FIG. 14

Final report - project MOVE 2017-2018

3.2 Education in Art and Sport as a contribution to the analysis of Move best practices

Art and Sport, as we could see in the earlier topic, are the chosen spheres wherein the best practices of the Project Move belong. Therefore, we want to explicit why we had selected those spheres as the main domains in order to face the disadvantages of young people. Concerning the philosophical Agora Model, Art and Sport are spheres from the training domain (training spheres), bounded by creativity in case of Art and by rules in case of Sport. Artistic and sporting practices are part of human activities as an expression of individuality and social communication (J. Habermas, 1929)4

3.2.1 Art-education domain

As we had explained before, creativity is the main capacity developed in the field of Art. "Creativity is a key factor guiding civilizations and a basic need of Organizations" (Colaço dos Santos, 2014 p. 1 trad.). 5

It is a powerful contribution for the human development and the community in the sense that being creative means having the ability to innovative and to find alternative solutions for a problem by using a divergent way to produce (divergent versus convergent).

In order to deal with current challenges such as globalization, drop out, school failure, unemployment, social isolation or juvenile crime, the development of creativity in young people provides intellectual tools to find successful, sometimes unexpected outcomes.

Very near to creativity is also problem-solving capacity (as one of the XXI skills), using convergent production.6 Creativity requires the use of higher levels of complex cognition such as project planning, applying mathematical models, analyzing and synthesizing multiple information, finding transversality between subjects and so on.7

Fig. 14

4 Jurgen Habermas theory (1929-). 5 Free translation from Colaço dos Santos; 2014: p.1 6 Guilford, 1975 7 According to Webb (2005) it is possible to categorize the actions that result from cognitive thinking at levels of complexity, from the first level that mobilizes simple actions to the fourth level that requires the mobilization of an articulated set of cognitive actions. For example, we can find level one actions of complexity such as recognition, description of something, ordering, repeating ... level two actions of cognitive complexity may be the demonstration of something, comparison or simple association, etc. Level three actions of cognitive complexity may be to critique, evaluate, conceive hypotheses, solve problems. Level four actions of cognitive complexity may be to analyze, elaborate syntheses, apply concepts, create. Creativity presents itself as a level four capability of cognitive complexity whose development is permanently realized within the scope of the Arts. But this does not mean that it is more difficult to develop, it means that for its development is essential the reflexive practice of the artistic exercise, that is, the holistic mobilization of knowledge (articulation of knowledge, knowing to be, knowing to be and to know how to do through the work of art).

Final report - project MOVE 2017-2018

The development of creativity is considered one of the central capacities for the mobilization of competences for the XXI century in which Arts plays an essential role. However, Art as a sphere of learning is also an activity that firstly awakens the senses physically, providing pleasure, energy, and motivation. These inputs are positive reinforcements that help people, particularly vulnerable young people, to find constructive perspectives in their social live.

The artistic manifestations are privileged products to stimulate the sense of beauty, encouraging the poetic way to see the world, mainly by the perception of harmony. The concept of beauty, in the classical sense of the term – from Greek Antiquity - offers a perception of static equilibrium, stability and centrality, a perception of symmetry.

Nevertheless, when we look at the idea of beauty in a social context, this can be seen as a “wellbeing bourgeois”. This means to overestimate the stereotype , poor and non-genuine “taste”7. This idea of the beauty can degenerate into an unscientific and non-aesthetic classification of society, for example, the perfection and the excellence in the “human race”. The Move team rejects these perspectives. We want to clarify that the perception of the beauty can be part of an aesthetic experience and when promoted by artistic productions, provides a conscious, critical and attentive pleasure. On the other hand, the modern art (mostly against the classic idea of beauty) teach us to see the world in a functional, asymmetrical and dynamic way. These qualities are important to know how to be in society pro-actively. The notion making sense (referring to Erno Eskens8 and the Agora Model) connects with this idea of constructing the world through our critical interpretation of the message and our reflection when we are dealing with artistic objects.

It is not obvious that art-education is absolutely a privileged way of developing the most complex levels of creativity, of the aesthetic sense of the world, or of building knowledge. The use of artistic expression and the enjoyment of cultural work in the field of learning has undergone significant changes over time, as the aesthetic-artistic movements have been assumed in society. These artistic currents influenced different approaches in teaching learning, with respect to Art-Education, according to the theory of Arthur Efland (1995).

The four artistic currents in art education are differentiated by the stylistic principles that sustain them, the type of teaching learning and the profile of the educator.

Mimetic approach

The oldest and most traditional approach is the "Mimetic current, dating back at least to the Middle Ages. This current in education values the imitation of Nature, based on the observation and copying of classic models. Artistic production is restricted and controlled, requiring above all respect for rules, technical virtuosity, and excellence of result. From the young learner's point of view, this approach strongly limits creativity and critical sense, but provides a robust, though limited, technical knowledge.

Expressionist approach

The expressionist current that emerged in force in the Twentieth Century, brought to education in art, freedom of expression, and the assumption of individuality. The expression of feelings and

8 During a presentation about “The Agora model” at International School Voor Wijsbegeerte (ISVW), Netherlands 16

Final report - project MOVE 2017-2018

emotions became a determining factor for learning, contrary to the mimetic current. The starting point is no longer technical control, but an invitation to exteriorize one's own personality without being without being judged by value or manipulation. The process is more important than the results. "In this way of conceiving Art (as expression), artistic expression practices corresponded to an Expressionist movement: non-directed, free expression exercises, which, in opposition to the previous model, sought to promote originality through the transfer of freedom. However, this freedom, coupled with the fear of influencing the individuality of each student, often ended up translating into "nonteaching."9 In other words, the role of the teacher is to let the student totally free.

Social Reconstructionist approach

The social Reconstructionist current is the third approach in art education, according to Efland. Artistic production was at the service of society's needs, that is, Art had a social role of intervention and could contribute to improving people's quality of life. Everyone had the ability to create. The experience of creation was itself a learning process with others. Project work is the most explored methodology in the teaching-learning process. Teamwork is valued, giving importance to the consensual construction of an artistic team proposal. Creativity, critical sense and team spirit are strongly encouraged.

Formalist approach

The formalist current valued the formal aspects of the visual composition, identified as being the Formal Period. Initially constructed by the Bauhaus School (1919-1933), which carried out the first studies on visual perception (Gestalt), later developed by Cognitive Psychology. The Formalist artistic education was an application of the knowledge about the functioning of the brain, fruit of investigations on the characteristics of the left and right hemispheres thought, produced by the neurobiologist and Nobel Prize, Roger Sperry. Alongside these discoveries, other studies on human learning by Jerome Bruner in the nineteen sixties reinforced the idea that learning is an interactive process, and students are not mere deposits of knowledge. 10

Which one is best suited to the intentions of the MOVE project? What good practices can we select, in the field of Arts, according to the objectives we intended to achieve, in order to develop the necessary 21st century competences (will be explained later) The different approaches do not in themselves provide sufficient support for best practices, together they are complementary. We can say that none is substitutable, but the combination of the social Reconstructionist and Formalist (Visual culture) approaches is a fundamental base in the good practices. On the other hand, we should adapt the best strategy to face a problem or specific need of the young person and can mean the acquisition of techniques of artistic representation (Mimetic) or the urgency to exteriorize emotions (Expressionist).

"(...) the plurality of postmodern art suggests an eclectic Art Education curriculum, which does not dispense with modernist or pre-modernist practices and theories, in which different aesthetics take place, rather than contributing to the understanding of art, as they help to clarify the meanings and values to which different artistic genres have corresponded throughout history. 11

9 Lima de Sousa, Ana, O Perfil do Professor de Artes Visuais em Portugal (1860- actualidade): ilações para o futuro, 2010, p.5 10 Monteiro Nogueira, Ana Isabel, Representações gráficas da dinâmica do corpo: Desenho, Master degree dissertation, 2013, p.12-13 11 Lima de Sousa, Ana Tudela, O Perfil do Professor de Artes Visuais em Portugal (1860- actualidade): ilações para o futuro , 2010, p.9