Characteristics of Culturally Inclusive Art Education Pedagogy: A Historical Document Analysis Study
DOI
https://doi.org/10.25772/P0B0-P167
Defense Date
2022
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy
Department
Art Education
First Advisor
Dr. Courtnie Wolfgang
Second Advisor
Dr. Ryan Patton
Abstract
The objective of this mixed methods historical document analysis is to identify the characteristics of culturally inclusive art education pedagogy. Using the theoretical lenses of intersectionality, critical theory, and socially inclusive pedagogy, this study seeks to determine the reasons for the misapplication of diversity and inclusion in art education. Qualitative and quantitative methods are applied to the historical document analysis of National Art Education Association articles in two major journals: Art Education and Studies in Art Education. The findings indicate that for the last 20 years, 20% of the articles published in Studies in Art Education and 30% of those published in Art Education mentioned diversity in some capacity. The findings indicate that deficit thinking and whiteness within the literature are limited to articles that highlight the need to fight white supremacy in the form of racialized stereotypes and inequality in arts and education because of the selection processes that the researchers followed. The findings also help to formulate a set of recommended characteristics of culturally inclusive art education pedagogy. These characteristics are as follows: 1) critically reflecting on one’s personal characteristics and its impact on one’s view of people who are different from oneself, (2) cultivating a deeper understanding of culture beyond only celebrating physical differences in order to capture deeper nuances and reveal differences in lived experience, (3) reflecting on the cultural framing of references and its effect on the materials displayed or presented in the classroom and the curriculum, and (4) examining and adjusting teaching practices based on both the instructor’s and the learner’s points of view. Lastly, this study provides an overview of the history of art education in terms of diversity and inclusion in the curriculum and pedagogy as related to race and ethnicity over the past 20 years (2001–2020). Overall, the findings of this research provide greater insight into the ways in which inclusion and diversity can influence art educators’ practices.
Rights
© The Author
Is Part Of
VCU University Archives
Is Part Of
VCU Theses and Dissertations
Date of Submission
12-15-2022