This document provides an analysis of how children's art education is influenced by concepts from the fine art institution and the National Curriculum in the UK. It first reviews basic concepts in fine art, such as the evolving role of the artist over time. It then examines how children's artwork fits within the context of these concepts, noting debates around whether children can produce art. It also looks at examples of exhibitions featuring children's art. Finally, it analyzes how the National Curriculum, the major influence on children's art education, incorporates or does not incorporate concepts from the fine art institution in its approach.

1. RACHEL K. BIDDLES.
“Children’s art education. How it is influenced by the Fine Art
Institution, and whether this benefits their artistic development,
through the direction of The National Curriculum.”
BA (HONS) FINE ART (CERAMICS).
WEDNESDAY 21st APRIL 1999.
.4

2. CONTENTS PAGE.
Introduction.
Section I. The Basic Concepts of Fine Art. 3
Section 2. The Status of Children’s Artwork
within the Fine Art Context. 5
Section 3. The Influences of Fine Art Concepts on
Children’s art education, namely the National
Curriculum. 9
Section 4. How The National Curriculum Encourages
The Teaching of Art. 12
Conclusion. 19
Bibliography. 21
Appendix. 22

3. 1
InHod tic ion
This study will take a close look at how children learn about art, in particular the
National Curriculum. This is the directive determining how children learn about art in
schools today, and an analysis of it’s origins, it’s agenda and how it encourages
children to see and use art, as an important aspect of their whole curriculum will he
made. Also, how children’s art and their education fits in with basic Fine art theory will
he considered, and whether this will henelit the children.
It is intended, first of all to look at the basic concepts of fine art, so that there is a fiim
foundation on which to base any further study of how children’s art fits into those
concepLs. The National Curriculum will also he studied, from the influences of fine art
practise upon it’s writing, to how it encourages art education in schools. This is
because from the age of five years old, the educational institution and the
implementation of the National Cuniculum are the biggest influence on a child’s
developmenL Thus the school is where the child will receive the majority of
influence and education in ar. For the duration of this study, the main focus will he
on children aged 5-7 years, which is Key Stage 1 in the National Curriculum.
A variety of sources will he used to investigate the concepts of fine au, the National
Curriculum and it’s origins. Along with reading materials relating to theoretical
aspects, questionnaires have bcen sent to both teachers and student teachers, and an
interview with Sarah Scaife, the Education and Outreach Officer for Wakefield, was
also conducted. Also various exhibitions were looked at, which included children’s
work, or were set—up with children in mind.

4. 2
The range of source materials has been selected, so that a wider picture as possible can
be gained into the status of children’s artwork, and how children’s art skills are
developed. There is a lot of reading material available on children’s art education, and
how art in the National Curriculum can he used to it’s fullest potential, so it is only
reasonable to take this subject and present it from a line art point of view.
The aim of this study will he to find out the views on children’s art within the fine art
institutions, whether children’s art education is influenced by [he concepts of that
institution, and how that afFects children’s learning of an.

5. 3
Section I. The Basic Concepts of Fine Art.
ft is difficult to look at art and its concepts without taking a look at iLc history first.
Even today, art is constantly evolving, and no one set of ideas or concepts can describe
iL (p.6. Liz Dautrey et al.1996.) If one can understand this concept, an
understanding of art is so much richer and varied.
Bertolt Brecht, writing in the 1930’s, said, “Reality changes, in order to represent
it, modes of representation must also change.” (p.6. Liz Dautrey ci. al. 1996.)
This view describes art, past and present well. Art reflects history and events, in
style, media and content, and as the history changes, so must art.
Developments in our history, such as the invention of the camera, the industrial
revolution, the introduction of mass production and wide-spread education, are
just some of the changes that have gradually changed and evolved the artist’s role
in our society, and of course changed art and its aesthetics. No longer did the
artist have a specified role within society, hut instead a new freedom of self-expression
and self-advancement through the media of art. This was when art began to be seen as
an entity of itself, (p.29. Liz Dautrey et al.l996) as it is still seen in society today.
With a new era of self-expression ar ists were able to offer their expressions of the
changing world, rather than merely representing pictorially as earlier artists had done.
(p.l7. Liz Dautrey et al. 1996.) Another shift in this new era, was that the artist
started developing a preoccupation with art iLselic rather than with the content of the
work and its relationship with the soeio-political order. (p.13. Liz Dautrey et al. 1996.)
“We have noticed how the initial aspiration to represent modern life tended to
undergo a shift wherein the moderness of the enterprise migrated from what was
being depicted to the painting itself, both the painting as a thing, a decorated
surface, and painting as a process, what the painter did.”
(p.17. Liz Dautrey et al. 1996.)

6. 4
This concept has stayed with art, and brought a wide range of startlingly different
images into our galleries. Images that may he in no way figurative, hut still appreciated
and marvelled at, as our expectations of art has changed, alongside the changing
practices of art.
This introspective view of painting as a process and the canvas as object has also led
to careful consideration of what actually makes an obiect an artpiece, as if not
everything could he. The institutional theory states “Something is a work of art as a
result of being dubbed, haptised or honoured as a work of art by someone who is
authorised thereby to make it an artwork by her position within the institution of
the artworld.” (p.78. Stephen Davies. 1991) It is important to look at the concepts
which determine an artpiece, as well as the concept of art itselL as the history and view
change dramatically if it is elevated to art status.
So art, in the context of our society, is seen as a separate entity, separate from the
mundane concerns of that society. The art pieces are the result of careful selection,
reflection and learning on the part of the artist, rather than being guaranteed by the
needs of the whole society.

7. 5
Section 2. The Status ol Children’s artwork within the Fine Art ContexL
Now that a look has been taken at the basic concepts and ideas in our society, we are
able to look at the kind of art that children produce and how that sits within these
concepts.
If we look again at the idea that there are certain conditions needed to give a piece art
status, we can see that ar produced by children holds an uncertain position within the
artworld. Dickie maintains that artists confer art status, “witi in the institutionalised
context of the artworld.” (p.84. Stephen Davies. 1991.) So from that one could
deduce that even though children produce paintings, drawing and sculptures, neither
they or their teacher can give these pieces “art status”, because they are not within
the institutional contexL So they remain a series of paintings an drawings.
In 1973 Danto set down some conditions that could defeat a piece’s claim to ar
status. 1. If a piece does not make a statement, “...Ar works must he interpretable”
(p.91. Stephen Davis. 1991.) 2. Has to come from artistic provenance. “Pieces
cannot be made to heart by, children, chimpanzees or customs inspectors”. (p.91
Stephen Davies. 1991) 3. There must he room within the context of the arworld for
a piece. 4. “The piece must find a natural place vithin the corpus of an artist:’ (p.91.
Stephen Davies. 1991.) 5. (added in 1974) “Have the appropriate casual histoiy”.
(p.91 Stephen Davies. 1991)
So in this statement too, children are excluded from the possibility of creating an
artpiece, not only because it docsn’t come From artistic provenance, hut also because
children don’t create something to challenge an issue, or make a statement. It is alien
to children to work by observation and analysis, hut rather by seeing and feeling.
(p.8. Herbert Read,1941-42.)

8. 6
A person’s being pail of the artworld can make all the difference to a piece being called
art or noL For example, Duchamp’s urinal could not have been placed in the exhibition
by the person in the factory who made it, because lie had no involvement in the
artwodd. As with the children who don’t have any involvement in the artworld either,
and like the factory worker, they don’t have the required art education or language to
place their work into a historical or social context.
However, this does not mean that everyone within the art context of our society,
believes that childitn cannot produce art pieces. Beardsley (1983) disputed some of
what Danto said. Beardsley said that children could produce artwork, because they
can produce something which has the intention of being aesthetically gratifying. (p.91.
Stephen Davies. 1991) For Beaidsley, a condition that could defeat a piece’s claim
for art status, would he a piece that is not aesthetically gratifying when viewed. (p.91.
Stephen Davies. 1991)
Although children do not possess the educational background or language to enable
their work to be given art status, a lot of research has been carded out by people into
child development and art, as people saw art as a good tool for children to learn about
things that may not even he art related. Even if the end product has not been created
with the intention of being an artwork, the children may have learnt some valuable
lessons and experiences.
Sir Herbert Read (1965) promoted the idea that art was a very important tool for
children to learn more about themselves as developing people. At a lecture in London
for the society of Education through au, he said that when you propose to develop the
imaginative and creative powers of children, the concern swops from the intellect to
the psyche. (p.2. Herbert Read.1965)

9. 7
It was very important to him that children would grow up with the ability to he free
thinking individuals, and he believed through art this could he encouraged and
developed. This idea “art-as-expression” tied in with the modernist movement of the
time. The idea of painting purer and higher things, of showing expression and
emotion, rather than intellect or a story.
We have so far looked at the views of the artworld on childicn’s work and how
children can produce objects that are aesthetically pleasing, even though they are
not working to the same set of criteria as a line artisL Another important aspect is
what happens to the children and their art when it is put into the gallery context. Art
produced by children has been exhibited in galleries, hut because of the general views
of the art institution, there aren’t that many set -up. There are a
couple of examples of exhibitions containing children’s work, or exhibitions aimed
at children that I would like to include here, so that an idea can be gained of what
happens to their work once it enters that context.
An exhibition, held at The Lawrence Batley Centre in November 1998 contained
children’s work right through from the Infant to the Senior years of schooling.
(See Appendix for Exhibition Catalogue.) The exhibition was entitled Starting
Points, because it marked the launch of a new project, between six teacher
training colleges, to investigate how work in schools can link art, design, the
environment and education together. The work in this exhibition dated hack
to 1929 and was provided by the National Arts Education Archive. Although the
work in the exhibition was by children, the aim of it was to give people in art!
education an idea of what children could produce, and to encourage adult
appreciation of children’s creativity.

10. 8
In the exhibition at Wakelield City Gallery, everything has been done to encourage the
children’s interest. The height that the pictures are displayed at, the labelling is more
comprehensive, there are activities related to the ariworks dotted around the exhibition,
such as poem wiiting. designing your own picture, or even guessing what kind of
sculpture is hidden under the cloth, by using the sense of touch. There is also an
accompanying education pack, so that the children’s experiences at the gallery can
continue and further develop in the classroom. (See Appendix for example of
the pack.) So rather then Hying to encourage children as artists, they are encouraging
children not just to look at art, hut to see it, appreciate it and to make it relevant in their
own lives.
From these examples, we can see that once children’s work enters an au institution,
it is not displayed with the same criteria as a professional artist’s work, because their
work isn’t seen to have the same status. This is by no means a had thing, because by
not adhering to the criteria normally worked by. the richest and varied experiences
can he gained from the art.
Now that we have seen how children and their artwork sit within the fine art institution,
it would he a good idea to look at how the views of the art institution have influenced
the way children are educated about art, through the National CulTiculum.

11. 9
Section 3. The Influences of Fine Art ConcepLs on Children’s Art Education. Namely
The National Curriculum.
The National Curriculum, a document wntten to ensure the quality of each child’s
learning, is the biggest influence on a child’s developing life. The document covers
every subject that a child learns about, and so it is where most of a child’s experience
of art are from.
The National Curriculum was first written and put into schools in 1992, hut it wasn’t
met with unanimous approval. Teachers complained that it was unworkable, so after
an interim report was submitted by Sir Ron Dearing in 1994, a simpler version of the
document was produced and implemented in 1995. In this section we will take a look
at some of the key features of the art National Cuniculum, and ascertain whether the
basic concepts and views of western line art have hecn considered.
The first feature to be looked at, is the relationship between art and the other curriculum
subjects. In the National Curriculum, art comes under the umbrella of ‘Foundation
subjects’, along with subjects such as music and PE (HMSO. 1995) Maths, English
and science are called ‘core subjects’ and these are deemed so, because they assist
pupil’s learning in all other sub jects. (p.19. D.E. Sharples. 1991) Reflections of this
aspect can be seen in the recommended time allocations in each subject, in hours per
year. For example, it is recommended that 126 hours should he spent on maths, 54 for
science and 36 hours for art. (p.33. Dearing. 1993) So it can he observed, that more
priority is given to the academic subjects, which compaits more with society’s
general views on art, rather than the fine art institution’s ideas. This article, sums up
the general views of art education.
“It is thought that such subjects (the arts) do not need to he taken seriously, since it
is stated quite explicitly that creativity, is an inspirational and even anarchic activity
rather than a cognitive and disciplined process: As a result the arts are often
regarded as a low academic content and hopelessly subjective.”
(p.1. Cited in BesL 1992)

12. 10
Even though art in education has developed a moit cognitive-developmental approach
in recent years ( p.31.Liz Daulrey ci al. 1996), the old view of art-as-expression is
slow to disappear.
Another important feature that should be looked at, is the very first sentence on the art
National Cuthculum documenL “Art should he interpreted as ‘art, craft and design.”
(p.98. HMSO. 1995) Which means that children will not study pure art. David
Sharples (p.34. 1991) wrole that because art was put with craft and design, it was
linked with social imperatives, such as commerce and industry. So this is another
feature in fle curriculum that goes against the general views of the art institution, of
pure art that carries no other function that to exist as an art piece.
So far The National Curriculum document doesn’t seem to ia-e into account any direct
ideas or concepts of the ar movement, and this seems 10 carry on throughout the
rest of the document. Although the art curriculum does encourage art theory, (Key
Stage 1: 2a,5a,h,c,7d,e,f,8f,9d,e. p.98-99.HMSO. 1995). The results of the
questionnaires sent out however, showed that the majonty of time is spent on the
practical side of ar, especially in Key Stage I. This shows that the concept of the
ideas being just as important as the finished piece itself, have been largely ignored.
Cross-Curricular teaching is a way of using one curriculum subject, to enable children
to learn another. An is becoming a popular subject to he used in this way. In the
questionnaires sent to some teachers in the area, art had bcen used to teachlaid
english, maths environmental education, geography, science and religious education.
Indeed David Shaiples (1991) studied the “potential for art education in meeting
specific attainment targets in the National Curriculum core subjects”, and there are
various publications encouraging links with english (language) and art. (See
Appendix for literature hy SCAA Publications. 1997).

13. 11
The uses of art as a cross-curricular tool, could he studied indefinitely, hut was this
influenced by hasicfine art concepts?
Fine Art theorists, such as Danto (1973) would deduce that pieces made under
cross-curricular teaching would not count as art, because they haven’t been made
with the intention of being an artpiece. so again this method of teaching would go
against any line art concepts.
So from evaluating the above, the National Curriculum hasn’t been influenced by the
theories or concepts of western fine art, partly because art comes under the same
umbrella as craft and design, also because of time allowance in the curriculum for
art and all the other subjects, which was something that teachers commented on, when
answering the questionnaires.
Now that it has been found that the art institution itself has had no direct influence on
the writing of’ the curriculum, a closer look at how the art curriculum does encourage
art will he made.

14. 12
Section 4. How the National Curriculum Encoumes the Teaching of Art.
As we know the National Curriculum is supposed to ensure that every child receives a fair
education, whatever school they attend, and in this section we will look at how the art
curriculum encourages the teaching of art, how it has tried to remedy the imbalances of
teaching in art, and also how this works on a practical level - in the classroom.
First of all a closer look at the art National Curriculum is essential, to see how the subject is
dealt with.
Basically, the art National Curriculum, like the other subjects, is set out into a Programme
of Study, which details what the children should learn, the art Programme of Study is
devided into 9 sections. There are then two attainment targeLs which detail what should
have been learnt by the end of each key stage. Here ace the two attainment targets detailing
what children should know by the end of key stage 1.
“AT 1. Investigating and Making.
Pupils record their ideas and feelings confidently and show a developing ability to
represent what they see and touch. They choose resources and materials for their
visual and tactile qualities to stimulate and develop ideas for their work. They work
practically and imaginatively with materials tools and techniques, and present their
work in two and three dimensions.
AT 2. Knowledge and Understanding.
Pupils describe and compare images and arefacts in simple terms. They recognise
differences in methods and approaches used and make links with their own art, craft
and design work.” (P.9. HMSO. 1995)
From observing the above, it can be seen that there is encouragement in both art theory
and practise, so not only can they make or draw, hut they can understand why and how.

15. 13
The fact that pupils are urged to look at other artwork, artists, techniques and artefacts shows
that the culTicultirn has tried to develop art into a more cognitive- developmental subject,
rather than a purely inspirational activity.
Going into more detail in the National Curriculum, itis essential now, to look at the nine
sections of the programme of study, to see how children are expected to reach the level
of understanding set out in the attainment targets. When reading through, it can he seen
that there is an emphasis on using a wide range of source materials. For example, section
5 says, “Pupils should he introduced to the work of artists, craftspeopie and designers,
eg drawing, painting, printmaking, photography, sculpture, ceramics, textiles, graphic
design, architecture.” (P.98. HMSO. 1995) It also asks that these come from a variety
of styles and genres. “a, the locality h, the past c, a variety of cultures, western and
non-western.” (P.98. HMSO. 1995) So not only has it been attempted to make art
relevant through looking locally, but also to give an insight into other cultures vastly
different than our own, rather than the prevailing eurocentnc view of the past.
On the practical front, children are encouraged to experiment with different materials and
styles, and to explore different visual elements, such as pattern, texture, colour , line, tone
shape, form and space. (P.99.HMSO. 1995) They are also encouraged to heable to evaluate
their work, both during the making process, and when it is finished - n their own or in a
group. So when reading the National Curriculum, a wide range of the practical and theoretical
art has been attempted.
One very specilic reason for making sure that a careful balance of practical and theory’ was
included, was because of the art teaching in the past. As this quote shows.

16. 14
A narrow range of (art) activities has been dominant, centred almost entirely on
“making” and accompanied by an uncritical reliance on pupil’s possessing the
instinctive powers of self-expression.” (P.77. Liz Dautrey et al. 1996.)
Not only did this mean a balanced education wasn’t received, hut it also meant children
didn’t see the relevance in art to their own lives. So, in the writing of the National Curriculum
some saw it,
as an attempt to remedy;
1) The widely prevailing imbalance between the development of creativity
and appreciation.
2) The often very haphazard way in which art educators relate aesthetic
form to thematic and expressive content, (or to put this in plain english,
art to life.) “ ( p.77. Liz Dautrey et al. 1996)
It wasn’t very easy either to try and set down a programme of study for a subject where
nobody is ever seen to he wrong, and each person’s aesthetic creations are as individual
as their finger pri ins.
The teachers, implementing the cuniculum in the classroom were having the same problems,
and in the year after the implementation of the National Curriculum, the H.M.I reported
significant increases in how much time was allocated to science. (P.35. D. E Sharples.1991)
One reason for this, could he the fact that the core sub jecis are easier to asses objectively.
(P.22. D. E. Sharples. 1991)
The National Curriculum enables the teachers to see what children should know by the end of
each key stage, and what the children should learn in art, but it gives no indication of how
the children should he taught this knowledge, and because of the subjective nature of mt. it
can he a daunting task.

17. 15
An infontal questionnaire was sent out to student teachers to ascertain how much experience
they had received during training on art education, and although the answers cannot be taken
as general for art training, the results did give some surprising indications of how much
experience some teachers went into the classroom with. On all of the the questionnaires, the
majority of time iii art was spent dealing with the practical issues, rather than theoretical, and
in regards to art history, Monet and Picasso seem to he the only artists studied. No
multicultural art aspects were mentioned in any of the questionnaire answers, even though
it is in the art curriculum programme of study. Although it is a good idea to mention that non
of the questionnaire participants were specialising in art, student teachers who do specialise
in art receive more time on the subject, and thus can study it more in depth.
Now it would he good to look at some different projects and how they have implemented the
art curriculum, so that the whole picture of art education can he viewed.
The first one to look at, is a project run by Wigan’s Visual Art Service. It was run at
Drumcroon Education and Ar Centre. to encourage schools out of their own environments,
and all of the artists employed were local and had grown up in that area. The conclusion
of the CSAE project (Critical Studies in Art Education.) led to the conclusion that,
“....children should be educated to know about art as well as how to make it, and that
unexpected developments of a dynamic, interactive nature frequently came about
through the relationships between the two.”
(P.107. Liz Dautrey et al. 1996.)
The children could identify with the artists, as they wcre from the same backgrounds, and the
finished artworks were not restricted by being on display in the classroom. An exhibition was
set-up, and there was a parent’s evening, to inviLe them to see what had been accomplished.
(P.108. Liz Dautrey et al. 1996) It was not just the pupils that benefited from this project
either, the teachers gained new skills and insights into the art process, involved with activities
that had their roots in the National Curriculum.

18. 16
This project also had more far reaching effects on the children and school than just
applying the art cumculum in a positive and relavent manner. In an area where there is high
unemployment, socio-eeonomic problems and 44% of pupils on free school meals. (P.109.
Liz Dauuey et al. 1996) The school reached 12th place in the national G.C.S.E league
table. The director, also recognised the link between the high arts profile, and success
in the league table. He said,
“(This), has a direct effect on how they actually perform in standard, external
examinations - hut iLs far more important in terms of how they develop as
human beings!... The ails give pupils power by enabling them to
commtin ica te!”
(p.1 10. Liz Dautrey et al. 1996)
A lot of educators see the “unexpected developments of a dynamic nature”, as chaotic and even
anarchic, they don’t realise that a high arts profile could result in the developments thai
happened in Drumcroon, that it isn’t just their art development that benefits.
The next project took the teaching of art in rather a different point of view. Art was used to help
implement the core suhiects of the National Cuniculum.
The school brought in an artist in residence to work with the children, but prior to commencing
practical workshops were held with the teachers, so that they’d know what the artist would be
doing in the classroom, and also have the skills to carry out similar projects themselves.
The project was centred around the making of a bird, (See photographs in Appendix) out of
hendy cane and tissue paper, and small groups of 4 or 5 ehilditn worked on the sculpture.
Conversation was encouraged the whole time, so that the children would work together, and
he able to deal with issues that came up during the making process. Constant encouragement
meant that the children felt confident to use their own initiative and make suggestions on
suitable materials, colours, positioning of the sculpture and so forth.( Appendix VII. D. E.
Sharples.1991)

19. 17
MI around the classroom, birds and other animals were displayed, in pictures and
display cases, so that the children were cncouragcd to look at other art about animals
and ideas and inspiration could he sought. (Appendix VII. D. E. Shaiples. 1991)
Through this project, the children also covered english, through talking about how they
wanted the bird to look like. They used Maths in counting, estimating, copying patterns,
making comparisons and measuring. They also used science, in planning, hypothesising,
predicting, designing and carrying out investigations. (P. 68/69. D.E Shaiples. 1991.)
So the children learnt how to put their art to use in both a creative and constructive manner.
The above project is a prime example of cross-curricular teaching, so the benefits of this
activity in practise can he seen.
Schools implementing the curriculum are not the only institutions to use this method of
teaching. Although in the last section it was mentioned that artworks created as a result
of cross-curricular teaching wouldn’t he seen to have art status by the art institution,
Wakefield City Gallety have tailored this teaching method into their exhibition ( as
already mentioned in section 2) and school holiday activities. For example, an art
trail was set-up during the summer, and children had to follow written instructions,
to find the pieces of art, and also carry out other written activities along the way.
(See Appendix for leaflet about this activity.) The aim of this activity was to aid
children who were struggling with english at school. So it can be seen that, the
art institution does recognise that ar can be used as a tool to help in other aspects
of life. In this case, helping children’s educational needs further by applying
the art National Curriculum inside the art institution.

20. 18
In conclusion to looking at the art National Cuniculum, and its implementation
of art, provit’ed that the educator is confident and experienced enough, tie art
National Curriculum can henelit and develop children’s art skills and understanding.
Depending on how high the arts profile is, there can he further benefit in other
educational subjects, and in the developing individuality of each child.
Observing that the implementation of the art National Curriculum can benefit children
even though it contains no real direct influences from the art institution itself,
is an interesting situation, and to round oil this study on children and their art,
is an essential situation to look at.

21. 19
Conclusion.
In this last section, we will conclude whether or not the opinions on children’s
artwork, and the basic concepts of the fine art world have affected the art education
in schools today. It wilt also be determined whether the children really benefit from
the art education they receive - whatever influenced that said education. But first a
last look at the influences upon the art National Curriculum.
Rather than being largely influenced by the basic concepts of fine art, the National
Curriculum seems to follow the general views of society, and with the relationship
between art and all the other subjects of the curriculum, the priorities of general
society aswell. Although in the general content of the art programme of study, it
could be said that it loosely follows the post — modernist views. (p.1 56. Liz Dautrey
et al. 1996)
The child — centred methods of art teaching, however, which relied on the
“instinctive powers of self- expression”, (p.77. Liz Dautrey et al. 1996) was
more subjective, and followed the modernist’s point of view.
It has to be mentioned that, however the writings of the National Curriculum have
been influenced, the most important aspect is how the curriculum has benefited
children in their learning of art. It was mentioned before that when children or their
artwork had been taken into the art context, it wasn’t displayed under the same
criteria, and that benefited the whole experience. So the fact that children’s art
education doesn’t conform to the same criteria minors the fact that different criteria
has to be tailored to the child’s needs.

22. 20
In fact, in the more subjective realms of child — centred teaching, children were more
at a disadvantage, because most oftheir artwork was created from their supposed
powers of self-expression, imagination and inspiration. Whereas the National
Curriculum today tries to encourage as much input as possible from a
range of sources outside of the classroom context. In trying to bring the subjective
nature of art into the objective realms of the education, the National Curriculum
has attempted to make it easier for teachers to asses the subject as well as enabling
children to make that link between art and life. Also, enabling children, not just to
be able to understand, appreciate and create art, but to be able to use art as a
problem solving tool in art or any other subject. Although, in looking at the
National Curriculum, one also has to consider how it changes in each classroom
on a practical level, and the amount of personal experience each teacher has in art.
So we can see on the one hand, that fine art influences and
opinions don’t work well in children’s art education, mostly due to the subjective
nature of art, and the difficulties it creates for children learning and teachers
assessing. But we can see, by looking at the exhibitions mentioned before, that even if
the art Institution doesn’t accept children’s art, it has attempted to meet the criteria set
down in the National Curriculum, which is tailored to the child’s lack of art education
and language, so that children will gain just as much insight into art and its relevance,
as an adult who already possesses a certain knowledge of art.

23. 21
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