this chapter applicable and some less
so. Teachers in other practice-based disciplines, such as medicine and engineering, may
also find aspects of relevance.
The chapter begins by exploring the disciplinary context, dealing particularly with
the tutor-practitioner, the student-practitioner, and equal opportunities. It proceeds
to look at examples of learning activities which may be used as part of the curriculum,
and considers theoretical approaches to understanding student learning within the
discipline. Next, assessment is considered, and ideas to ensure the crit supports student
learning effectively. This section includes a case study on peer assessment, illustrating
the use of a computer programme to support the assessment process. The chapter
deals next with skills development and the second case study is concerned with
maximising students’ opportunity to develop skills through an industry-based team
project.
CONTEXT
While many of the educational traditions within visual arts higher education will be
obvious, their implications for learning and teaching bear close analysis. For that reason,
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