Beopen+ed

Embracing Technology and Digital Transformation

In today’s digital age, technology plays a pivotal role in design. Design education equips students with the digital skills necessary to leverage technology effectively. From mastering design software to understanding the principles of user experience (UX) and user interface (UI) design, students are prepared to thrive in a digital-first world.

Additionally, design education explores the emerging fields of virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and artificial intelligence (AI). Students are exposed to the potential of these technologies in enhancing user experiences, creating immersive environments, and solving complex problems. By embracing technology, designers stay at the forefront of innovation and adapt to the ever-evolving digital landscape.

The Economic Impact of Design Education

Design education not only benefits individuals but also contributes significantly to the economy. The design industry, spanning various sectors such as advertising, fashion, and product design, generates substantial revenue worldwide. According to the World Design Organization, the global design industry was valued at $162 billion in 2020, with a projected annual growth rate of 3.5% between 2021 and 2027.

Design-driven companies like Apple, Nike, and Airbnb have achieved tremendous success by prioritising design excellence. These companies understand the value of design in enhancing user experiences, driving brand differentiation, and ultimately increasing market share. Design education is crucial in supplying these companies with a talented pool of designers who contribute to their success.

Benefits of Design Education in the Future

As we step into an ever more intricate and interconnected world, the demand for design education is set to soar. It’s becoming increasingly apparent that creativity, originality, and critical thinking will be indispensable skills in the future job market, as highlighted in the World Economic Forum’s insightful “Future of Jobs” report. This means that design education is pivotal in equipping individuals with these sought-after abilities, positioning them for success in an ever-evolving professional landscape.

However, the impact of design education goes far beyond preparing individuals for future employment. It holds immense potential to tackle pressing societal challenges head-on, ranging from sustainability and social inequality to healthcare. By infusing design principles into various domains, we can develop solutions that serve their intended purpose and promote environmental friendliness and social inclusivity. In essence, design education empowers individuals to become catalysts for positive change within their communities and globally.

Consider the realm of sustainability, for instance. Design education allows individuals to think holistically and consider the environmental impact of their creations. By encouraging sustainable practices, materials, and manufacturing techniques, designers can contribute to a greener, more eco-friendly future. Whether designing energy-efficient buildings, creating innovative renewable energy solutions, or crafting sustainable products, design education plays a pivotal role in shaping a sustainable society.

Social inequality is another area where design education can make a substantial difference. By instilling principles of inclusivity, accessibility, and human-centred design, designers can create solutions that address the needs of marginalised communities and bridge societal gaps. Whether designing public spaces accessible to people with disabilities, developing educational tools that cater to diverse learning styles, or creating affordable housing solutions, design education equips individuals with the skills to promote social equity and inclusion.

Furthermore, design education holds the potential to revolutionise healthcare. Integrating design thinking into healthcare systems and processes can enhance patient experiences, improve healthcare delivery, and even shape medical breakthroughs. Designers can collaborate with healthcare professionals to create intuitive interfaces for medical devices, design patient-centric healthcare facilities that prioritise comfort and well-being, and develop innovative medical technologies that save lives. Design education empowers individuals to use creative problem-solving skills to reimagine and improve healthcare approaches.

Conclusion

Design education empowers individuals with the skills, mindset, and creativity needed to thrive in today’s world. Designers can create meaningful solutions that address societal needs by fostering collaboration, critical thinking, and innovation. As we embrace digital transformation and navigate future challenges, design education will continue to play a pivotal role in shaping a better, more sustainable world. Whether you aspire to become a designer or appreciate the power of design, investing in design education is an investment in our collective future.

So, let us embrace the power of design education and unleash our creative potential to drive innovation, solve complex problems, and create a brighter tomorrow.

Written By Stuart Crawford

Enhancing Creativity and Critical Thinking

Creativity lies at the heart of design education. It encourages students to think outside the box, explore new possibilities, and challenge conventional norms. By engaging in design projects, students learn to identify problems, analyse them from different perspectives, and generate innovative solutions. This process nurtures their creative thinking abilities and enables them to approach challenges with fresh insights.

Design education also cultivates critical thinking skills. With an A-level tutor, students learn to evaluate design choices, justify their decisions, and consider the implications of their work. They develop a keen eye for detail, honing their ability to spot potential issues and refine their designs accordingly. This critical mindset fosters a sense of quality and excellence, enabling designers to deliver impactful solutions.

Fostering Collaboration and Communication

In our fast-paced and interconnected world, the ability to collaborate and communicate effectively has become more crucial than ever before. And when it comes to design education, these skills take centre stage. Design students are taught the fundamental principles of their craft and encouraged to work in multidisciplinary teams, simulating real-world design scenarios. This collaborative approach not only enhances their learning experience but also prepares them for the dynamic nature of the design industry.

One of the key benefits of collaborative projects is the exposure they provide to diverse perspectives. By working with individuals from different backgrounds and areas of expertise, students gain a deeper understanding and appreciation for other viewpoints. This exposure broadens their horizons and encourages them to think beyond their perspectives, ultimately fostering creativity and innovation in their design process. It’s like brainstorming with people who bring unique ideas and insights.

However, collaboration is not just about working together; it’s also about effective communication. Design students quickly learn that expressing their design ideas clearly and articulately is essential. They must present their work to their peers and instructors, explaining their thought processes and the rationale behind their design choices. This communication aspect of design education is crucial because it helps students develop the necessary skills to convey their ideas and receive valuable feedback.

The iterative feedback process during collaborative projects is invaluable to design students. By receiving feedback from their peers and instructors, they gain fresh perspectives on their work, identify areas for improvement, and refine their designs accordingly. This feedback loop ensures that their final plans meet the needs and expectations of the intended audience. It also encourages them to think critically and analytically about their work, leading to constant growth and development as designers.

Practical communication skills are particularly vital in design professions. Designers often collaborate with clients, stakeholders, and colleagues throughout their careers. The ability to effectively communicate their design concepts, explain design choices, and understand the needs and expectations of different stakeholders is paramount. By honing their communication skills during their design education, students are better prepared to navigate these professional interactions confidently and clearly.

Empowering User-Centric Design

Design education places a strong emphasis on user-centricity. Students are taught to deeply understand the end-user’s needs, desires, and motivations. By conducting user research and usability testing, they gain insights into user behaviours and preferences, enabling them to create products and services that resonate with their target audience.

This user-centric approach leads to the development of products and experiences that are intuitive, delightful, and meaningful to users. It enhances user satisfaction, fosters brand loyalty, and drives business success. Design education equips students with the tools to bridge the gap between technology and human needs, resulting in solutions that truly make a difference in people’s lives.

Driving Innovation and Problem-Solving

Design education plays a crucial role in driving innovation across industries. Encouraging students to explore and experiment ignites their curiosity and helps them discover unique solutions to complex problems. Design thinking, a necessary methodology taught in design education, empowers students to approach challenges systematically and creatively.

Designers are trained to identify opportunities, redefine problems, and ideate potential solutions. They learn to prototype and iterate on their ideas, gathering feedback and continuously refining their designs. This iterative process encourages a culture of innovation, where failure is seen as a stepping stone to success.

Furthermore, design education equips students with the skills to tackle societal challenges. From sustainable design practices to addressing social issues, designers can create positive change. By embedding ethical considerations and sustainability principles into their work, designers contribute to a more equitable and sustainable future.

Written By Stuart Crawford

Welcome to the intriguing world of design education, a field that beautifully blends creativity with practicality and imagination with technology. “The Benefits of Design Education: Unleashing Creativity and Innovation” will enlighten you about the significant role of design education in shaping innovative minds and fuelling modern society’s growth.

Design isn’t just about aesthetics, or as the adage goes, “making things look pretty.” It’s a lot deeper and profoundly impactful than that. It’s a way of thinking, problem-solving, and, quite frankly, a way of living. The bridge connects the abstract world of ideas with the concrete world of products, services, and experiences. And this is where design education plays a pivotal role.

Design education is akin to a magic wand that helps students unleash their creativity and innovation, preparing them for the increasingly complex and demanding world. In 2021, a study published in the Journal of Engineering Design emphasised that students who took design courses exhibited a 28% increase in creative problem-solving skills compared to those who did not. This data speaks volumes about the undeniable connection between design education and innovation.

Moreover, a research study conducted by the Design Management Institute revealed that design-led companies outperformed the S&P Index by an astounding 211% over a decade. These companies, like Apple, IBM, and Nike, realised the potential of design thinking, making it an integral part of their strategy and fostering a culture of innovation.

Our journey in the following chapters will uncover how design education encourages out-of-the-box thinking, nurtures empathy, boosts problem-solving skills, and stimulates technological understanding. Doing so not only enhances individual growth but also shapes how we interact with the world, influencing society.

So, buckle up as we dive into the benefits of design education and its profound impact on fostering creativity and innovation. Whether you are a student, educator, or professional, a wealth of knowledge awaits you in the coming chapters, ready to spark a new perspective on design and its transformative power. Together, let’s explore the wonders of design education!

Introduction

Design education is an exciting realm that covers a wide range of disciplines, from graphic design to industrial design, fashion design, architecture, and much more. It’s not just about mastering the technical aspects of these fields; it’s a journey that encourages critical thinking, sparks creativity, and fosters collaboration.

When you delve into design education, you quickly realise it’s about more than just learning how to use design tools or mastering specific techniques. It’s about developing holistic skills to approach problems from different angles, develop innovative solutions, and create meaningful experiences.

Design students are immersed in hands-on projects that challenge them to think deeply about user needs and preferences. By understanding the people they are designing for, they can create products, services, or experiences that truly resonate. It’s all about empathising with users and gaining insights into their desires, aspirations, and pain points.

In addition to understanding users, design education teaches students about aesthetic principles. It’s not just about making something visually pleasing; it’s about understanding how design elements like colour, shape, typography, and composition can evoke emotions and communicate messages effectively. Aesthetics capture attention, create a memorable experience and influence behaviour.

But design education doesn’t stop there. It also emphasises the iterative design process, where students learn to refine and improve their work through constant feedback and iteration. Designers rarely create a perfect solution immediately; it’s a journey of continuous improvement. This iterative approach encourages students to be open to feedback, learn from failures, and refine their ideas until they reach a satisfactory outcome.

Moreover, collaboration is a cornerstone of design education. Designers rarely work in isolation; they thrive in multidisciplinary teams where diverse perspectives and expertise come together. Collaborative projects allow students to develop essential communication, negotiation, and teamwork skills. Through cooperative efforts, designers learn to leverage each team member’s strengths and create outcomes more remarkable than the sum of their parts.

Written By Stuart Crawford

The Importance of Context in eLearning and How to Help Online Learners Contextualize

Building context is essential in eLearning. You can spend hundreds of hours building an eLearning course packed with features, clear navigation, and visual cues. All will be for naught if you haven’t considered the online learner’s perspective. Fail to analyze your audience and you could be pitching the detail too high, or even too low. You risk disengagement if online learners don’t understand why they are expected to absorb this information. If they can’t see how the eLearning course is relevant to their role, they will simply not engage. Building context from the first communication is vital in motivating your online learners.

Putting Learning in Context

Context is what provides the framework for the training. Why is this information important to the online learner? How is it meaningful? How will it help them and what value will it bring? Develop your eLearning course from a perspective that helps your online learners understand how it will help them improve. To develop a context in eLearning, you must connect the learning with an individual’s values, interests, motivations, and attitudes. This is more difficult when you are teaching a complex or technical topic. Searching for the real-life impact of gaining technical knowledge is the key to unlocking the online learner’s motivation. Help your online learner to really care about the subject by giving them a story they can relate to. Provide something to which they can make an emotional connection.

6 Tips to Help Online Learners Contextualize Information

The real key to setting the context in eLearning is storytelling and branching scenarios. Put your online learners in the picture, allow them to feel that the training is central to their role. Let them see how they as individuals fit in with the branching scenario. Then show how it will, in turn, improve their own experiences. While developing your eLearning course, bear in mind how it will engage and motivate online learners. They should see the eLearning course as an essential part of their personal development, a part they are keen to fulfill. Follow these 6 tips to help online learners to understand the context for their learning journey.

1. Analyze Your Audience

Take the time to understand your audience. You need to appreciate their perspective. This could include prior knowledge (or lack thereof), and any experience with eLearning. Make sure you consider demographics like diversity, language, and culture. It’s also wise to factor in their work duties and tasks to create resources that resonate with them on a personal level. Conduct surveys and focus groups to learn as much as you can about their needs and expectations.

2. Collect Online Learner Feedback

Gather as much feedback during the development stage as possible. Involve online learners early and often. They will be able to guide you to assess important aspects of the eLearning course, such as whether learning objectives are being met, if eLearning content is meaningful, etc.

3. Incorporate Self-Guided Study

Allow for gaps in knowledge by providing links to further reading, online resources or Subject Matter Experts. Give online learners access to an appropriate forum for social learning, so that they can learn from their peers. Allow them to ask questions and receive helpful answers. You can also invite them to host their own live events or forums to summarize the key concepts. Thereby, contextualizing the information and improving eLearning content comprehension for others.

4. Clarify Learning Objectives

Set out learning objectives and goals from the outset and link to them throughout. This will help online learners to understand how the eLearning course relates to their everyday role. It will be a powerful motivator to engage with the eLearning course. Add functionality to track individual progress; learning paths, progress bars and badges all help keep online learners interested.

5. Provide Real-World Examples

Real-world examples, case studies, and personal anecdotes evoke emotion and tie the subject matter into real-world situations. For instance, customer service employees can see how certain skills help them on the job. Thus, they’re more likely to actively participate, knowing that it will benefit them in the workplace. The key to creating contextual examples is to use characters online learners can relate to. It’s also crucial to explore the ‘why’ behind their motivations and actions. For instance, the reason why the character performs the task in a certain way.

6. Create Simulations to Put Knowledge into Practice

Simulations are all about immersing online learners in virtual environments that mimic the real world. As a result, they’re able to apply what they’ve learned in a practical context. Ensure that your simulations feature relatable situations, characters, and challenges to enhance the engagement. You should also encourage online learners to reflect on the eLearning activity after the fact to improve understanding. For instance, what might they do differently in real life to fix their simulated mistakes? Which obstacles or problems will they be able to tackle with their newfound knowledge? Reflection allows them to connect the eLearning experience to their personal goals and gaps.

Having context in eLearning can be summarized as creating an environment that is familiar to online learners. It should show them what they, individually, will gain from the eLearning course. It recognizes the online learner’s background and their perspective on the eLearning experience. Providing context in eLearning unlocks the motivation and gives them a reason to connect with the eLearning course. eLearning content with no consideration for context will fail to engage an online learner on an emotional level. Topics which are heavy on technical terms, such as legal or compliance courses, must be especially aware of this risk. Above all else, remember that completion of an eLearning course is rarely the goal. Provide context in eLearning and you will drive engagement, connection, and behavior change.

Evoking positive emotions in online training plays a pivotal role in increasing employee engagement and motivation. Read the article 8 Tips To Foster Emotional Connectivity in Online Training to discover how to make online training personal and foster emotional connectivity in online training.

The Post Digital 

In 1998 Negroponte proposed that “Like air and drinking water, being digital will be noticed only in its absence, not by its presence” (para. 2) suggesting that digital technology would become a vast, quiet element forming a seamless backbone of life. More recently, Jörissen (2018) also refers to this seamlessness and how post-digital culture is a condition where digitality is deeply embedded in not only the medial aspects of everyday life, but also in the infrastructural and material layers of culture. Digital technology is a part of social reality but also capable of changing it. This suggests that the prefix “post” is not about discarding the obsolete but moving past what Cascone (2000) calls the “the revolutionary phase of the information age” (p. 12) and recognizing a period of ongoing social and cultural transformations where digitalisation is no longer seen as disruptive, but as normal and hegemonic (Cramer, 2015; Safonov & Mayakovskaya, 2020; Sinclair & Hayes, 2019).

The post-digital serves multi-purposively in arts education: as a facilitator for artistic practice, as an artefact in and of itself, and as a driver for generation of data which becomes enabling. This ever-expanding digitalisation of everything and the consequence of instant and worldwide distribution via the internet has disrupted arts education and created an urgent and continuous need for revision, for the professional development of the creative arts education workforce, and for keeping up with contemporary arts and creative industry practices (Hillman, 2018; Kerby et al., 2021, Kidenda, 2021). The high degree of intersection of realworld arts with digital, internet-based, and virtual experiences has implications for artists, arts organisations, and arts education. Unlike previous centuries, “there is an increasing desire to insert oneself into the narrative” (Australia Council for the Arts, 2021, p. 28). Reporting the ubiquitous ‘selfie’ as “an act of co-creation” expanding on more traditional museum/gallery viewing and responding, The Australian Council for the Arts (2021) claims it is “a type of interpretative response to the art, contributing to a wider conversation by saying ‘this is what it means to me’” (p. 28). While educators need to respond to and incorporate this type of engagement, it will be important to promote critical appraisal and to broaden students’ exposure to the arts in different ways.

Dezuanni (2021) proposes that the pace of change and the changes in emphases and contexts have far-reaching consequences for arts education curricula. He argues that “when young people are producing, curating, circulating or consuming content on digital media platforms, including video, images, audio recordings, or text, they are deeply involved in arts practice” (p. 874). The permeating practices surrounding media in all its forms are a challenge including “the rise of disinformation, the media industries’ shift of power from Hollywood to Silicon Valley and the impact of algorithmic culture on creative participation” (p. 873). A further challenge is how we appraise broader issues such as “regulation, and the media’s social and political impacts” (p. 884).

Tavin et al. (2021) tackle a myriad of implications for arts education in their exploration of educational futures in arts education that stem from the proliferation and adoption of technological change and digitalisation. Klein (2021), for example, wrestles with the notion of digital cultures and aesthetic production in terms of the properties of distribution, hybridity, fluidity and digital imaginaries. While art education can facilitate aesthetic appreciation through digitalization, Klein also argues that art education “can also explore what eludes digitalization and what cannot be transferred into binary codes” (p. 40). Bolden, O’Farrell and Kukkonen (2020) also articulate a cautionary perspective of “Balancing the potential and risks of technologically-mediated arts practice and learning” in “The Winnipeg Vision” (Bolden et al., 2020).

Conclusion

The project we have outlined brings together a range of arts education scholars from various parts of the globe and across a range of arts forms. We have canvassed some common issues across arts education that are global in scope, and highlighted that arts education is well placed to make a difference and contribute to addressing these concerns. Through analysing issues currently being researched in our respective contexts, we have identified some key imperatives for attention within the field of arts learning. While these proposed imperatives remain at an emergent stage, they are currently crafted to articulate preliminary ideas and understandings. We are also aware that there is scope for elaboration and refinement as they can encompass a range of meanings and complexities. Similarly, they are entangled, messy and mediated by context. They have emerged from a global compendium but require further scrutiny to ascertain if they are internationally representative. In returning to some of the arguments about the purpose of arts education, we propose transcending the intrinsic, expressivist, arts for art’s sake, and instrumental rationales for arts education and further align with Biesta’s (2019) argument of an arts education that affords possibilities to be in dialogue with the world.

Our intent is to initiate and provoke discussions about the imperatives from a global perspective to promote future international collaborations. We are also keen to keep our discussions and dialogue open, inviting our arts education colleagues to stay informed about this work, contribute and even collaborate with us as this project evolves. As Arts educators in various parts of the world, we argue the need to consider these ideas and concepts in the work we do.

Authors: Emily Wilson University of Melbourne, Neryl Jeanneret University of Melbourne, Mark Selkrig University of Melbourne, Jenni Hillman University of Melbourne, Benjamin Bolden Queens University (Canada)

Citation: Wilson, E., Jeanneret, N., Selkrig, M., Hillman, J., & Bolden, B. (2023). Arts education imperatives: Connecting the globe. International Journal of Education & the Arts, 24(4). http://doi.org/10.26209/ijea24n4

 

Considering the Four Imperatives

Inclusion, Agency, and Wellbeing 

Inclusion, agency, and wellbeing in arts education are three distinct but interconnected dimensions of human experience. Reporting on inclusion as part of the global Education Monitoring Report (UNESCO, 2017), Antoninis et al. (2020, p.105) claim that “progress on education access is stagnating,” and that access is a pre-requisite before inclusion can be affected. Meaningful engagement in the arts promotes access and inclusion for all individuals regardless of race, class, gender, sexuality, ethnicity, and ability (UNESCO, 2010) and agency ensures that individuals have the power to act in a sociological sense (Willis, 1978). The connections between arts education and wellbeing are well established (Cameron, 2021; Fancourt & Finn, 2019; Sills, 2021) and have been highlighted as particularly important in the current COVID19 climate (Selkrig, Coleman & MacDonald, 2020). Seligman (2011) identifies five core elements of psychological wellbeing which have been influential in research connecting the arts and wellbeing (e.g., Clift, 2012). These elements are positive emotions, engagement, relationships, meaning, and accomplishment (PERMA). As highlighted in the phases described above, arts learning in communities is a common thread throughout the research. The pedagogies that underpin this learning have potential to support cultural diversity, inclusion, agency, and wellbeing in out-of-school informal and non-formal contexts, and in school contexts (Lum, 2021, Kukkonen, 2021; Luo & Lau, 2021; Wilson, 2021; Yu & Buck, 2021, Selkrig, 2011).

Engendering a sense of collaboration and community is particularly pertinent to inclusion in, and through, the arts. Arts educators have a unique opportunity to promote empathy, understanding and exposure to diverse cultures through the arts which can assist in breaking down ethno-, generational-, and socially-based barriers. These types of arts learning can facilitate both deep personal understandings and communal responses to notions of inclusiveness, equity and cross-cultural appreciation. The following examples are indicative of the creative responses across varied arts fields. According to Joseph and Trinick (2018) “music participation ‘in community’ and ‘as community’” provides an opportunity for people to cultivate a sense of belonging and connection” (p. 2513), while Lum (2021) maintains that engaging musical improvisation within a multi-cultural performing arts company could “make sense of the intercultural amongst the musicians’ personal and geographical contexts” (p. 101). Wilson (2021) has also explored how adopting community-based music approaches which are “student-driven and collaborative, emphasising immersive, creative music experiences that are thought to promote inclusion and engagement” (p. 212) can support increased classroom engagement in school contexts that are culturally and socially diverse.

Decolonisation 

Decolonisation in arts education is commonly understood as the ongoing process to address the balance of, and Indigenising of, arts cultures that exist within national, geographical, or social contexts (Cameron, 2021; Cheng & Lee, 2021; Luo & Lau, 2021). For example, where Western aesthetics-based arts cultures have been dominant due to colonisation, these arts cultures have held pre-eminence over the promotion and inclusion of Indigenous, local, or immigrant cultural traditions; or where the arts cultures associated with an elite or colonisers dominate a particular group, context, or society (Martin et al., 2021). The notion of decolonisation is a central concern for many arts educators wrestling with Euro-centric arts traditions in their own backgrounds and dominance over arts traditions of local Indigenous cultures in colonised countries and regions. Martin et al. (2021) highlight that, “Many of the approaches, processes and thoughts in arts education are entrenched in colonial histories and structures that perpetuate exclusive, privileging, and Eurocentric agendas” (p. 1). The fields of arts and culture provide fertile ground for addressing ingrained Eurocentric perspectives and all the artforms can be reframed to generate a narrative with more inclusive and respectful approaches to Indigenous arts cultures.

We aimed to include global perspectives that represent diverse perspectives, viewpoints, and experiences beyond a Eurocentric view of arts education. Honouring the voices (which first emerged in Phase 1) of researchers and participants was a key idea which emphasises that arts educators and learners come from varied and multiple cultural backgrounds, and these are often different from dominating Eurocentric traditions. Researchers such as Leung (2021) focus on the Indigenisation of society and music education curriculum policy and practice in Hong Kong through the promotion of traditional Cantonese opera following the return of Hong Kong to China in 1997. While Luo and Lau (2021) reported that despite the intentions of The Action Plan for Arts Immersion (APAI, China) “to promote indigenous cultural inheritance and transmission through community-based arts teaching and learning” (p.118), challenges identified, such as the reality of the power and cultural differences between urban/rural, and between the Han majority and Yao minority, provided significant barriers to cultural equity and preservation (p. 128). The methodologies and practices that researchers adopt in their work are also significant in the ongoing work of decolonisation in arts education. For example, artographic approaches (Sajadi, 2021), narrative participatory inquiry (Sills, 2021) and the arts pedagogies that foreground student and artist voices from diverse cultural and social backgrounds (Lum, 2021; Wilson, 2021) are found in the work of researchers connected with the AERCDSD network.

Cultural Resilience

Resilience and sustainability are often cited as panaceas for the 21st century to combat the significant impacts of a range of critical world events such as climate change, increased populations, and cultural loss or destruction due to political agendas or poorly managed societal changes. Not the least of these is the impact of a global pandemic over the last two few years. Resilience is commonly understood as adapting well and bouncing back from difficult experiences and has been applied extensively in a variety of fields at an individual, societal and systems level (Anderson, 2015; Brown, 2014). Recognizing that cultural sustainability is connected to, but not interchangeable with, cultural resilience, culture and the arts have been recognised as important dimensions of sustainability along with the social, economic, and environmental (Hawkes, 2001). The role of culture and the arts to build resilience for individuals and societal groups to address global issues is a growing field (Newsinger & Serafini, 2021).

As noted earlier, Jörissen at the 2021 UNITWIN Symposium discussed cultural resilience and sustainability and how these concepts can be adapted and linked with arts education. Jörissen suggests that cultural resilience is helpful to think of as a translation of cultural sustainability for use in educational settings and as a powerful and complex concept for arts educators to engage with as,

Resilience aims to retain identity through change by activating resources in culturally meaningful ways so that meaningful responses to disruptive events are created on multiple interwoven social levels (Jorrisen, 2021b, 04:58).

This quote emphasises that artistic responses are social as well as individual and that there is a connection between identity, social learning, and collective achievement. This perspective aligns with Kim (2015), writing from a Korean context, who found that community-based visual art education in cultural facilities supported resilience in young people through interactive teaching and collaboration. The young people in this study improved their selfesteem, self-identity, and could make plans for the future.

A strength of arts education is its capacity to help learners build and experience these connections. An arts pedagogy of cultural resilience works towards connecting identity, social learning, and collective achievement by activating cultural resources within a transformative framework (Jorissen, 2021). For example, Selkrig (2011) argues that both artists and participants are transformed through community-based arts projects and Hillman (2018) illustrates how musicians adapt and develop through multiple and shifting identities throughout their careers. x’s conception of cultural resilience also resonates with Sajadi’s (2021) story of finding identity and voice through art making and the role of agency in supporting cultural resilience.

Authors: Emily Wilson University of Melbourne, Neryl Jeanneret University of Melbourne, Mark Selkrig University of Melbourne, Jenni Hillman University of Melbourne, Benjamin Bolden Queens University (Canada)

Citation: Wilson, E., Jeanneret, N., Selkrig, M., Hillman, J., & Bolden, B. (2023). Arts education imperatives: Connecting the globe. International Journal of Education & the Arts, 24(4). http://doi.org/10.26209/ijea24n4

Phase 1 focussed on the 2019 UNITWIN symposium in Winnipeg, and subsequent Yearbook, Visions of Sustainability for Arts Education: Value, Challenge and Potential (Bolden & Jeanneret, 2021). Chapters were contributed by UNITWIN members and their colleagues from nine countries in Oceania, North America, Asia, and Africa. Researchers from Australia, Singapore, China, and Germany referred to aspects of cultural sustainability via artistic cultural learning and this theme overlapped with many references to community arts and engagement. Authors also addressed the significant role of digitalisation, both in sustaining culture by allowing and supporting its expression and in shaping culture and cultural products. The theme of honouring voices also featured, often manifested in the research methods that authors employed, while accessibility was highlighted in work from Korea, Canada, Kenya, and China. The editors identified four prominent themes across the contributions – cultural sustainability, community, honouring voices, and accessibility (Bolden, Jeanneret, & Kukkonen, 2021).

Phase 2 followed a COVID-induced break and focussed on the 2021 UNITWIN Symposium hosted online by the Korea Arts and Culture Education Services in May with presenters from 13 countries and 575 delegates from 38 countries. Jörissen’s keynote seemed to capture the essence of what was to come and began with the word “resilience”, “a much sought-after capability in times of crises” that “can be related to individuals, collectives (e.g. communities) and even entire systems (e.g. societies)” and a concept that “is especially important at a time when societies – on an economic, ecological and cultural level – are exposed to a multitude of transformations” (Jörissen, 2021a). The closing ceremony called upon UNITWIN members to comment on presentations and from this synthesis came many insightful observations and recommendations. For example, the impetus for, and value of, sharing globally was noted by Akuno, while Leung remarked on research that demonstrated the arts capacity to reflect real stories, countering official languages and focussing on different ethnicities. Themes emerging from this phase included social and cultural inclusiveness, diversity and cultural representation, cultural and aesthetic resilience, the arts for healing, and sustainability.

Phase 3 occurred in July 2021 with UNITWIN members presenting research with discussions over two Zoom sessions. Spurred on by an increasingly focussed consideration of arts education issues that are global in scope, the group endeavoured to find parallels between their individual research agendas and the emerging themes outlined in previous phases. While contexts differed, similar themes to previous phases emerged, along with a distinct and sharper focus. For example, from contexts as diverse as Colombia and Hong Kong came the notion of balancing access to learning about Indigenous arts with that of imposed Western knowledge systems and ways of preserving and invigorating local musics. Research from both Kenya and Columbia highlighted how limited access to the internet for many has only been exacerbated by increased reliance on it during the pandemic. The nature of engaging with and teaching Indigenous knowledges was also identified as a common area of interest, along with the limitations of engaging with such teaching via digital technology. While the power of the arts to contribute to wellbeing was acknowledged, the notion of the “arts for art’s sake” was seen as diminishing. Several themes emerged from the synthesis of these presentations and discussions: inclusion; the effects of colonisation and balancing Western and Indigenous cultures; cultural identity and resilience; the impact of the pandemic on disadvantage and access to arts education; and the omnipresent digital world.

Phase 4 involved a process of further iterative and reflexive thinking. The challenge was to distill and synthesise these emergent themes into a manageable conceptual form. We developed a conceptually clustered matrix (Miles, Huberman & Saldana, 2014) to group and sort the emergent themes, which enabled us to identify four categories that we have described as “imperatives”. These imperatives characterise a global compendium of research in arts education occurring over the last two years. The representation in Figure 2 shows the imperatives, and attempts to capture how they overlap, connect and are interdependent and interrelated.

Figure 2. Intersecting Imperatives.

Having identified these four imperatives, we used them as a framework for a successful University of Melbourne Research Development Grant in August 2021 with the Melbourne Graduate School of Education arts education team and partner investigators from UNITWIN members in Canada, Kenya, Singapore, Germany, and Hong Kong: An Arts Education Imperative: New Directions for Sustainability. The Project aimed to develop a foundation for generating international and national research collaborations with one of the main outcomes being to develop an open access digital repository of research to consider the four imperatives, while also interrogating further the ideas and concepts proposed in the framework and what they may mean within and across different arts disciplinary boundaries.

Given our aim was to ensure the digital platform was sustainable and accessible for ongoing collaborations across locations, we identified the open-access reference-management tool, Zotero, as the most appropriate digital repository for this purpose. The approach we adopted to establish and contribute foundational literature about the proposed imperatives to the platform also involved aspects of bricolage such as ‘feedback looping’ while also having an anchor or ‘point of entry text’ (POET), that prompted the initial inquiry that can be continually revisited to identify new lines of inquiry (Kincheloe & Berry, 2004) were employed. We also used the elements of progressive focussing (Hammersley & Atkinson, 2019) we referred to earlier.

Based on the four imperatives, nine sub-terms (decol*1 , culture, resilience, inclusion, agency, wellbeing, post-digital, digital, arts education) were used to undertake a literature scan of databases such as ERIC, EBSCO Education Research Complete, and ProQuest Arts Premium Collection. In tandem, abstracts and reference lists from project partners’ research were used to identify further germane literature. A protocol was developed for identification, screening, and eligibility to establish inclusion and exclusion criteria. When sources were deemed appropriate to be included, they were entered into the Zotero reference-management platform and coded according to its relevance with each of the four imperatives by considering key terms and automatic tags imported through Zotero. To assist in effective searches within the Zotero platform, we also extended the tagging system, and codified various authors’ affiliated institutions, and the geographical sites of research studies into the database to provide data for manipulation in various digital applications to generate geographical maps. Having identified these initial bodies of literature, which we hope will grow in time, as initial POETs, we are also aware that this literature and research over-represents voices and perspectives from the global north, which we also hope can be addressed.

The Zotero library is free and publicly available to others who may way to search for literature or provide additional sources to contribute to the site (MGSAE, 2021). We also see the site as another avenue to connect with colleagues who are working in the field of arts education, thereby providing an opportunity for various types of collaborations and for others to engage with, and contribute to, the project. Having discussed both the methodological aspects of the project and the digital literature repository, in the following section, we outline some initial understandings of these imperatives. We distill key ideas from some literature we have listed in the Zotero repository, and we discuss how these ideas are reflected in the work of researchers associated with the AERCDSD network.

Authors: Emily Wilson University of Melbourne, Neryl Jeanneret University of Melbourne, Mark Selkrig University of Melbourne, Jenni Hillman University of Melbourne, Benjamin Bolden Queens University (Canada)

Citation: Wilson, E., Jeanneret, N., Selkrig, M., Hillman, J., & Bolden, B. (2023). Arts education imperatives: Connecting the globe. International Journal of Education & the Arts, 24(4). http://doi.org/10.26209/ijea24n4

Abstract

At a time of uncertainty Arts Education continues to offer powerful learning possibilities for being in, and with, the world. While it is crucial to research these possibilities in our own communities, clearly, engaging and collaborating with colleagues from various global contexts and cultures offers great potential. These interactions can develop our understandings of common and disparate issues related to arts education from a range of perspectives and allow us greater impact in the work we do. The Arts Education Research for Cultural Diversity and Sustainable Development network is an international think tank and part of the UNESCO UNITWIN program supporting arts education academics to collaborate and engage in interdisciplinary discussions and research initiatives. In this article we outline the distillation of previous and current research from this group and affiliates to identify four key areas of arts education research that have global relevance and significance. We argue that these four “imperatives” — decolonisation; cultural resilience; inclusion, agency, and wellbeing; and the post-digital age — not only represent a snapshot of current research in arts education but provide a focus for future research and collaborations critical in a pandemic and post-pandemic world. We invite arts education scholars to join us in the discussion.

Introduction

Discussions about the role and purpose of arts education have been taking place across cultures for decades. From Eisner’s (1972) perspective, many of these debates were too fixated on art of the past and promoting cultural reproduction of the western canon. Arguments about privileging various art forms and ways of knowing over others have continued (Robinson, 2015). While there has been a shift from categorizing the arts into discreet disciplines (Flood, Heath, & Lapp, 2005), the field has also seen the emergence of diverse ‘new’ art forms and theoretical perspectives that continue to challenge established views and understandings. Biesta (2019) notes prevailing concerns about the disappearance of art from education where it is viewed through the narrow perspective of the instrumental benefits of the arts (McCarthy et al., 2005), or through the expressivist perspective focused on individuals or the self. He argues that the arts in fact offer education the opportunity to consider and engage far more broadly, drawing the learner into dialogue with the world. The sentiment of engaging with the world and developing world-centred approaches to education resonates in recent fora. For example, UNESCO (2021) argues that the world is at a turning point and the numerous disparities across the globe indicate that education is not yet working effectively to shape just, peaceful, and sustainable futures. In providing a rationale and overview of the need for more integration, Hunter et al. (2018) claim that arts and sustainability education are “predicated on like-minded principles and they provide spaces in schooling for big picture thinking alongside the close and personal” (p. 9). Likewise, Cameron (2021) promotes a partnership and alignment of arts education with sustainability education to mitigate some of the most pressing 21st -century issues. From another perspective, CabedoMas et al. (2017) highlight the unfulfilled opportunities encouraged by significant international UNESCO-based fora to include peace and values education through arts education. While Wagner (2021) identifies the environmental, social, cultural, and economic dimensions of the UN Sustainable Development goals as being most relevant for arts education in the context of Education for Sustainable Development. Likewise, Westerlund et al. (2021) call for arts educators and professionals to become active in tackling “systemic inequality and exclusion in and through their specialized expertise” (p. 12). While acting locally remains important, it seems that arts educators and arts education researchers may have a greater impact if they work across communities, cultures, contexts, and national borders, from a world-centred standpoint. Engaging internationally through professional networks is one way this can happen.

Many of the above concerns are directly and indirectly acknowledged in the Seoul Agenda: Goals for the Development of Arts Education (2010) which was a major outcome of UNESCO’s Second World Conference on Arts Education held in Seoul, the Republic of Korea. At the time it embodied the conviction of the International Advisory Committee (IAC) at UNESCO and the experts participating in the Conference that arts education could make “a direct contribution to resolving the social and cultural challenges facing the world today” (UNESCO, 2010, p. 2). It could play an important role in “constructive transformation of educational systems that are struggling to meet the needs of learners in a rapidly changing world characterized by remarkable advances in technology on the one hand, and intractable social and cultural injustices on the other” (UNESCO, 2010, p. 1). The Agenda took three main issues that emerged from the discussions as its organising principles, recognising (1) accessibility; (2) sustainability achieved by quality of conception and delivery in arts education; and (3) a commitment to addressing social and cultural challenges.

The Seoul Agenda provided the guiding principles in the establishment and ratification in 2018 of an international arts education network, the Arts Education Research for Cultural Diversity and Sustainable Development (AERCDSD), as part of the UNESCO UNITWIN program. UNITWIN networks are ‘think tanks’ and bridge builders between the academy, society, communities, and policy makers (UNESCO, 2007). The AERCDSD group has hosted four international symposia, produced three Yearbooks, established an annual international graduate researcher fora and founded a journal, the International Journal for Research in Cultural, Aesthetic and Arts Education, in late 2021. While these initiatives fulfill several of the aims, attempts at international research collaborations have been patchy—an issue raised IJEA Vol. 24 No. 4 – http://www.ijea.org/v24n4/ 4 at the Winnipeg Symposium in late 2019. The group considered how they might capitalise on their existing research projects and combine these in future initiatives rather than developing new ones. Instead of beginning with universal themes such as those identified by UNESCO, we reversed the process and considered the commonalities emerging from the research connected to members of the AERCDSD group, and then identified possible connections with global proposals such as A new contract for education (UNESCO, 2021). By collaborating to synthesise global arts education issues, we hoped to develop a more systematic approach to international collaborations. We also decided our work could be more far reaching and impactful through the UNITWIN AERCDSD website (https://www.unitwin-arts.phil.fau.de/) as opposed to our individual efforts, thus making a much more visible research repository and hub for arts education research.

In this article we outline the process of progressive focussing and reflective practice bricolage we engaged with to identify significant issues shaping the current international arts education landscape. From this interrogation we provide a conceptual framework (the four arts imperatives) we propose could act as a basis to engage in international research collaborations related to arts education. We also present a preliminary synthesis of ideas related to these imperatives to act as discussion starters and a potential framework for future research initiatives.

Methodology

To articulate the logic, systems and approaches we adopted to arrive at the four imperatives for arts education, we adopted a stance of reflective practice bricolage. Bricolage can be understood as “employing multiple methodological processes as they are needed in the unfolding context of the research situation” (Kincheloe et. al., 2011, p. 168). Drawing on the work of Levi-Strauss (1966), Denzin and Lincoln (2005) also describe a bricoleur and the process of engaging in bricolage through the metaphor of a quilt maker who combines a range of potentially disparate images, ideas, or representations and fits these to the specifics of a complex situation. This notion of a complex situation resonated with us given the various research foci of members of the AERCDSD group who also work across various art forms. As part of the reflexive and reflective practices adopted for this project, we found progressive focussing where “the collection of data must be guided by the developing clarification of topics for inquiry” (Hammersley & Atkinson, 2019, p 163) a helpful concept in our exploration of ideas leading to research.

The project evolved over four phases of inquiry and dialogue through a recursive and iterative process using observation and discussion notes, literature reviews, analysis of submitted writings and an ongoing synthesis (Figure 1). Each phase identified particular themes which eventually fed into the final phase. This final analysis aimed to identify global issues in arts Wilson et al.: Arts Education Imperatives 5 education that could drive a more systematic approach to world-wide research collaborations. This eventually led to a funded investigation to interrogate and analyse previous and recent work and synthesise relevant bodies of literature related to the “imperatives”. The remainder of this section discusses the four phases (Figure 1) where researchers congregated and shared ideas that led to the identification of the four imperatives for arts education.

Figure 1. Phases of Analysis that Involved Progressive Focussing, Iterative Thinking, and the Synthesis of Four Global Imperatives.

Authors: Emily Wilson University of Melbourne, Neryl Jeanneret University of Melbourne, Mark Selkrig University of Melbourne, Jenni Hillman University of Melbourne, Benjamin Bolden Queens University (Canada)

Citation: Wilson, E., Jeanneret, N., Selkrig, M., Hillman, J., & Bolden, B. (2023). Arts education imperatives: Connecting the globe. International Journal of Education & the Arts, 24(4). http://doi.org/10.26209/ijea24n4

5 Factors for Learning Designers to Consider

In this age of globalization and digitization, it is only natural that many eLearning programs are translated into different languages and implemented in different countries. After all, one of the main advantages of eLearning is that it allows for global reach — to anyone, anywhere, with a smartphone and internet connection. But reach does not necessarily result in engagement. Just as the success of a product or service being sold internationally often depends on the level to which it “speaks” to the local markets, the engagement with an eLearning program is sometimes impacted by the degree to which it is adapted to the languages and cultures where it is implemented. On the surface it may appear that this adaptation requires the simple act of translating the learning content to the relevant local language — a task for language experts. A closer look reveals that adapting a learning program to different contexts is, in fact, at the core of learning design.

Below are 5 factors for learning designers to consider, along with examples from two of the projects we have worked on: AHEL’s Media Objects on Community Organizing for a Jordanian audience and the Rowad Nomou course for entrepreneurs in Saudi Arabia.

How To Implement Contextualization to Localize Your eLearning Content

1. Meaningful Translation

While translation of the content remains an essentially linguistic task, direct translation can easily miss the meaning and disrupt the smooth flow needed for an effective learning experience. The learning designer needs to work with the translator to ensure that expressions and text syntax is natural and reflective of cultural nuances. This allows learners to engage with the content in a more personal and familiar manner, paving the way for easier and more natural mental assimilation of knowledge.

For example, in the Media Objects on Community Organizing, we worked alongside the Jordanian Subject Matter Experts to formulate scenario dialogues that reflect the natural conversation style of Jordanians.

2. Local Tone of Voice, Literally

The written word is on one side of the coin, the spoken word is on the other. Voice-over is often used to narrate the content of eLearning programs with the aim of making them more engaging and accessible. However, voice-over can become disruptive to attention when the tone of voice, accent, and/or dialect used is not reflective of learners’ natural speech. The learning designer can work with local copy editors and voice-over talents to capture the most appropriate tone, accent, and dialect for their local audiences.

For example, in the Rowad Nomou course, we worked with voice-over talents from Saudi Arabia who presented the narration in an informal, yet professional dialect.

3. Context-Specific Examples and Content

While the content may be established by Subject Matter Experts from a particular part of the world, certain elements of the content may be irrelevant to, non-reflective of, and/or non-transferable to local contexts. This can be especially true when presenting statistics, legislations, local instruments, use cases and patterns of behavior, etc. If it’s not feasible to incorporate local data on such matters within the core of the learning program and to avoid outdating without periodic updates, then pointing learners to local sources of such data can be useful.

For example, in the Rowad Nomou course, we included Saudi-specific statistics related to entrepreneurship and included links and references to local institutions that support entrepreneurship.

4. Local Experts

Related to the point above, another way to localize content is for the learning designer to invite guests from the country to which the course is adapted to participate in various capacities: to share personal experiences, facilitate webinars, provide case studies, moderate discussion forums, etc. This supplements the main content by bringing in relatable, local perspectives that can address the unique questions and concerns that learners from that country might have. Local guests can also help inspire learners through local success stories and point to local opportunities and advantages.

For example, in the Rowad Nomou course, we produced short TED-talks-style videos in which experts and successful entrepreneurs from the Saudi ecosystem shared lessons learned and insights from their personal journeys. These videos were used as introductory units to each module.

5. Culturally Adapted Characters and Avatars

Not only should the content of the learning program be adapted to the culture and context, but also the visual design elements. This is especially true for the design of characters and avatars—this includes considerations for dress codes, skin tones, hair colors and styles, cultural props, etc. The learning designer can incorporate a diversity of characters within the original course so that no adaptation is needed for different contexts. When learners feel represented in this way, they are less likely to see the learning program as “foreign and therefore does not apply to me.”

For example, in the Media Objects on Community Organizing, we designed the characters in line with the Jordanian culture and reflecting the diversity within the population.

How Mobile Learning Platforms Enhance eLearning Experiences

Mobile learning platforms have transformed the eLearning landscape by making education more accessible and engaging. With a mobile learning platform, learners can access eLearning courses and materials on their mobile devices, eliminating the need for a traditional classroom setting. This accessibility empowers learners to take control of their learning journey and access educational content whenever and wherever they want. Furthermore, mobile learning platforms often offer interactive features such as multimedia content, quizzes, and assessments, which enhance learner engagement and retention.

 App Development: Tips and Best Practices

Developing a mobile learning app requires careful planning and execution. Here are some tips and best practices to consider:

1. User-Centric Design: Create a mobile learning app with a user-friendly interface that is intuitive and easy to navigate.
2. Responsive Design: Ensure that your mobile learning app is compatible with different screen sizes and resolutions to provide a consistent user experience.
3. Offline Access: Incorporate features that allow learners to download content for offline access, ensuring uninterrupted learning even without an internet connection.
4. Gamification: Integrate gamification elements such as badges, leaderboards, and rewards to motivate learners and make the learning experience more enjoyable.

The Future of Mobile Learning: Emerging Trends and Technologies

The future of mobile learning is filled with exciting possibilities. Emerging trends and technologies such as augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and artificial intelligence (AI) are expected to revolutionize the mobile learning landscape. AR and VR can create immersive learning experiences, allowing learners to visualize complex concepts and scenarios. AI-powered mobile learning platforms can provide personalized recommendations and adaptive learning paths based on individual learner preferences and performance. These advancements in mobile learning technologies have the potential to take education to new heights and transform the way we learn.

Conclusion: Embracing the Power of Mobile Learning in the Digital Age

In conclusion, the digital age has ushered in a new era of learning, and mobile learning platforms are at the forefront of this revolution. With their flexibility, accessibility, and personalized learning experiences, mobile learning platforms have become essential tools for individuals and organizations alike. By embracing the power of mobile learning, we can unlock the full potential of education and empower learners to thrive in the digital age. So, whether you are an individual learner or an organization looking to enhance your training programs, investing in a mobile learning platform is a step towards a future of limitless possibilities.

By The Team at Inkling