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Presentation for UK Creative Partnerships professional learning network, March 2009 by Graham Jeffery and Anna Ledgard - context and history of the Teacher Artist Partnership Programme
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Teacher Artist Partnership Programme
How do schools build dynamic dialogue with creative partners which acknowledge the expertiseof the artist and the artistry of the teacher in equal measure?
model of professional development based on the premise that creative and cultural learning needs to involve all participants - teachers, artists and students - in change processes.
TEACHERS AS CHANGE AGENTS?
‘If the English educational system is to take advantage of the energies, knowledge and commitment of teachers in order to produce creative learning opportunities for children,’ the authors argue, ‘then it needs to do more than stop designating them simply as implementers and deliverers. They must be seen as, and supported to become, active agents of change.’
Creative and whole school change: an investigation of headteacher practices by Pat Thomson and Ethel Sanders can be downloaded from http://www.creativeschoolchange.org.uk/
‘DEFICIT’ MODEL
CREATIVITY SUPPLIED BY OUTSIDE AGENT + DISCIPLINE SUPPLIED BY TEACHER
= NO SYSTEMIC CHANGE
SUSTAINABLE MODEL
CREATIVE CATALYST + TEACHER + PARTNER ARTIST/OTHERS + CHILDREN + EXTENDED DYNAMIC DIALOGUE
= SYSTEMIC CHANGE
GSMD Connect and other Programmes
LIFT Teacher Forum 99-2004
NEWVIC Newham VIth Form College/NESTA Pathways into Creativity
Animarts Action Research Programme
CapeUK programmes from mid-90’s
TAPP resource
What it contains:
TAPP Model and what we learned(Programme elements and content, sample activities, case studies, lessons learned)
Research perspectives on the pedagogy of teacher-artist partnership
Resources & further reading
Who is the TAPP Resource For?
Anyone who is developing professional development and training that brings artists and teachers together in shared learning encounters
What is this resource?
Not a fixed model but an exploration of what was learnt and a sharing of resources and approaches through a creative commons Licence - can be adapted freely and adopted into other settings
Process:
3 year action research programme - 2 year long programmes adapted and refined
research and evaluation
consultation with peers
If artists and teachers are to collaborate effectively then methods of professional development allowing both partners to reflect and refine their skills together are critical.
At the same time, the ability of artist-educators to act as change agents within their own settings can be developed and enhanced by promoting a process of individual reflection and enquiry.
The agendas, settings and contexts in which creative and cultural learning take place need to be critically reflected upon and explored within a supportive and challenging framework for professional learning and exchange.
By definition, creative learning and teaching involve an element of risk, exploration and uncertainty. This may lead to tensions between creative, sometimes experimental approaches, and the more regulated nature of educational systems. Such tensions can be productive if handled carefully through ‘creative professionalism’ and undertaken within an ethical framework that respects the rights of the learner.
Practitioners work under considerable curriculum pressures in formal educational settings. They need to engage in active learning based on enquiry and reflection through shared practice if both individual and institutional capacity for sustained partnership working is to be developed.
Time, space and resources need to be devoted to researching, refining and designing appropriate interventions which bridge the gaps between o the aspirations of schools to be inclusive, o the creative capacities of individual learners, o the requirements of curriculum and assessment frameworks, and o the neighbourhoods and settings in which schools, colleges and cultural organisations work.
Training and developing the capacity of practitioners to be able to navigate these complex agendas will be of critical importance if this set of approaches is to become more widely embedded in everyday educational practice.
IRRECONCILABLE TENSIONS?
• The positives in art education work are evident and well documented, and I value the work I do in schools highly. However there are aspects of working as an artist in secondary schools which do not sit right...
The constant call for collaboration in an area which is often about a fairly solitary, highly personal exploration
The emphasis of verbal communication in a subject which is often about an individual language that has nothing to do with words
The focus on Artists as some sort of uniquely, innately skilled creative problem solvers who will be able to redress an inherent lack in the system
The desire to promote equal partnerships in a system where artists and teachers can never be equal
A blurring of expectation between the definitions: ‘artist’ and ‘art educator’ An over-simplification of what an artist is, packaging them to fulfil a ‘required’
service Time, as a contributing factor to all above is not valued enough
Thurle Wright TAPP 2006/7
Different Legacies….
Eastfeast Professional Development Programmein association with Anglia Ruskin University
Creative Classrooms - Half Moon
Unicorn Theatre Teacher Forum
TAPP Facebook network
Practice of artists and teachers continuing to see selves as learners
Resource dissemination
What are the challenges of maintaining a framework for professional development which is about dialogue and conversation?
How do we embed longer term conversations between teachers and artists and others?
In your context - what agencies are you working with to evolve professional development, what kinds of partnerships exist? What works well?
What next?
Resources for open source dissemination
Making resources available
Contacts
www.capeuk.org
www.animarts.org.ukwww.tapprogramme.org.uk
www.eastfeast.co.uk
Pat [email protected] [email protected] Ledgard [email protected]
