A Lesson in Teaching Art Self-Confidence From Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain

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National Art Education Association

A Lesson in Teaching Art Self-Confidence from Drawing on the Right Side of the BrainAuthor(s): Jean Ellen JonesSource: Art Education, Vol. 50, No. 2, Concerns in Secondary Art Education (Mar., 1997), pp.33-38Published by: National Art Education AssociationStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3193641

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LESSONINjTE CHINGHl-his fimeitwasmdenctal tuDoth_0t i d e n f r o m rawing n t h

hygienist.WhenIasked Fcasuallywhat she had beendoingincesawerast, R i g h t i d e o f t h B r a i nI ? I1 4 C - I ' I9 Jt I- lshe said, taking ome courses. Snewent on to explain hatshe hadcompleteda drawingcourse at a localartcenterusing BettyEdwards' 1989)book,Drawingon theRightSideoftheBrain. It[thebook] is so wonderful,she said, thewayit makesyoufeellikeyou candraw.I'm akingaplaindrawingclass now. It is not as good.Her'swas the most recent of dozens ofsimilar estimoniesIhave heard sincethe publication f Edwards' 1979)firstedition of the book.BettyEdwards'(1979, 989)popularbookprovidessoliddrawingexercisescarefully equenced,buttheyare notsufficientlyuniqueto explain tssuccess. Forexample,Nicolaides(1941) ntroduceda numberofexercises similar o Edwards' nd, ike

Edwards,used avarietyof reliablescaffolding echniquessuch as hintsandmodeling(Rosenshine&Meister,1992).It is Edwards' arefulattentionto buildingstudent self-confidence hatmakes the difference.Evenhercritics(Chambliss&Hartl,1987)havesuggested as much.She shows otherart eachershowto build studentself-

BY JEAN ELLEN JONES, PH.D.confidence, oo,iftheylookclosely.Ibeganto analyze he Edwards extbyaccident.Iwasconductinga reviewofrecent research on motivationwhenIwas impressedbythe potentialusefulnessof the work ofCsikszentmihalyi nd Nakamura(1989),Bandura 1986,1991),Dweck(1991),and Schunk(1989, 1990,1991).As Ioutlined heir researchfindings,Edwards' trategiescame to mind.Shehas since toldme that her focus onbuildingself-confidencewashighlyintentional,butherapproach obuildingself-confidencewasbornfrompersonalexperiencein the classroom,not the psychologicalresearchlaboratory Edwards,personalcommunication,1993).Her theoreticalfocuscame insteadfromneurologicalandphysiologicalresearchconcerningfunctionofbrainhemispheres.Inher bookDrawingontheArtitWithinEdwards(1986)continued oteach attitudesand beliefs conducive obuildingself-confidencewhile she

discussedother theoreticalconcernsmoreexplicitly. n this case she focusedon stepsof creativeproblemsolvingand related heory.She proposed hat,ifstudentsapproachdrawingas apersonalproblem-solving roject, heycanbuildboth visualthinkingskills andproblem-solvingkills thatwilltransferto manyproblemsituations.Studentself-confidenceandmotivationngeneralareimportantoteachers of all artsubjects,notjustdrawing.Edwards' pparentlysuccessfulstrategiesforbuildingself-confidencedeservegreaterattentionthan she provides.I willanalyzewhatshe has done in the contextofcurrentmotivationheory, solatingprinciplesthathaveemergedfrom alargenumberofresearchstudies.Thatway,readerscan takeawaygeneralizationsorbuildingstudent self-confidence hatmay apply o manysituations.Due tospaceconstraints, haverefrained rom

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alengthyreview of motivationresearch,but for the reader nterestedinknowingmore,Ihave referencedand discussed the principlesbriefly.Because strategiesforbuildingself-confidence arenearly dentical n bothbooks, Ihaveoptedto cite onlyhermorewidelyusedDrawingon theRightSideoftheBrain.Inaddition o citingexamplesfrom Edwards(1989), I willincludesuggestions andillustrations fotherwaysartteachers canimplementthe sameprinciples.Motivation heoryand researchfocus on the initiation,direction,intensity,andpersistenceof behavior.Self-confidence s used inthisdiscussionis closest to the socialcognitiveconstructofself-efficacy irstdevelopedby Bandura n 1977and aterexpanded(Bandura,1986)as itgeneratedhundreds of studiesinavarietyof fields. Banduradefines self-efficacy s an individual'seelingsofcontrol nbeingable to achieve aspecificgoal.This is differentrom heconstruct self-esteem hich isindependentof aparticularontextand has proven ess usefulineducational heory.Evenas he elaborateson self-efficacyas partof his goal theoryofmotivation,Bandura 1991)characterizes elf-efficacy s abasic elementinaperson'smotivation hat can be seen inoperation egardlessofthe theoreticalcontextfromwhich motivation sstudied.Thus, inreferencingmotivationprinciples, willborrowheavily romresearch thatusesBandura's elf-efficacy onstruct,butEarlynd ateamplesfhighchool rawings,uch sthese, llowtudentsoacknowledgeuccess nd uildself-confidence.ight:BeforerawingyJulieWeinberger.ppositeage: AfterrawingyJulieWeinberger.

willalso cite researchersworkingwithother theoretical rameworks,notablyDweck (1991),with attributionheory.PRINCIPLES FROMMOTIVATIONTHEORYWITHEXAMPLES FROMEDWARDS (1989)1.The task to be mastered mustbe considered of at least medium-level difficulty. The more difficult itis perceived to be, the more impactit will have on self-confidence whena person is successful. Inhis goaltheoryofmotivation,Bandura 1991)notes thatgoals motivatebystimulating elf-evaluation nd theopportunityo noticeprogressandsuccess. He lists severaloptimalcharacteristicsofgoals. Schunk(1990)andCsikszentmihalyi nd Nakamura(1989)supportandexpandhisrequirement hat the goalbe of at leastmedium-leveldifficulty.They notethatthe individualmustcontinuallybalancedifficulty t anoptimum evel so that thetask is neithertoo easy andboringnorso difficult hat tproducesextremeanxietyor avoidance.Edwards, xplainingwhy he chose oemphasize ortraitdrawing kill,says,Beginningtudents fdrawingoftenthink hatdrawinghuman aces is thehardestofall kindsofdrawing.Thus,when tudents ee thatthey an draw

portraits, hey

feel confident ndtheirconfidenceenhancesprogress p.8).2.A person should have apersonal, long-range goal, butapproach it through short-term,obtainable goals. This is anotheroptimalcharacteristic fgoals outlinedby Bandura 1991).This strategywouldappear o be critical o those studentsdescribedbyDweck (1991)who do notnaturally eek outchallengesandwhose learningstyle is to avoid ailureat all costs.Edwardsbreaksdownrealisticdrawing killintofivebasic kills(p.xii)andapproachesachwithsimpleexercises.

3. For persons feeling low self-confidence for a task, it may help toprovide training to recognizenegative self-statements and then togain control over them by a varietyof positive and task-relatedprocedure statements. Bandura(1991)pointsout that one majorproblem nthe learningprocessis whathappenswhen apersonwho isexperiencing owself-efficacymeetsdifficulty.Thatpersonwilltendtoruminateaboutpersonaldeficienciesand the direconsequencesthatfailurewillbring,making he situation eemmuch worsethan t is.Thus,attention sdrawnaway romsucceedingin thetask at hand.In a studythatmightbe ofspecial nterestto artteachers,Meichenbaum(1975)addressedthe

problemsuccessfullythroughatrainingprogram hatused positiveself-talk o controlnegative,nonproductivehoughtsand toincreasestudentcreativity.Edwards cknowledgestudentself-doubtsndpromisesohelpstudents ven ftheirdrawings looklike a childdidit. This dea isfeaturedon the backcover.After heL firstportrait, he commands

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students o 'beproudofyourself' p.163). Duringanother xerciseheacknowledges '?ittle oice fthe eftbrainthatcomplains ndexpressesdoubt.Her advice:Trick he ittlevoiceby elling t 'you ustwant totrysomething ut p.87).4. People should attribute theirfailures to lack of effort and theirsuccesses to ability if they want topersevere in the face of difficulty.Persons who attribute their failuresto lack of ability (especially anunchangeable concept of ability liketalent) and their successes tosituational factors such as luck willgive up easily. Dweck's (1991)studiesofveryyoungchildrenandupperelementaryage children n schoolssuggest that studentbeliefs about henatureoflearningandintelligencecanhavemajorconsequencesfor theirlearningandself-concept.Studentswho adopta view ofintelligenceandskill as a fixedentity(asinart talent )expendtheir effortsseekingvalidationoftheirability ather hanfocusingonincreasing heircompetence. Difficulty,risk,andfailurebecome a directindictmentoftheir goodness ndbasicintelligence, eadingto majorproblemsas such studentsface theadditionaldemandsof middle school.

Edwards akes everalparagraphsnthefirstpartofherbook oemphasizethatdrawing s a learnable kill,not aninherited alent.Toreinforce erpoint,sheexplainsdrawing nscientific(right/leftbrainresearch)anddevelopmentalerms,making hedrawingprocessvery oncrete nd non-mysterious.5.Success that students can seeand attribute to their own effort isthe most powerful builder of self-confidence. Earlysuccesses arecritical. According o Bandura 1986)aperson'sfeelingof self-confidencen

beingableto succeed ataparticulartaskis determined hrough oursources of information:a)enactiveattainment success throughdirectproblemsolving), (b)vicariousexperience (seeing others modelachievement nthe task), (c)verbalpersuasion(otherssayingthat the individual ando thetask),and (d)emotionalphysiologicalarousal(sweatypalms,a knotinone'sstomach, orexample,andsubsequentemotionalcontrolovertheirinfluence).Themostpowerfulssucceedinginsolvingaproblem hroughone'sown efforts.Bandura's esearch has \shown thatearlysuccessesare critical nkeepingmotivationalive.Edwardstartsbyhavingstudentswrite heirnamesand thenmovesonto thealways-successfulvase/faceandupside-downrawings.6. Modeling by an expert buildsbelief that the task can be done.Anotherpowerful ourceofinformationo influenceone'sself-efficacy,according o Bandura(1986), s vicariousexperienceofsuccess by seeing someoneelsesucceed attheproblem.Ifthatpersonhas the respectofthe learnerand usesstrategiesorgeneral principlesaswellas specifics,then the learner s evenmorelikelyto believethat the task canbe done.Edwards rovides tep-by-stepmodeling fa taskbeforeheasksstudentsotry t. Sheusesquotationsfromexpertsn themarginsofthebook osupportwhatsheissaying.7.Peer modeling of success will

build self-efficacy more thanmodeling by the teacher alone.Students say to themselves, Iftheycan do it, I can. Schunk (1989,1991)describes severalstudies derived rom

self-efficacy heorythatsupport hepowerofpeermodelingin schoolsettings.Edwards ncludesdrawingsrombefore nd after nstructionthroughouterbook.Students icturedin theself-portraitsangerommiddleschoolagetomiddle-ageddult and arefromseveralethnicgroups.Studentsuccesss obvious.8.When an expert or child ismodeling, it is often helpful to showhow they make mistakes and haveto struggle to succeed. Applications



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Above:BeforerawingyAlainameck.ight:'AfterrawingyAlainameck.ofself-efficacyheorytopublicschoolsettings (Schunk,1989,1991)supportthiscorollary o Bandura's 1986)finding hatvicariouspersuasion s ahighlyeffectivebooster ofself-efficacy.Edwards icturesan early,veryawkwarddrawingbyVanGoghalongwitha very ompetentaterone(pp. 16-17).9.Self-evaluation of achievementagainst personal or adopted goalsprovides the main engine formotivation.In hisgoaltheoryofmotivationBandura 1991)notesthatonce thegoalis attempted,heperson(a)evaluates heperformance singpersonal tandards nd eedback romothers, (b)adjustseelingsofself-efficacy, hen (c)adjustsgoalsandstrategiesbefore he nextattempt. nthecourseofmultiplerials, elf-evaluationand eedbackcan both fuel anddepletemotivationorthetask.Regardlessofthepotential utcome,he reports hatfrequent valuations essential or anindividualo feel motivated.Edwardshas studentskeepa portfolio

to reviewprogress nd to provideboost when eeded p.9).SUMMARYAND FURTHERIMPLICATIONSFORTHECLASSROOMMotivational esearch remindstheartteacher that t is importantohelpstudentsadoptgoals that arechallenging,yetwithinreach,and thento helpthemexperienceandacknowledgesuccesses, even smallones. Frequentevaluation fprogress

helpsfuelafeelingof success.Modelingof correctprocedures romvariedsources,the expert, he teacher,and one'sclassmates,all make the taskseem more achievable.BettyEdwardsdemonstratesvery clearlyhow theseprinciplesmaybe integratedntotheeverydaypracticeofartteaching.Itis likelythatmanyartteachers,likeEdwards,havedeveloped hesepractices rom extensiveexperience nthe classroom.Isuspectthat mostteachers learnedearlyto breakalargergoal intosmaller,more obtainable

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goals;to engineerassignmentsso thatearlysuccess was possible; o showsuccessfulstudentwork;and to includemistakesand their resolutionas partoftechnicaldemonstrations.Forexample,anexperienced elementaryartteacher (Davenport,personalcommunication,1996)tells how sheuses completedstudentwork to createoptimumresults:When she teaches anew lesson to severalclasses ina rowat the samegradelevel,she showsgood examplesof the completedlesson to each successive class. Shealsopointsout where students npreviousclasses hadproblemsandhowthey solvedthem. She reports hatstudentartworkgets betterwith eachclass.Severalofthe principles istedabove forbuildingstudent self-confidenceandmotivation ould usemore attention ntoday'sartclassrooms.Theyincludehavingpersonal, ong-rangeandshort-rangegoals (number2), payingattention onegativeself-talk number3), exertingeffort(number4), andevaluatingfrequently number9).All of these



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strategiesare well-suited or aportfolio-centeredcurriculum nd assessmentprogramike those promotedbyAdvancedPlacementcoursesin art(TheCollegeBoard,1995-96)andArtsPROPELGitomer,Grosh,andPrice,1992).Bothprogramsrequire hatstudentswork ndepthonavisualproblem.With thisapproach, tudentscan see motivationally-powerfulbeforeand after xamplesof theirwork.Anotherbeneficialcharacteristic f aportfolio-centeredurriculums theopportunitytallowsfor studentstoengage inreflective ournalwritingonsuchtopicsas the student'sgoals,success, andthe art earningprocess.Aprogramofone itinerantartteacher,(Keith-Ott, 996),will illustrate.Sheusedjournalwritingwith herelementarystudents.Tired ofseeingstudentsquit nfrustration t theslightest problem ntheirartwork,shedecided to teachthem the basicskill ofreflectingon their situation ong enoughto define the problem,proposesolutions, rythe solutions,andevaluatethe results. Itwas noteasy.Keith-Ottdiscovered hat studentsfrequentlyforgottheprocessbetween herbiweeklyvisits.Further, tudentsfounditeasytogeneratesolutions,butmanywerenotwilling otryout the solutionstheyhadlisted.Nonetheless,studentwork mproved,andmanystudentscoulduse the problem solvingprocessbythe endof theyearwith littleprompting.Hereis asampleof afifth-gradestudent ournal ntryfor afirstlesson indrawingwithone-pointperspective.The followingentry,writtenjustbelowapencilsketch, reflects theproblem-solvingurriculum ndongoinginterestbythe teacher nhavingstudentsaddresstheir effort nartclass:

Problem:1) tree's trunkdidn'tturn outverywell,2) the brancheslookliketriangles.Solution:1) take moretime,2) don'tputtheminaline, 3) tryharder,4) look at a real tree.

Returningor amomentto the case ofmydentalhygienist,Iproposethatshewoulddeclareher plain rtclass obemuchbetter,perhapsasgood as the oneusingEdwards'book,ifher teacherwould focus on the self-confidencebuilding principles ndstrategiesoutlinedhere.Ifthat teacher could movebeyondEdwards'model to teach moreof the principlesexplicitly,aspartof thelearningprocess,thenstudents couldapply hemto manyart earningsituations.Forexample,studentscouldlearnto regulate heir self-confidencebyusingreflective ournals o answer suchquestionsas: Do Ihave alongtermgoal?Aremygoals challengingenoughor aretheytoo challenging o allow airlyfrequentsuccesses?Do Ifocuson thepositive, ncludingobstaclesIhaveovercome?Do Igive the projectmybesteffort?AmIevaluating veryworksession?To be effective, eachersneed to haveself-confidencen theirability o teach.(AshtonandWebb, 1986).Theymightkeepajournal o train hemselves to askthese sameprocess-orientedquestionsabout heirteachingandtheirongoingart earning.JeanEllenJones s AssociateProfessor fArtEducation,SchoolofArtandDesign,GeorgiaStateUniversity,Atlanta.REFERENCESAshton,P.T.,&Webb,R.B. (1986).Makingdifference:eachers'sensefefficacyndstudent chievement.ewYork:Longman.Bandura, . (1977).Self-efficacy:owardunifyingheoryof behavioralhange.Psychologicaleview, 4. 191-215.Bandura, . (1986).Socialfoundationsf

thoughtndaction:A socialcognitiveheory.EnglewoodCliffs,NJ:PrenticeHall.Bandura, (1991).Self-regulationfmotivationhrough nticipatoryndself-reactivemechanisms. n R.Dienstbier(Ed.),Nebraskaymposiumn motivation:Volume 8.Perspectivesn motivation(pp.69-164).Lincoln:UniversityfNebraskaPress.Chambliss,C.A.,&Hartl,A.J. (1987).EfficacyofEdwards'ognitive hiftapproachoarteducation. tudies n ArtEducation, 8, 149-153.TheCollegeBoard. 1995-96). dvancedplacementourse escription:rt.Princeton,NJ:EducationalTestingervice.Csikszentmihalyi, .,&Nakamura,. (1989).Thedynamics f intrinsicmotivation:studyof adolescents. n C.Ames& R.Ames(Eds.),Researchn motivationneducation,Volume : Goals ndcognitionspp.45-71).NewYork:AcademicPress.Dweck,C.S. (1991).Self-theories ndgoals:Theirrole nmotivation,ersonality,nddevelopment.nR.DienstbierEd.),Nebraskaymposiumn motivation: olume38.Perspectivesn motivationpp.199-235).Lincoln: niversity f NebraskaPress.Edwards,B. (1979).Drawing n theright ideofthebrain.LosAngeles: eremyP.Tarcher.Edwards, . (1989).Drawing ntheright ideofthebrain.LosAngeles: eremyP.Tarcher.Edwards, . (1986).Drawing n theartistwithin.NewYork: imonandSchuster.Gitomer,D.,Grosh,S.,&Price,K (1992).Portfolioulturenartseducation. rtEducation,5 (1),7-15.

Keith-Ott,W.(1996).Teachingproblemolvingwith he ketchbookournal.Unpublishedmasters hesis,Georgia tateUniversity,Atlanta.Meichenbaum, . (1975).Enhancingreativitybymodifyingwhat ubjects aytothemselves.AmericanEducational esearchJournal, 2,129-145.Nicolaides,K.(1941).Thenaturalway odraw.Boston:HoughtonMifflin.Rosenshine,B.,&Meister,C.(1992).The useofscaffoldsor eachinghigher-levelcognitive trategies.EducationalLeadership,9 (7),26-33.Schunk,D. H. (1989).Self-efficacyndcognitive kill earning.n C.Ames&R.Ames(Eds.),Researchn motivationneducation,Volume : Goals ndcognitions(pp.13-44).NewYork:AcademicPress.Schunk,D. H. (1990).Goal ettingandself-efficacy uring elf-regulatedearning.Educational sychologist,5,71-86.Schunk,D. H. (1991).Self-efficacyndacademicmotivation. ducationalPsychologist,6, 207-231.

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A Lesson in Teaching Art Self-Confidence From Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain