Back to the Drawing Board: Utilizing Project-Based Learning and Portfolio Assessments Across the Curriculum

AbstractThis paper explores the question: "In what ways can project-based learning and portfolio assessments, which are central to art education, improve teaching and evaluation practices in the general curriculum in the United States school system?" Project-based learning is a participatory approach that engages students in real-world challenges and problem solving. Portfolio assessments, an alternative to standardized assessments, is a way of documenting student growth and development; encouraging students to take ownership of their individual educational goals. Visual art is increasingly being cut from our public school systems even though No Child Left Behind considers Fine Arts to be part of the "core-curriculum." Mathematics and literacy are being taught extensively, and in turn, much of the students day is being spent focused on these subjects with the goal of showing growth on a standardized assessment. Visual Art, its value as a stand alone subject and its role in supplementing other subjects, is being diminished and the respect for it has depreciated. Both project-based learning and portfolio assessments are actively used in the visual art education classroom. In addition, they have been used by several countries school systems and a select number of schools in the United States to reach their students, schools that place high value on education. Teaching and evaluation practices in the general curriculum in the United States school system can be improved by analyzing these approaches and being open to the lessons visual art has to offer. Keywords: Visual Art, Education, Portfolio Assessment, Project-Based Learning

Author

• Olson, Emmilu

Language

• en

Keyword

• Project-based Learning
• Assessments
• Standardized testing
• Portfolio Assessments
• Portfolio

Date created

• 2014

Type of Work

• Master's Thesis

License

• All rights reserved

Rights statement

• In Copyright

GW Unit

• Art Education

Degree

• M.A.

Advisor

• Honig, Selila

Committee Member(s)

• Lawton, Pamela

Persistent URL

•  https://scholarspace.library.gwu.edu/etd/c821gj91f