Western Michigan University ScholarWorks at WMU Master's Theses Graduate College 4-2020 The Influence of Environment: A Holistic Approach to Middle and Secondary Art Room Design Leslie Y. Roberts Western Michigan University, leslieroberts1121@gmail.com Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.edu/masters_theses Part of the Art Education Commons Recommended Citation Roberts, Leslie Y., "The Influence of Environment: A Holistic Approach to Middle and Secondary Art Room Design" (2020).edu/masters_theses/5120 This Masters Thesis-Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate College at ScholarWorks at WMU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Master's Theses by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at WMU. For more information, please contact wmu-scholarworks@wmich.
THE INFLUENCE OF ENVIRONMENT: A HOLISTIC APPROACH TO MIDDLE AND SECONDARY ART ROOM DESIGN by Leslie Y. Roberts A thesis submitted to the Graduate College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Art. Frostic School of Art Western Michigan University April 2020 Thesis Committee: William Charland, Ph., Chair Christina Chin, Ph. Roberts THE INFLUENCE OF ENVIRONMENT: A HOLISTIC APPROACH TO MIDDLE AND SECONDARY ART ROOM DESIGN Leslie Y.
Western Michigan University, 2020 This thesis takes an in-depth look at the elements within the classroom and how they affect students physiological and psychological needs and the impact those elements have on students’ academic success. I offer suggestions based on the research for changes that can be made to your current environment to increase students’ academic success. Additionally, through years of experience and additional research on classroom environments within this thesis I have created a floor plan for an ideal middle and high school art wing. This thesis also covers several different approaches to teaching, and I have used this information plus my experience as an educator to develop a holistic-friendly middle school curriculum, that aims to teach a child’s physical, emotional, and academical needs.
I have broken down each project within each grade level to provide future educators with best practices I have developed and adjusted to incorporate research into these best practices. When an educator considers the physiological and psychological affects the classroom environment has on students and appropriately modifies their teaching style and lesson plans to engage the holistic child, the educator is then choosing to set up an environment where students will be successful in class and into their adult lives. TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES………………………………………………………………………………vi INTRODUCTION…………………………….1 Research problem……………………………………………………………………………1 LITERATURE REVIEW…………………………………………………………………………3 The School Environment……………………………………………………………………3 Designing the School Environment: A Brief History ………………………………………3 The Necessary Elements of Classroom Design…………………………………………….5 Light and academic performance……………………………………………………5 Sound and academic performance………………………………………………….6 Scent and mood…………………………………………………………………….7 Temperature and student achievement………………………………………………9 Mirror neurons: the teacher as working artist…………………………………….10 Designing a studio culture.11 Teacher-student interactions……………………………………………………….11 Peer interactions……………………………………………………………………12 Displaying student work………………………………………………………….13 The Necessary Elements of the Art Classroom……………………………………………13 ii Table of Contents—Continued Elements in an elementary art room……………………………………………….14 Security and shelter……………………………………………………………….14 Social contact and symbolic identification……………………………………….15 Task instrumentality and growth………………………………………………….16 Elements in a high school art room……………………………………………….17 American disabilities act (ADA) and classroom design………………………….17 Other Approaches to the Learning Environment………………………………………….18 Social-emotional education…………………………………….19 Empathy-based education……………………………………….…………………21 Teaching for artistic behavior (TAB)………….…………………………………23 The Holistic Healing Environment……………………………………………………….27 Play in the art room……………………………………………….………………30 Art as therapy……………………………………………………….…………32 Summary of Literature Review………………………………………………………….34 iii Table of Contents—Continued A HOLISTIC APPROACH TO DESIGNING A MIDDLE OR SECONDARY WING…….35 A Brief Introduction to Leslie Roberts’ Education Career……………………………….35 The Necessary Changes to the Classroom Environment, Today………………………….36 Modifying lighting to improve student performance in the classroom…………….36 Fine-tuning sound to improve student performance in the classroom…………….37 Regulating sent to improve student mood and performance in the classroom…….39 Adjusting temperature to improve student performance in the classroom……….39 Engaging mirror neurons: the teacher as working artist………………………….40 Developing a studio culture……………………………………………………….40 Encouraging play and expression………………………………………………….41 Displaying student work………………………………………………………….42 Designing the Ideal Middle and Secondary Art Classroom……………………………….44 The general work area…………………………………………………………….44 The demo area…………………………………………………………………….46 The wet room………………………………………………………………………47 iv Table of Contents—Continued The storage room………………………………………………………………….48 The outdoor learning area………………………………………………………….48 Designing a 6th through 8th Curriculum………………………………………………….48 6th grade curriculum: emphasis, self………………………………………………50 7th grade curriculum: emphasis, community…………………………………….58 8th grade curriculum: emphasis, global connection………………………………. Sixth Grade Curriculum………………………………………………………………….
Seventh Grade Curriculum………………………………………………………………77 C. Eighth Grade Curriculum…………………………………………………………….…78 v LIST OF FIGURES 1. Ideal classroom floor plan……………………………………………………………………. 6th grade mixed media example from collection of author……….
6th grade self-portrait example from collection of author………………………. 6th grade sculpture example from collection of author…………. 6th grade photography example from collection of author……………………………………. 6th grade painting example from collection of author…………………………………………58 7.
7th grade mixed media example from collection of author………. 7th grade self-portrait example from collection of author………………. 7th grade group sculpture example from collection of author…………………………………63 10. 7th grade photography example from collection of author………………………………….
7th grade contour ASL hand painting example from collection of author………. 8th grade mixed media example from collection of author……………. 8th grade self-portrait example from collection of author………………….68 14 – exam example by Etsy artisan, Darleen Bellan…………………. 8th grade photography example from collection of author………………………………….
8th grade painting example from collection of author……………………………………….70 vi INTRODUCTION Research Problem Currently, educators have many hats to wear, and they must find ways to balance them all. Teachers play the role of the counselor, role model, and disciplinary figure. In addition to the aforementioned, Burke & Burke-Samide (2010) also stressed educators, “are expected to design classroom spaces that are conducive to student’s individual learning styles” (p. The environment must feel inviting, safe, and also facilitate maximum learning.
Educators do all this all while attempting to meet the needs of their students who are coming to them with a range of learning disabilities, physical disabilities, emotional instability, trauma, socio-economic status, and so much more. Since students spend most of their weekdays in school, it can become their safe space away from a toxic environment. Brunzell, Waters, & Stokes (2015) stated, “The National Child Traumatic Stress Network in the United States reports that up to 40% of students have experienced, or been witness to, traumatic stressors in their short lifetimes” (p. Such stressors have an impact on students’ relationships and performance in school.
Brunzell et al., (2015) study found the following: The effects of trauma on a child severely compound the ability to self-regulate and sustain healthy relationships. In the classroom, the effects of trauma may manifest as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, conduct disorder, oppositional defiance disorder, reactive attachment, and/or acute stress disorders (p. According to Brunzell et al., (2015), many young individuals report to school daily in order to meet their social belonging and personal improvement needs. How does a school become a safe space for students? Kidger, Araya, Donovan, and Gunnell (2012) suggested that the school environments, class sizes, student to teacher ratios, educational practices, and quality interactions 1 all play a role in students emotional well-being.
“The school environment also influences students’ academic success indirectly, by impacting students’ behaviors” (Johnson, Burke, & Gielen, 2011, p. Due to the aforementioned effects, it is important for educators to note that the school environment plays a significant role in a student’s life. Voight and Maury (2016) advised that educators are now seeking different approaches to improve school climate in middle and high school, due to increased attention in education policy. As previously stated, the environment impacts students’ mental well-being, their academic success, and their safety.
Creating a safe and inviting space can be an uphill battle for educators because most school infrastructure decisions are out of their control. Poesen-Vandeputte & Nicaise (2014) stressed, “School infrastructure can hardly meet the new challenges of the twenty-first century such as sustainability, new teaching methods, and the changing social role of the school” (p. Since much of school infrastructure is out of the teacher’s control, the teacher must make the biggest difference with minor changes to the environment in order to meet their students’ needs and greatly impact their educational careers. 2 LITERATURE REVIEW The School Environment The past section discussed the concerns about the classroom environment, challenges educators face when making improvements to their classroom, and the impact it has on students’ academic success.
But what is school environment in simple terms? According to Voight and Maury (2016), “school climate refers to the school physical and social environment and is typically operationalized as the aggregation of individual student and staff behaviors and perceptions” (p. The school climate becomes substantially important during adolescence because this is the time when students need additional support and safety due to adolescents being in a critical phase of personal and intellectual development. Designing the School Environment: A Brief History Designing an ideal school environment to create a space that provides optimal learning for students while using current technologies and considering future technologies is not a new subject. In fact, this has been an ongoing topic for decades.
In 1938, Smith stated, “normal changes in curriculum naturally result in some changes in building standards, but a clear statement of what is to be accomplished is the plain responsibility of the school administration” (p. Smith agreed with Spain’s claims that: To meet changing needs of the curriculum, the demands of safety, the dictates of good architecture, and the financial resources of the community, offer a challenge to the superintendent of schools and the architect. and make a demand upon their resources which few of them are prepared to meet (Spain, NA, as cited in Smith, 1938, p. This rings true today as all variables are attempted to be met in order to provide a safe and up to date school environment.
Smith (1938) pointed out, “too often have modern working programs 3 been forced into newly constructed buildings designed without full regard for that program” (p. This insightful comment from Smith is still relevant due to the fast pace in which educational norms are progressing and technologies are advancing. Once all parties have agreed upon school environmental changes, and those changes have been implemented through new construction, the result is that by the completion of these changes, the new additions are nearly out of date. There have been many influences that required changes to the school environment throughout the decades.
In the early 19th century, there was the public health movement that demanded schools address the issue of overcrowding and unsanitary conditions. This was closely followed by urbanization and modernization, which addressed the industrial and commercial economy and pushed curriculum toward manual trainings and technical subjects. This in turn required advances in teacher trainings, new technologies, and spaces to be developed to accommodate the educational needs during this time (Gislason, 2009). Following the urbanization and modernization of schools in the 20th century was the onset of the teaching philosophy: progressivism.
Progressivism pressed for loose configurations of the school environment, which allowed for teachers to be in control of their personal classroom space. This allowed for teachers to be able to move classroom furniture around to meet the needs of their students, educational practices, and not have an impact on the integrity of the school structure as a whole (Gislason, 2009). Finally, more recently we have the teaching philosophy: constructivism which expands on the loose configurations of the progressive approach to the school environment and puts the student first. This style utilizes student-driven and activities-based learning to support the needs of the learner (Gislason, 2009).
With education constantly in flux due to the ever changing state 4 and federal laws and policies, school environments, technologies, teacher trainings, and students, there is a significant amount of understanding that is needed in order to continue to advance current and future classroom environments. The Necessary Elements of Classroom Design According to Burke and Burke-Samide (2004), the traditional classroom setting with plastic or metal desks, hard chairs, bright lights, excess noise, unusual smells, and irregular temperature are potentially impairing student academic growth. As discussed earlier, many of the elements of classroom design are selected during the initial designing of the school infrastructure. Unfortunately, many of these decisions are not in the hands of the educator.
Seaward (2018) might consider this a roadblock for educators in the environmental design process of their classroom.