Social reconstructionism in art education: Art, critical pedagogy, and empowerment in a junior high setting

Social reconstructionist art education strives to empower human agency to understand and transform unjust social relationships through aesthetic experience. Educational ideas emanating from social reconstructionist art education theory would be viewed as feasible and relevant by classroom art teachers only after their utility has been demonstrated in clinical settings. At present, scholarly writings in art education conducted with respect to social reconstructionism have been largely theoretical. This dissertation thus investigated the manner in which a select group of junior high age art students understand, interpret, and act upon a social reconstructionist art curriculum. The curriculum consisting of three phases, facilitated by critical pedagogy, was designed and implemented to guide the participants toward articulating and addressing one of their chosen social issues in their art, media violence in this case. Specific questions that motivated this investigation included: (1) what kinds of artistic expression and verbal interpretation were generated by a group of junior high art students as they engaged in social issues-based art inquiry? (2) to what extent are junior high students' visual and verbal artifacts reflective of social reconstructionist positions? A combination of research methods---namely, the case study method, action research, and formative research---were used to gather data.; Findings derived from this investigation suggest that social reconstructionist art education, when facilitated through critical pedagogy and proper instructional guidance, has significant potential for empowering art students to examine contemporary social issues and become more informed citizens capable of confronting unjust social relationships. However, there are certain challenges that art teachers need to overcome. Additionally, this study proposes that the paradigm of social reconstructionist art education entail reconceptualization of the field of art education from other critical disciplines such as sociology, visual culture, or media culture studies. To promote art education for social betterment, art teachers, students, and the public must reformulate their perceptions, values, and attitudes toward art that goes beyond appreciating art as a form of aesthetic construct. Several recommendations concerning future development and implementation of social reconstructionist art education are drawn based on this curriculum implementation.