Creative arts are referred to activities which actively engage children’s imagination and ideas through art, dance, dramatic play or theatre and music. The creative arts typically involve children across varied domains related to cognitive, emotional, and social, language and physical. These activities exhibit a tendency to be open-minded and further foster contradictory thinking and facilitate the process without specific attention or awareness on the product (Black et al. 2017). Similar to intelligence and ingenuity, creativity is identified as a trait that is perceived to be rare and inherent, an attribute which is highly intuitive and cannot be directly educated, the works which are typically produced by the ones possessing immense creativity and are thus unachievable. Creative arts efficiently stimulate and guide children to cultivate as well as generate their competencies across virtually in every sphere by proficiently developing flexibility of the minds of children (Roskos, 2017). Creative arts thus sheds light on the process of providing education to children that has been developing as highly product-driven and thus the technique or procedure is identified as highly significant in relation to the destination or outcome. The following essay is divided into two segments, where the former will evaluate the value of Creative Arts in Early Childhood and Primary Education and the latter will explore the teaching and learning process of Art and Music.
Piaget held the opinion that cognition of young children is essentially fostered through discovery and involvement in playful activities in particular imaginative playful activities within their surroundings (Bers, Flannery, Kazakoff & Sullivan, 2014). Furthermore it has stated that play tends to facilitate young children to obtain ideas about new things and elements not primarily by reflecting on thoughts as proposed by Piaget by creating it (Berk, 2017). Learning process of children fundamentally relies on process of social interaction and further underpins called scaffolding. The process of scaffolding is primarily being offered by individuals with enhanced knowledge base and enables children to establish skills and capacities which are essential for optimal development. Early childhood educators have applied these vital theoretical aspects whereby educators can open avenues to young children for creative arts play by efficiently utilizing dramatic play area. Furthermore, when children are integrated in the sphere of dramatic or theatrical playful activities, their level of imagination and creativity tend to amplify as they adopt specific roles associated to certain characters or individuals. Furthermore, young children establish social skills when they explore with creative arts such as puppetry, art and dance, creative play movement, music and dance in dramatic play scenarios. Predictably it has been observed that creative arts tend to provide a channel for young children in early education and further attain regulation over the sentiments and emotions (Bers, Flannery, Kazakoff & Sullivan, 2014). However, developmentally suitable practices ascertain that activities are proficiently organized and then provided in accordance to the competence level and interests of individual children as well as the children in the group (Berk, 2017). Creative arts activities ideally improve the continually cognitive development of children both by stimulating as well as engaging these activities without any boredom or dissatisfaction.
At this juncture, the instrumental argument for the internalization of creative arts in the domain of primary education is significant to recognize. Creative arts in primary education essentially cultivate transferable talents and further enhance academic achievements of children of up to 10-11 years who are engaged in primary education resulting to improved prospective work opportunities along with enhanced welfare and self-dignity (Craft, Cremin, Hay & Clack, 2014). Children engaged in primary education can acquire the experiences of the events occurring in their world and further alter those experiences through creative art and developing new associations and relations through innovativeness and creative arts. Children does not experience learning as separate parcels of knowledge to be opened and tend to form with varied approaches of exploring and articulating to others (Chapman, 2015). Creative arts activities at the first stage of learning of children fundamentally enable children to successfully articulate their feelings and emotions both as forms of self-expression and to establish communication base with others. Lummis, Morris & Paolino, (2014) claim that creative arts stimulate children at primary education to comprehend the world through a visual perspective rather than confining the course of learning and the attainment of knowledge specifically to words and figures. Creativity art in early stage of learning can be fundamentally signified as possessing the power or excellence to articulate emotions through a child’s individualistic manner (Roche & Huddy, 2015). Thus children are distinguished as being naturally creative and they tend to perceive the world and their surroundings with utmost ingenuity and then implement their perceptions through innovative and creative perspectives (Bers, Flannery, Kazakoff & Sullivan, 2014). Thus domains of early childhood education and primary education have incorporated creative arts and learning which purposes to provide children with profuse opportunities for generating creative behaviour. A curriculum comprising of creative arts invites innovative work, autonomous learning, self-initiation and creative exploration.
Craft, Cremin, Hay & Clack, (2014) note that dance is perceived as an intellectual, physical and sensorial response towards experiences of the world. The assimilation of physical, intellectual and emotional selves which tend to have its occurrences in learning in art and dance has been promoted by several theorists as well as practitioners as fundamental to comprehend the holistic advantages of education in and the process of learning dance (Roche & Huddy, 2015). The pedagogical practice of art and dance in recent decades has undergone significant transformations. Dance pedagogy has conventionally adapted a transmission model of teaching whereby learners obtain the knowledge by emulating certain movement vocabularies modelled by a proficient leader. Thus wide range of classroom educators have developed the utmost sense of ease and comfort in providing dance knowledge, similar way in which they were being taught. Thus it has been widely acknowledged that the revolution of art and dance content ideas into knowledge for teaching as well as learning internalizes a greater degree of dance techniques and regulation (Chapman, 2015). This has led contemporary dance educators to require a broad array of teaching techniques and strategies in order to enthuse, motivate and integrate art and dance learners to the realm of creative art. Roche & Huddy, (2015) have identified major themes and approaches towards dance pedagogy such as the holistic approach.
The idea of somatic approach in art and dance pedagogy essentially relies on approaches which advance learners to their bodies and further provide them the ideas to develop awareness of their special attributes. Lummis, Morris & Paolino, (2014) reveal the deficit of measurable forms and norm which must be adapted and further has to lead from individualistic perception of where a dance technique or movement initiates or ends or the extent of impact it possess on the learners (Tantia, 2016). A major aspect of somatic approach intends to develop the assurance learners’ safety and prevent them from any forms of damage through any dance movement both in conscious or subconscious stage. Green, 2015) recognized Somatic approach as a core learning factor in the field of postsecondary dance education and crucial constituents related to postmodern contemporary art and dance. This form of approach justifies that art and dance educators are fundamentally focused on establishing greater ‘literacy’ in relation to an embodied approach of knowing dance skills and techniques. Furthermore, it has been claimed by Roche & Huddy, (2015) that somatic approach develops new arena of potentials which have not been imagined to be used in former techniques and methodologies of art and dance education, distinguished as direct teaching. However there can be witnessed a comprehensive discourse that is yet to be developed between those in diverse realms of ecopsychology, dance learning, dance movement therapy, somatic approach along with performers as to the way to connect self to the world in order to create beauty, unity and further to discover innovative dimensions of articulating emotions of humanity in most universal and fundamental way (Lummis, Morris & Paolino, 2014).
The Australian dance curriculum primarily purposes to enhance learners’ body recognition along with technical as well as expressive talent to communicate through the techniques of creative and swift dance movements and further enhance the aesthetic, inventive and cultural knowledge of art and dance in past and modern context relates with other forms of arts forms and contributions to culture and societies (Chapman, 2015). In the dance learning area of Australian curriculum, student exhibits an advancement along a curriculum continuum which offers initial success standards at foundation level and then at Levels 2,4,6,8 and 10 (Australiancurriculum.edu.au, 2018). Furthermore, a curriculum for dance learners with disabilities has been provided in the learning area. The dance curriculum primarily emphasizes on choreographing, performing and acknowledging dance forms. Learners using this curriculum use the components of dance in order to explore ideas of choreography and further to practise technical and expressive skills. Victoriancurriculum.vcaa.vic.edu.au (2018) reveal that this form of learning area can be integrated by dance learning and improve inventive ways of moving both individually as well as collaboratively.
Conclusion
There can be identified four primary compositional elements of dance namely space, time, dynamics and relationships. Educators must understand the intensity of relationships of dancers towards each other which are based on geometric designs and tend to change when they move towards each other or be apart. Dancers further emphasize on the techniques and attention towards space outwardly or inwardly which are immensely crucial for educators to understand before offering any forms of dance learning (Ausdance Victoria, 2018). Furthermore, while learning dance forms in primary education level educators must focus on the force, energy as well as dynamics related to the dance movements as part of compositional element of force. However, the physical posturing related to shape or design and technique formed by various dancers must be fundamentally comprehended by educators while teaching at primary level of dance curriculum (Australiancurriculum.edu.au, 2018). Thus to conclude it can be stated that role of contemporary dance teacher teaching both at early education or primary education level does not wholly depends on offering dance ideas and techniques but primarily sheds light on a conscious leadership in the world of varied potentials with competence of teaching the way to dance.
References
Ausdance Victoria. (2018). Education for Teachers. Retrieved from https://www.ausdancevic.org.au/education-for-teachers/
Australiancurriculum.edu.au. (2018). Dance. Retrieved from https://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/f-10-curriculum/the-arts/dance/
Berk, L. (2017). Development through the lifespan. Pearson Education India. Retrieved from https://www.pearsonhighered.com/assets/preface/0/2/0/5/0205968988.pdf
Bers, M. U., Flannery, L., Kazakoff, E. R., & Sullivan, A. (2014). Computational thinking and tinkering: Exploration of an early childhood robotics curriculum. Computers & Education, 72, 145-157. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2013.10.020
Black, M. M., Walker, S. P., Fernald, L. C., Andersen, C. T., DiGirolamo, A. M., Lu, C., … & Devercelli, A. E. (2017). Early childhood development coming of age: science through the life course. The Lancet, 389(10064), 77-90. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(16)31389-7
Chapman, S. N. (2015). Arts immersion: Using the arts as a language across the primary school curriculum. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 40(9), 5. https://dx.doi.org/10.14221/ajte.2015v40n9.5
Craft, A., Cremin, T., Hay, P., & Clack, J. (2014). Creative primary schools: developing and maintaining pedagogy for creativity. Ethnography and Education, 9(1), 16-34. Retrieved from https://oro.open.ac.uk/31491/3/Craft%20et%20al%20Creative%20Primary%20Schools%20%2012%20JULY%202013.pdf
Green, J. (2015). Somatic sensitivity and reflexivity as validity tools in qualitative research. Research in Dance Education, 16(1), 67-79. doi: 10.1080/14647893.2014.971234
Lummis, G. W., Morris, J., & Paolino, A. (2014). An investigation of western Australian pre-service primary teachers’ experiences and self-efficacy in the arts. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 39(5), 4. https://dx.doi.org/10.14221/ajte.2014v39n5.4
Roche, J., & Huddy, A. (2015). Creative adaptations: integrating Feldenkrais principles in contemporary dance technique to facilitate the transition into tertiary dance education. Theatre, Dance and Performance Training, 6(2), 145-158. https://doi.org/10.1080/19443927.2015.1027452
Roskos, K. A. (Ed.). (2017). Play and literacy in early childhood: Research from multiple perspectives. Routledge. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Susan_Sonnenschein/publication/266675509_Reading_is_a_source_of_entertainment_The_importance_of_the_home_perspective_for_literacy/links/5437160b0cf2bf1f1f2d462e.pdf
Tantia, J. F. (2016). The interface between somatic psychotherapy and dance/movement therapy: a critical analysis. Body, Movement and Dance in Psychotherapy, 11(2-3), 181-196. DOI: 10.1080/17432979.2015.1109549
Victoriancurriculum.vcaa.vic.edu.au. (2018). Music – Rationale and Aims – Victorian Curriculum. Retrieved from https://victoriancurriculum.vcaa.vic.edu.au/the-arts/music/introduction/rationale-and-aims
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