Art Assessment

Effective Art Assessment Strategies

Why assess students art performance? Assessment is a way to evaluate whether set goals/objectives in art education have been met and to determine the effectiveness of art programs and teaching methods. In an online article on nces.ed.gov, it says the No Child Left Behind Act strives for education reform by strengthening arts education in public schools by ensuring “that all students meet challenging content standards and challenging state student academic achievement standards in the arts.” The need for assessments reaches beyond meeting these achievement standards however. Assessments give students the ability to evaluate their own work, work from their peers, and learn to share works and accept constructive criticisms. This strengthens their art abilities and affects lifetime learning success.

The text gives several examples of effective assessment strategies. I like the idea of Exhibitions and Display. There are a variety of places that the exhibitions can be set up including areas in the school and places in the community. Hallways were mentioned, but I also think the school library, lunch room, and auditorium might be great spaces as well. There are limitless places in the community to display them as well. For example, the city library or local movie theater. Classroom displays can also be a fun way to showcase artworks. I think adorning one wall with a variety of different wooden picture frames and putting student work in them is a fun way to accomplish this. The book cites that public art displays are valuable for several reasons. It enlivens the school environment, and shows principals, faculty, and other students the “depth of learning” students are receiving in your classroom. Displaying artwork in the community brings it to a larger audience and reminds people of the achievements students are making in art education. It also bolsters student pride and self esteem because they feel important as a result of having their work viewed and appreciated. It also gives students a chance to reflect upon and evaluate the work of their peers.

In Dr. Donna Kay Beattie’s chapter titled Assessment in Art, she states that portfolios are a great performance assessment strategy that includes a purposeful collection of student work that tells the story of the student’s efforts, progress, or achievement in given areas.” When I subbed at Head Start, the students loved keeping a portfolio of their artwork that was created using different techniques they learned during the year. They really enjoyed pulling them out and show visitors and I think the portfolios served as a good reference when we were trying to build on past concepts or techniques they had learned. It also showed the increase in art proficiency that was attained over the course of the year. According to Beattie’s article, portfolios should include elements like student letters of introduction, show primary, secondary and extrinsic evidence, relate to specific art goals, reveal learning difficulties, involve student reflection, selection and justification, and reflect performance standards. Portfolios are an effective strategy because it is a way to demonstrate a vast range of sketches, paintings, writings, project revisions, final artworks, and other creative content in one organized bundle.

In an assessment strategy article from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education the following other techniques were suggested… sketchbooks, student demonstrations, integrated performances, test, writings, group discussions, and self evaluations. Among these I liked the sketchbook and writing ideas the best. Student sketchbooks could include both student created artwork and images from magazines, newspapers, photographs and other outlets. Writing suggestion included essays on artists, letters to peers explaining artistic challenges of different assignments, poems, and stories about their works. For example, maybe students could bring in a picture of their favorite logo (sports team, fast food, cereal box, etc.) and both sketch (paint, carve, etc) the image and write a letter to another student in the class explaining the process it took to create the artwork or explaining the elements of the image (texture, color, lines) they have collected. Combining art techniques and writing give assessors a greater understanding of the depth of the grasp students have of their art education.

There are many means of making assessments of art in your classroom. I believe that they should adeptly evaluate both the student learning and teacher’s ability to instruct effectively. Assessment needs to show both the artistic process and end product, meet learning objectives, show grasp of art concepts using multiple elements and techniques within the discipline, and allow for student growth and creativity. I like the idea of using lesson plans and handing out rubrics so standards and goals for each assignment are understood and implemented by both parties.

Works Cited
Beattie, Dr. Donna Kay, Assessment in Art. Chapter 2
Clements, Roger D. Emphasis Art. 2010. Ninth edition. Allyn and Bacon. New York.
Assessment in Visual Arts. http://home.oise.utoronto.ca/~hinwood/art_assessment.htm
Developing an Art Assessment. http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/pubs/strategies/