A live discussion on the current state of arts education

"Arts education has become the focus of a great deal of passion and concern recently, since the core, knowledge-based subjects took precedence over the creative subjects when the EBacc was introduced in England by the then Education Minister Michael Gove, announced in 2010.

With the arts not being a requirement in the GCSE syllabus for the English Baccalaureate (the EBacc), leaders in the arts and the lucrative creative industries have been very vocal in their criticism of government policy."

Last Wednesday evening in a special edition of BBC Radio 4's Front Row, Stig Abell chaired a live discussion on the subject from a Soar Valley College secondary school in Leicester with leading figures in arts and education.

On the panel were:

Deborah Annetts, the Chief Executive of the Incorporated Society of Musicians or the ISM

Trina Haldar, graduate in chemistry and engineering, and subsequently director and founder of Leicester-based Mashi Theatre

Branwen Jeffreys, the BBC’s Education Editor

Mark Lehain, interim head of the New Schools Network, a free schools advocacy charity, and the Founder (and former headteacher) of one of the first secondary Free Schools. He also leads the Parents and Teachers for Excellence campaign

Julie Robinson, the headteacher of Soar Valley College in Leicester

Carl Ward, Chief Exec of the City Learning Trust, which is a partnership of schools teaching a combined total of 6000 pupils in Stoke on Trent

The episode can be accessed here

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m00013vs

All Schools Should Be Art Schools by Bob and Roberta Smith at Yorkshire Sculpture Park

Aptly situated by the Learning building at Yorkshire Sculpture Park, Rob and Roberta Smith's inspirational statement 'All Schools Should Be Art Schools' is intended to prompt political action. 



The artist made the work in April 2017, after Michael Gove (who was Secretary of State for Education) proposed that Art should be removed from the GCSE core curriculum in England.

https://ysp.org.uk/openair

Newcastle University School of Education Communication and Language Sciences - Centre for Learning and Teaching Showcase 2016

Organised by Newcastle University's Centre for Learning and Teaching, this showcase event addressed themes of: Social justice; Innovative research methodologies; Professional development, leadership & learning; Innovative pedagogy and curriculum; Learning spaces; Teaching and learning in HE.

The event was split into 4 parts, with a choice of 3 different sessions in the first 3 parts, followed by the entire group coming together to join in the final part, a 'Moot' (a term meaning an assembly held for debate).

Attendees ranged from students from the department to Academics, teachers, educational psychologists and others involved in education in some form.

The first session dealt with Communication Aware Teaching and how labels may discriminate people. I was interested to hear about the Pygmalion effect, the term given to the phenomenon in which the greater the expectation placed upon people (such as children, students, or employees) the better they perform. Tajfel's findings are also of interest to me: "Whenever we are confronted with a situation to which sort form of intergroup categorisation appears directly relevant, we are likely to act in a manner that discriminates against the outgroup and favours the ingroup."

The second session I went to was an 'Art and SOLE' workshop. SOLE is about learning in groups, with minimal facilitation and often using the internet.

It has affinities with the artistic process in the following ways
- they are cognitive activities (as opposed to craft which is purely about making with the hands)
- they encourage us to think for ourselves
- they are an enquiry
- they are creative
- questions the role of the artist/facilitator
- art is a form of free expression

We did an exercise in groups whereby we had to make some form of sculpture that represented what our learning looks like. This is the outcome!



The third part featured 2 presentations, one by Sam Shields who is researching assessment in the UK and the Netherlands. She analysed the methodological traditions of these two countries.

The other presentation was by Lydia Wysocki who discussed words and pictures and learning: comics as a method of reflecting on learning, facilitating collaboration and working with narratives. For a comic novice like me, her talk gave an excellent insight into the value of comics and how to read them.

To end the evening, we all gathered for a Moot. A 'Moot' is a medieval word meaning an assembly held for debate. Three colleagues were given 5 minutes to share their views in relation to the question: How can we ensure all children achieve?

Here is a summary of some of the suggestions made:

-WELLBEING
- the importance of ensuring the wellbeing of both children and teachers
- not letting results be the most important thing
- every child matters

- CATEGORIES AND LABELLING
- eliminating categories and labels in order to limit the Pygmalion effect

- SUBJECT CHOICES AT GCSE AND ALEVEL
- Parents occupation and socioeconomic background has been linked to the choice of GCSE and A-Level subjects made by children
- Lower socio economic background = less children choosing STEM subjects
- Better education about what different subjects could entail and be used for

The event ended with another question being posed:

How do we ensure all teachers achieve?

After the Spending Review, the campaigns continue

As the analysis of the Spending Review comes in, campaigning for the arts is set to continue, writes Julie McCalden.


Having been told to plan for 20% or 40% cuts, the arts are breathing a collective sigh of relief after the chancellor George Osborne’s Spending Review and Autumn Statement on Wednesday.

Had a 40% cut been implemented, Arts Council England’s budget would have been decimated to just £186m, compared to £453m in the final year of the Labour government and £325m at the end of the coalition.

In an unexpected move, Arts Council England were not only spared but promised a modest increase in cash (£10million per annum). National galleries and museums will also see increased budgets and free entry will be protected.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport will still receive cuts of 20% to be targeted at its core administration budget (yet to be specified) and further cuts to local authority budgets of £6.1bn by 2019-20 will complicate matters.

If Arts Council England and National Portfolio Organisations have come out relatively unscathed, the picture is not so rosy for those at the bottom of the food chain.

While many artists, who are largely self-employed and low-paid, will be celebrating the u-turn on changes to tax-credits, concerns about the introduction of Universal Credit remain. In a joint statement released ahead of the spending review, the Scottish Artists Union (SAU) and Artists’ Union England (AUE) said: “We believe that the stringent enforcement conditions of Universal Credit will result in far greater hardship and debt for artists and makers in receipt of top-up benefits.”

The new conditions include a minimum level of assumed earnings based on hours worked and the minimum wage.Claimants are also required to submit monthly accounts, which is inconsistent with the variable frequency of artists’ paid work opportunities and the often lump-sum nature of their payments.

Creative education

The deterioration of creative education in schools is another concern for the sector. While Osborne promised increased funding to attract new teachers, this will be largely aimed at STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) to help implement plans for an English Baccalaureate (EBacc).

The EBacc requires pupils to study a minimum of seven GCSEs, but includes no creative subjects; risking art, dance, design, drama, music and other creative subjects disappearing from children’s education altogether. The Bacc for the future campaign aims to challenge plans for the EBacc, which risks eroding access to the arts for young people, increasing inequality of opportunity when it comes to experiencing culture and further diminishing entryways to working in the arts.

For those just embarking on their careers, changes to student loan repayments and housing benefit caps will add to the difficulties faced by artists when trying to establish their practices.

All of this will negatively impact on the lack of diversity that already characterises the arts. The findings of the recent Panic!survey into social mobility in the sector confirmed that class, gender and ethnicity still have a major influence on a person’s ability to enter, progress and succeed in the arts.

The survey revealed that it is becoming increasingly difficult for those without other means of financial support to break into the sector, with young people from less well-off backgrounds being at a particular disadvantage. This inequality inevitably results in the production of cultural forms that are mainly reflective of a small, and privileged, spectrum of human experience. The majority of people remain excluded both from arts production and consumption.

Greet with caution

So although on the face of it positive for the top rung of the arts, Osborne’s announcement should be greeted with caution. Not least because it has been based on a dramatic reassessment of economic forecasts by the Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR), which landed Osborne a windfall of £27billion in time for his announcements.

His proposed budget allows no room for error on predictions wildly different to those made just five months ago. From an organisation without a great success rate in accurate forecasts this throws considerable doubt on the deliverability of Osborne’s promises.

However, it is good news that the chancellor acknowledged the economic benefits that the arts bring to Britain, commenting that a quarter of a £1trillion added to the economy from a £1billion investment was ‘not a bad return’. He went as far to say that “deep cuts in the small budget of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport are a false economy” – a point the sector has been arguing since 2010.

It is important that the sector now galvanises around these remarks, not just to hold Osborne to account in the event of adjustments to this budget impacting on the arts, but to begin to make bolder demands for increased funding. The Show Culture Some Love campaign supports the case for greater investment in arts and culture. Its main aims are to campaign for an end to the cuts in arts budgets caused by the pro-austerity policies of the current government and to make the case for increased investment.

Cultural campaigns

Paying Artists campaign
The Paying Artists campaign aims to secure payment for artists who exhibit in publicly-funded galleries. We believe paying artists for the work they do will mean that, in years to come, we’ll still be able to access quality art that reflects the broadest possible spectrum of human experience.

Whether you’re an artist, curator, gallery visitor, art student, policy maker or run a gallery, sign up to the campaign. You can join the debate by following @AIR_artists and using the hashtag #payingartists.

SAU / AUE on Universal Credit
A campaign has been launched by Scottish and English artists’ unions, with the aim of helping freelance and self-employed workers who will be affected by changes to the taxation and benefits system through the introduction of Universal Credit.

Supporters of the campaign can get involved by doing a number of things. This includes: downloading the campaign statement and forwarding to local MPs; arranging a meeting with your MP; and asking your MP to take the issue to the Department for Work & Pensions.

Bacc for the future
The Bacc for the future campaign aims to challenge the implementation of the English Baccalaureate (EBacc) which currently includes no creative subjects and is expected to be undertaken by at least 90% of pupils.

As an individual, you can support the campaign by signing the petition and spread the word by telling your colleagues, friends and family as well as through social media using the hash tag #baccforthefuture.

Show Culture Some Love
The Show Culture Some Love campaign believes there is a powerful case against austerity and supports the case for greater investment in arts and culture.

You can support the campaign and their 6 pledges by liking the facebook page and inviting your friends to join, as well as following them on twitter.


http://www.payingartists.org.uk/2015/11/after-the-spending-review-the-campaigns-continue/

Sir Nicholas Serota opens creative free school in Devon

Sir Nicholas Serota, director of Tate, formally opened The Red House, home to Plymouth School of Creative Arts (PSCA), in a ceremony that marked the culmination of a day of events for children, parents, guardians and friends of the school, celebrating the achievements of PSCA students and success of the school to date.

Sir Nicholas said: “You’re creating here something that doesn’t exist anywhere else in the UK. It’s an historic moment for education in this country.”

Founded in Millbay by Plymouth College of Art in 2013, the Plymouth School of Creative Arts is a mainstream city centre 4–16 all-through Free School that, together with the college, is establishing a progressive continuum of creative learning and practice from age four to Masters level study and beyond, into professional employment within the creative and cultural industries.

The school’s purpose is transformation and can be expressed in just four words – creating individuals, making futures. Children and staff learn through making in all subject areas, across a broad and balanced school curriculum.

“This is an incredibly brave venture,” Sir Nicholas Serota said during his opening speech.

“I want to congratulate Andrew Brewerton, Dave Strudwick and the governors of Plymouth College of Art for having the vision and strength to persuade the world that you can make a school that is rooted in imagination, creativity and the arts, and produce students who will be able to face the 21st century and who will bring to it a whole new way of looking at the world. I think it’s an incredible venture and I’m sure it won’t be the only one. I hope Plymouth gets the credit when it’s copied all over the United Kingdom.”

During the daytime there was a celebratory procession of children and staff around the outside of The Red House for friends of the school, after which parents and guardians joined their children inside to experience some of the teaching on offer. Dave Strudwick, the headmaster at Plymouth School of Creative Arts, also invited parents, guardians, students and visitors to each create a wish for the future and the school’s continued growth.

Dave said: “It is a wonderful privilege to be involved in this amazing project.We are delighted that the Red House is already proving to be a success. The whole school community provides a wonderful platform for learning and development enabling our young people to see new possibilities in their lives.”

During the formal opening, Professor Andrew Brewerton, principal of Plymouth College of Art and chair of Governors for the PSCA, addressed guests in The Red House Theatre before Sir Nicholas Serota’s opening speech. PSCA Culinary Arts students from Years 7 and 8 also prepared canapes for the evening drinks reception, which was accompanied by live music performed by parents and students and informal tours of the school.

He said: “The formal opening of The Red House is a very special moment for our extended learning community. Keen interest in our work here is developing nationally and internationally, from France to China to Italy to South Korea and to the USA. We have a very simple proposition – that making is as important as reading and writing and maths and science, and that the creative purpose of learning should be inseparable from the creative purpose of living your life“.

Designed by Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios, The Red House was always designed for pedagogical innovation in creative learning and as a catalyst for community regeneration in Plymouth’s Millbay docklands, supporting the transformation of individual life chances and community aspiration in the long term, with immediate local impact for families in the area.

As a new model of creative education, the Plymouth School of Creative Arts / Plymouth College of Art creative learning continuum has been presented by invitation at the Confindustria Veneto in Italy, Shanghai University and Beijing Design Week in China, Révélations in Paris and the Cheongju International Craft Biennale in South Korea.

http://thedevonweek.newsandmediarepublic.org/2015/10/30/sir-nicholas-serota-opens-creative-free-school-devon/

Fine arts suffer class bias in National Student Survey, study says

Researchers argue that nature of teaching in subjects means that they cannot score highly in survey

New research shows that the National Student Survey is “unconsciously biased” against universities specialising in art and design, a vice-chancellor has said.

Although overall satisfaction rates have risen in the 10 years the survey has been in existence, scores for art and design subjects have remained stubbornly low.

Researchers Mantz Yorke (of Lancaster University), Susan Orr (University of the Arts London) and Bernadette Blair (Kingston University) suggest in an article published last month in the journal Studies in Higher Education that “a perfect storm” of factors combine to compromise the performance of the subjects.

On the NSS, a range of subjects often receive poor marks from students on the quality of feedback from tutors, the researchers suggest. This is especially true for fine art and design, they say, where feedback is given ad hoc and informally, such as a passing comment on a student’s work, or over time, as work is developed in a studio.

The researchers note that this may explain why feedback scores are low for these subjects compared with more practical and formal subjects such as nursing.

Art and design subjects also score consistently low when it comes to staff contact hours. This may be because these courses are not as “explicitly structured” as those that score consistently highly in the survey, the researchers suggest.

Overall, they conclude, the “study raises a question about the utility of a generic survey instrument”.

Nigel Carrington, vice-chancellor of UAL, which received a score of 70 per cent for student satisfaction in the most recent survey, said that his institution took the NSS “seriously as a way to listen to our students and improve their experience”.

“But as this research sets out, the NSS is unconsciously biased against arts and design institutions. Its questions assume that students are being taught in lecture theatres and classrooms. That simply doesn’t reflect the way students learn practice-based subjects, from arts and design to some science and medical courses,” he said.

Mr Carrington added that the NSS should be tailored to better reflect the experiences of such students.

“The NSS already asks students on NHS-funded courses a different set of questions because it recognises that they are taught in a different way from the classroom norm. The upcoming review of the NSS should extend this principle to all practice-based subjects. This would be a fairer reflection of satisfaction,” he said.

Art School, Smart School on BBC Radio 4

This pertinent radio programme addresses some of the current challenges to face Universities, and Art Schools in particular.

'British art schools have produced some of the world's most successful artists, designers, filmmakers and musicians. Britain has built up a strong reputation for creativity around the world and politicians are interested in capitalising on our creative brand.

Brian Eno was at art school at a particularly exciting time. In the sixties, art colleges were independent and experimental; students were challenged to rethink what art and art education were about. Brian relates his memories of Ipswich College of Art under the radical educationalist Roy Ascot, and reflects on the importance of this experience. But he also sounds a warning note - he says art schools are under huge pressures and the effects are threatening creativity.

This programme brings together artists, musicians, art tutors and archive recordings to explore the last half century of art education and the state of Britain's art schools today.

We hear the perspectives of high profile figures in art and design - Grayson Perry, Richard Wentworth, Eileen Cooper, Peter Kindersley, and Jay Osgerby to name a few.

Britain depends on its art schools if it's to sustain its reputation for creativity. But are art schools becoming too much like universities and excluding those very people who will produce the innovations of the future?'

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04pr1w2

Is this the end of the British art school?

Art schools used to be a place where the socially and intellectually marginal could distinguish themselves. Now, with unattainable entry requirements and a hefty price tag, they’re becoming a dwelling place for commercial interests and the children of the international elite.

by Isabel Sutton 

Published 20 November, 2014

New Statesman

The old Central Saint Martins building in central London. Photograph: Getty Images.


When the Great Exhibition opened its doors in 1851, Britain’s reputation as the workshop of the world was on the wane. Few visitors would have known it at the time, but the exhibition signified the high watermark of British manufacturing. French design and Prussian engineering were already edging ahead. In 2012, London hosted another event designed to present Britain to the world – one which referenced the upheaval of the Industrial Revolution by featuring towering smoke stacks and beating drums.

Danny Boyle’s Olympic opening ceremony represented British history as a creative blossoming that started in the nineteenth century but seemed to reach its zenith in the twentieth century when fashion, film and pop music boomed. And yet it seems to me that Boyle’s Olympic opener – just like the Great Exhibition – was telling a story about Britain that had already ceased to be true. The circumstances which made it possible for artists to thrive in Britain during the twentieth century are rapidly disappearing. And perhaps one of the most essential changes is in our art schools.

Name any one of the UK’s most famous designers or musicians, never mind artists, and they are likely to have set foot in an art school at one time or other: David Bowie, Pete Townsend, Brian Eno, Vivienne Westwood, John Galliano. I could go on and on. Economist Hasan Bakhshi [3] of innovation charity Nesta says that he is frequently asked about how we run our art schools by educationalists abroad. Art schools are perceived by many as the key to our creative success.

Yet art schools have changed dramatically over the last 20–30 years, causing many to question whether they will, in the future, cultivate the innovators we so badly need. Art schools used to be havens for students who, for whatever reason, had not found their niche in the traditional academic system. Now prospective art students very often have to prove their academic credentials to compete for a place at the most prestigious colleges. Once on the course, art students have to submit an increasing volume of written work, arguably a distraction from practical skills and craft.

Tuition fees have made higher education in Britain more expensive than anywhere else in Europe, and art schools are no exception. This means that the social and economic mix is disappearing (students from poorer backgrounds being less inclined to take out a loan for a non-vocational subject such as fine art). What’s more, art schools are going out of their way to attract foreign students for the extra income they bring. Unsurprisingly, there is deep concern among many artists and teachers that the age of the art school is – to quote Sir Christopher Frayling – “over”.

Frayling was, until 2009, dean of one of Britain’s most venerable art schools, the Royal College (RCA). But as I walked its corridors with him recently, he admitted that even this renowned institution has suffered from the same damaging developments as art schools around the country: workshops for ceramics, printing, and metalwork have been replaced by computer rooms, digital expertise is prioritised before craft; student numbers are rocketing and teaching hours are sinking.

Designer Jay Osgerby [4] graduated with a Masters in architecture from the Royal College of Art. He’s one of a generation of British designers who are now leading design practice around the world, in every field from fashion to technology. The head of Burberry, Christopher Bailey, was in the same year as Jay and his partner Edward Barber; Thomas Heatherwick was another who attended the RCA around the same time; and Apple’s Jonathan Ive was an industrial design student at Newcastle Polytechnic.

Osgerby remembers the RCA as a place where people were constantly making things. The lift was continuously crammed with half-made dresses and furniture being ferried up and down. The RCA, he believes, still manages to hold on to this highly practical ethos, but everywhere he sees the rise of computers taking the place of the hand-made: computers, he says “make you look like an innovator rather than a throw-back to the industrial revolution, but I think that’s a really big mistake.”

The truth is that workshops are expensive and that’s a good enough reason to get rid of them. As education is effectively privatised, art school managers are more interested in business models than the experience of students. An art school such as Central Saint Martins (part of the University of the Arts London) recruits around 40 per cent of its BA students from overseas. It also runs short courses for members of the public. This extra income allows the art school to do a few “special things”, says its head Jeremy Till, such as putting on two degree shows so splendid they attracted almost 50,000 people earlier this year. He says the new building at Kings Cross (where the art school moved from its West End site in 2011) makes the art school a “cultural destination”. Never mind the fact that some staff and students feel uncomfortable with the monolithic, anonymous architecture (one tutor told me that there’s never enough studio space for everyone, you can’t open windows, and you no longer meet people from other courses despite the fact that everyone is now on the same premises.)

So is it necessary to impress the public with a dazzling building and exciting brand? Jeremy Till would tell you that it’s exactly this kind of self-presentation that’s encouraged Google to locate its European offices right next door to Central Saint Martins’ new building at Kings Cross in North London. And maybe he’s got a point. Google might offer jobs to some of the young “creatives” who step out of Saint Martins’ sliding doors. But there’s a balance to be struck. If Central Saint Martins isn’t concentrating attention – above all – on the experience of students within its walls, then the shiny exterior will become just that – a façade, a front, a shop window. Nothing more.

http://www.newstatesman.com/culture/2014/11/end-british-art-school

Loans for postgrad study is not the answer

Six Russell Group universities reject government loans for postgrad study

Think tank’s proposal for £10,000 state loan wouldn’t help students from less well-off backgrounds, UK universities argue

Dominic Smith

Guardian Professional, 

Monday 10 November 2014 

‘Undergraduate alumni have said that while they’d like to do a postgraduate course they don’t want to add to their debt burden.’

A consortium representing six of the country’s top universities has urged the government not to adopt a state-backed loan system as a solution to the social mobility crisis in postgraduate education.

A recent report from the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) outlined a “workable and affordable” model where postgraduate students could borrow £10,000 to cover the cost of tuition. This would be paid back at 9% of earnings between £15,000-£21,000.

Chancellor George Osborne has said there will be an announcement on postgraduate funding in next month’s autumn statement. IPPR’s model – which is based on a 2011 proposal by Tim Leunig, who now works as an advisor to the Department for Education – is likely to be considered by the Treasury.

The numbers of those enrolled in UK taught master’s programmes has steadily declined from a peak of 160,000 in 2009-10 to the current level of 140,000 students a year.

Two thirds of those who say they are unlikely to take up postgraduate study cite expensive course fees as the reason, and admit more financial support may help change their mind.

But the chair of a consortium of six Russell Group universities, which was given £3m as part of a Higher Education Funding Council for England project to widen access to postgraduate education, has said a state loan system won’t help those from less well-off backgrounds.

Tony Strike, director of strategy, planning and change at the University of Sheffield said: “The majority of postgraduate students are in the fortunate position that they can and do pay, so the first problem with a state loan scheme is that it’s not very efficient – it would simply displace with taxpayers money the private investment that most postgraduate students are putting in.

“The second issue is that a third of our undergraduate alumni have said that while they’d like to do a postgraduate course they don’t want to add to their debt burden.”

The consortium consists of the universities of Sheffield, Leeds, Manchester, Newcastle, Warwick and York.

Strike said that the consortium’s research shows that students from less well-off backgrounds are more likely than average to say they wish to go onto postgraduate study, but are discouraged by debt.

Still, the loan system has won support from many university chiefs. Sir Steve Smith, vice-chancellor at the University of Exeter and member of IPPR’s commission on the future of higher education, said: “This proposal has the very real potential to help break down the financial barriers that a significant number of students face when pursuing postgraduate studies.

“It is imperative that all students, no matter what their background or circumstances, should have a clear and affordable route to postgraduate education. This recommendation would be affordable to government and, equally importantly, to the students themselves.”

The consortium, which consists of Russell Group universities – led by the University of Sheffield – says scholarships, which are joint-funded by government, institutions and employers, would be a better option. The group also offered the country’s largest-ever scholarship package to 430 students earlier this year.

“If the state was to offer universities funds that institutions would be expected to match to create targeted scholarships, that would have a much more beneficial effect on the widening participation group than offering them a further credit facility,” said Strike.

But Rick Muir, author of the IPPR report, said a mass scholarship programme would be unaffordable. His report claims the postgraduate loan non-repayment rate would be only 7%, much lower than the 40-45% of undergraduate loans which go unpaid.
He said: “I’m in favour of scholarships but there’s a limit to how many we could afford.

“We’re saying give anyone doing a master’s course a £10,000 loan – and the initial outlay is about £1bn. But the government can afford that because it can get 93% of the money back.”

He added: “If you say we’ll have £1bn that won’t be paid back, then that’s £1bn George Osborne will have to find from somewhere else. That is just not going to happen because there’s no money to do that.”

http://www.theguardian.com/higher-education-network/2014/nov/10/six-russell-group-universities-reject-government-loans-for-postgrad-study/print

Basic Design: A Revolution in Art Education at The Hatton Gallery

I attended a fascinating talk by Dr Beth Williamson and Elena Crippa in conjunction with the current exhibition at the Hatton Gallery, Basic Design: A Revolution in Art Education.

The exhibition "explores the role that Basic Design - a new radical approach to training in arts schools - played in revolutionising art education across Britain opens at the Hatton Gallery this September.

With a particular focus on Newcastle in the 1950s and 60s, through the work if some of its key teachers including Richard Hamilton, Victor Pasmore and their students, the display will survey the main features of Basic Design as they emerged and were taught in Britain, with accompanying archive material and video documentation.

Julie Milne, chief curator of art galleries at Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums, said:

“Basic Design was a significant turning point in the history of British art education. This new method of teaching art was showcased through ‘The Developing Process’ exhibition, which was held 1959 at the Hatton Gallery, and afterwards shown at the ICA in London.

It was pioneered by Victor Pasmore and Richard Hamilton and, both of whom taught at Newcastle University. It is therefore fitting to display Basic Design at the Hatton Gallery, highlighting their dedication to teaching and their association with the North East.”

Basic Design: A Revolution in Art Education is part of major new research programme, supported by the John Ellerman Foundation's Regional Museums and Galleries Fund, which will explore the impact and legacy of Basic Design in Newcastle. The project will build on research initiated by Tate in 2013, and focus on unique archive material held by the Hatton Gallery and Newcastle University's Fine Art School which is currently under-researched and largely inaccessible.

The project will shed light on the important historic role of what was the ground-breaking art school of the period and the working practices of two major 20th century British artists: Pasmore and Hamilton. It will also explore the relevance of Basic Design in contemporary art education and open up the debate about the role of art teaching, which some would argue is being devalued in the current national curriculum, and a key threat to the future support and development for arts and culture in the UK.

Nicola Pollock, Director, John Ellerman Foundation said

“We are delighted to be supporting Basic Design. The project involves essential research into a unique, nationally significant archive, and is likely to appeal to a diverse range of audiences, from artists and curators to educators and the wider public.”

Pasmore and Hamilton played a pivotal role in the development and integration of Basic Design as a teaching method, which received establishment approval through the Coldstream Report (1960), and was to influence higher art education for generations to come.

Three themes were common to Basic Design teaching: Intuition, Science and Technology. Established methods of teaching art focused on copying and drawing from life, whereas Basic Design taught the core skills which underpinned all art and design activities, through the use and exploration of various techniques.

During his time as head of painting (1954-61) at King’s College (now part of Newcastle University), Victor Pasmore drew on the thinking of Paul Klee, the famous Bauhaus artist and teacher. Pasmore encouraged his students to actively engage in the processes of nature rather than remain an outside observer.

Richard Hamilton, taught in Newcastle until 1966, he was key in the development of Basic Design and encouraged his students to think of their work in terms of diagrams of thought processes rather than self-expression, using logic and rationale to reach a conclusion.

Basic Design: A Revolution in Art Education also features work by Alan Davie, Terry Frost, Eduardo Paolozzi, Rita Donagh and Richard Smith. The exhibition is on show at the Hatton Gallery from 19 September - 13 December 2014. In partnership with Tate Britain. Supported by John Ellerman Foundation."

http://www.twmuseums.org.uk/hatton-gallery/latest/news/basic-design-a-revolution-in-art-education.html

Every kid needs a champion

At the moment I am studying for a PGCert in Learning and Teaching: Creative Practices. The course material is very interesting, and has encouraged me to think about numerous educational issues including what kind of learner I am, what methods of teaching suit my way of learning, what makes an excellent teacher and how learning should be supported.

I have watched a number of inspirational TED talks, and found a playlist of talks about education particularly relevant to my current studies.

In her talk titled 'Every kid needs a champion', Rita Pierson argues that the relationship between teacher and student is very important. She suggests that teachers should admit their mistakes to their students, demonstrating that they too are learning and closing the hierarchy between tutor and pupil.  She also emphasises the importance of focusing on the positives rather than negatives in order to install a sense of hope and encouragement in the child. 

"Every child deserves a champion — an adult who will never give up on them, who understands the power of connection, and insists that they become the best that they can possibly be."

Jude Kelly calls for an overhaul of arts education

Jude Kelly calls for “overhaul” of arts education