Media elements

When students are engaging in media arts - be it through making or responding - they need to have an understanding of the elements of media. According to ACARA (2013), these are composition, time, space, sound, movement and lighting. When creating their own work, thinking about these elements is important in order to create an interesting and effective piece. When responding to others' work, it can be a very helpful exercise to analyse why the artist may have chosen to do things a certain way, and how it contributes to their telling of the story.

During our media arts workshop, we created a photo story. During the making of our piece, we had to consider these elements and choose the most effective way to portray the story we wanted to tell.

References

Ewing, R., & Gibson, R. (2011). Transforming the curriculum through the arts. Melbourne: Palgrave Macmillan.

Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (2013). Revised Draft Australian Curriculum: The Arts Foundation to Year 10. Retrieved from http://www.acara.edu.au/verve/_resources/draft_arts_curriculum_22_february_2013.pdf

Story principles

The story principles in media arts are structure, intent, characters, setting, points of view, and genre conventions (ACARA, 2013, p. 84). Using media arts in the classroom, students will explore these principles as they engage in the making of their work. These are principles that extend further than the arts curriculum, however; they have a strong link to literacy and the English syllabus (DfES, 2003). Integrating knowledge and learning can be an effective method for teachers planning for learning outcomes; tying them together creates a connection which might help students to see the relevance of what they are learning.

Storyboard for our photo story

As students progress through primary school, they should be gaining a more thorough understanding of these principles and how they affect what they are creating in the media arts classroom. In a lesson involving storyboarding, for example, it's important that students make conscious decisions about these different principles in order to create a cohesive story for the audience.

References

Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (2013). Revised Draft Australian Curriculum: The Arts Foundation to Year 10. Retrieved from http://www.acara.edu.au/verve/_resources/draft_arts_curriculum_22_february_2013.pdf

Department for Education and Skills. (2003). LOOK AGAIN! A teaching guide to using film and television with three- to eleven-year-olds. London: bfi Education.

Media arts

In a culture that is rich in media and technologies, it is important that our students develop the skills necessary to engage critically and effectively with these. Media arts provides students with the chance to create representations of the world around them, and respond to others' representations, using a wide range of media (ACARA, 2013). For students to be able to do this effectively, they need to develop a level of competency regarding both the use of media, and the language of media arts (Gibson & Ewing, 2011).

Using a photo of a place which has meaning
and then adding a one-word caption to create
a media arts piece

Throughout the implementation of the media arts curriculum, students need to be presented with opportunities to make and respond. In essence, students are immersing themselves in media culture through exploring, viewing, analysing and participating (ACARA, 2013). Experiencing this within the primary classroom is giving our students a head start for the other areas in their lives, now and in the future, where they will need to engage with media and technologies (Gibson & Ewing, 2011; Anderson, 2009).  This can be achieved on both a local and a global scale, exposing students to the world of communication through media.

References

Anderson, N. (2009).  Media Remix: Digital Projects for Students. Screen Education: 55.

Ewing, R., & Gibson, R. (2011). Transforming the curriculum through the arts. Melbourne: Palgrave Macmillan.

Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (2013). Revised Draft Australian Curriculum: The Arts Foundation to Year 10. Retrieved from http://www.acara.edu.au/verve/_resources/draft_arts_curriculum_22_february_2013.pdf

Art dialogue

When engaging with students in regards to their artwork, it is important to invite a meaningful discussion about the art making process. In order to achieve this, teachers need to be focusing on the elements and principles in visual arts rather than making an empty or potentially damaging comment based on a value judgement of the art work (Gibson & Ewing, 2011, p. 137). By addressing the aesthetic elements of an artwork instead, teachers can gain an insight into the student's self-expression and reasons behind their choices during the art making process.

Some valuable comments or question about Rose's (6 years) artwork could be:

1. I like the way you've used the same two colours throughout your drawing.

2. Why did you choose to make the flower big?
3. Why did you make the dress stripy with straight lines?
4. I like how you represented the darkness by colouring black above the light.
5. Why did you draw the girl in pencil, but colour the rest in with texta?
6. I like how you've used both your colours equally - everything has both colours on it, except for the balloons which have one of each colour. It creates a nice balance in your picture.

For an older student, one could make a comment about the use of complementary colours, however it is likely that a six year old wouldn't understand that concept, and therefore it would hold little meaning for them. According to Wilson's graphic principles, Rose would be considered to be in the symbolism stage, employing the territorial imperative principle, and the conservation and multiple application principle. 

Using these artworks as an example, a teacher could talk about colour by addressing how each section is different: there is monochrome, complementary colours, cool/warm colours, and neutral colours.

References

Ewing, R., & Gibson, R. (2011). Transforming the curriculum through the arts. Melbourne: Palgrave Macmillan.

Assessment in visual arts

Assessment in the visual arts classroom can - and should - take many forms. It is important that assessment takes place in both a formative and a summative capacity (Gibson & Ewing, 2011). This allows the teacher to gather information that can affect the curriculum and what needs to be taught, as well as providing an idea of how students are progressing throughout the school year. Authentic assessment strategies focus on both the process and product, as well as addressing learning outcomes which students are made aware of before engaging in art making (Beattie, 1997).

Collage using only two types of paper

Assessment practices can also be made more relevant for students if they allow for an integration of knowledge (Dorn, Madeja, & Sabol, 2014). This is beneficial not just for teachers, but also for students, who can begin to engage in evaluation of their own work and progress. Reflection is an important element of assessment; teachers, so they can examine their own teaching strategies, and students, so they are able to continuously improve throughout their art making. 

Collage next to the drawing which inspired it

Providing students with authentic opportunities to demonstrate what they have learnt, and express themselves within a certain context, is critical for effective teaching and learning. 

References

Dorn, C., Medeja, R., Sabol, S. (2014). Assessing expressive learning: A practical guide for teacher-directed authentic assessment in K-12 visual arts education. Routledge.

Beattie, D. K. (1997). Assessment in art education. Worchester, MA: Davis Publications.

Ewing, R., & Gibson, R. (2011). Transforming the curriculum through the arts. Melbourne: Palgrave Macmillan.