ACCOUNTABILITY FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF SECONDARY VISUAL ARTS STANDARDS IN UTAH AND QUEENSLAND by John Derby A thesis submitted to the faculty of Brigham Young University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Department of Visual Arts Brigham Young University March, 2005 Copyright © 2005 John Derby All Rights Reserved BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY GRADUATE COMMITTEE APPROVAL of a thesis submitted by John Derby This thesis has been read by each member of the following graduate committee and by majority vote has been awarded the highest rank of Distinction. _______________________________ ____________________________________ Date Donna Kay Beattie, Chair _______________________________ ____________________________________ Date Michael Day _______________________________ ____________________________________ Date Sherron Hill BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY As chair of the candidate’s graduate committee, I have read the thesis of John Derby in its final form and have found that (1) its format, citations, and bibliographical style are consistent and acceptable and fulfill university and department style requirements; (2) its illustrative materials including figures, tables, and charts are in place; and (3) the final manuscript is satisfactory to the graduate committee and is ready for submission to the university library. _______________________________ ____________________________________ Date Donna Kay Beattie Chair, Graduate Committee Accepted for the Department ____________________________________ Michael Day Graduate Coordinator, Art Education Accepted for the College ____________________________________ Rory Scanlon Associate Dean, College of Fine Arts and Communications ABSTRACT ACCOUNTABILITY FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF SECONDARY VISUAL ARTS STANDARDS IN UTAH AND QUEENSLAND John Derby Department of Visual Arts Master of Arts Utah and the majority of states have adopted mandatory standards for visual arts, yet no accountability measures have been established. Consequently, it is impossible to determine if standards are being addressed in the art classroom and aggregate grades are subjective.
Queensland, Australia instituted a system of moderated school-based assessment (moderation) in 1971, whereby assessment is accomplished locally, then verified by peer experts. Queensland ensures that standards are addressed in curricula and assessment and that exit grades are reliable and comparable. Research has shown that Utah and Queensland share comparable visual arts standards and similar demographics. Queensland moderation has been extensively studied for solutions to Utah and U.
Queensland teachers submit curricula, assessment tasks, and assessed student work to the Queensland Studies Authority (QSA), which is responsible for moderation. QSA suggests modifications where appropriate, thus ensuring accuracy. Schools are then compared according to group performance on a standardized core skills test and aggregate grades are scaled, resulting in student rankings. Research has revealed that Queensland visual arts teachers widely approve of moderation.
Accountability validates good teaching and promotes diligence. Teachers also appreciate QSA curriculum and assessment guidelines. Because these are regulated, QSA has been able to promote progressive directives effectively, including integrated authentic assessment and student-directed conceptual approaches to art. Queensland has constantly striven for improvement through research and teacher feedback.
Consequently, Queensland is considered a global leader in school-based assessment. Art education literature implies that accountability for visual arts education is inevitable. Arts educators strongly oppose traditional external testing. Moderation is the proven alternative to traditional testing.
While other models of moderation exist, the QSA model is similar in theory to the predominant Utah and U. philosophy of standards- based assessment. At the same time, the QSA model offers flexible options that allow emerging theories to be embraced. The research, then, suggests that Utah and other states should consider implementing versions of moderated school-based assessment based on the success of QSA.
The thesis concludes with recommendations for the U., and a practical curriculum guide that embraces curriculum and assessment merits of Queensland visual arts education. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This thesis would not have been possible without the exceptional advice, assistance, and advocacy of my committee chair, Dr. Donna Kay Beattie. For her support and academic example, I am deeply indebted and express my utmost gratitude.
Michael Day has been an inspiration of scholarship and a tremendous help with respect to research guidance. I also thank Dr. Sherron Hill for his continuous help and support. I thank the Office of Graduate Studies of Brigham Young University, which has supported this research generously through a Graduate Mentoring Grant.
I thank my committee for awarding this thesis the highest rank of Distinction. Many thanks are owed to those in Queensland who have freely offered their time, expertise, and opinions to me. Brendan Lea, former Key Learning Area Officer, the Arts, of Queensland Studies Authority, deserves acute thanks; his knowledge, expertise, and collaboration have been indispensable. Finally, I wish to acknowledge those who support me personally.
I thank Lori, my wife, whose help has been unremitting and selfless and whose literacy is inspiring. Most importantly, I attribute this accomplishment to God, and I express my gratitude to the Roman Catholic Church, which teaches me to labor for love, peace, and social justice. viii Table of Contents Abstract v Acknowledgements vii CHAPTER 1 1 Introduction 4 Justification 12 CHAPTER 2 14 Review of the Literature 14 Definition of Visual Arts Standards 15 The Role of Visual Arts Standards in the United States 17 Assessment Theory Regarding Visual Arts Standards 20 Visual Arts Accountability in the United States 27 Utah and Queensland Demographic Comparison 31 General Demographics 36 Population Data 36 Ethnic Data 38 Economic Data 41 School Demographics 43 Utah Core and Senior Syllabus Comparison 51 Utah Core analysis 52 Utah Core Structure 53 Administrative Overview 54 Achievement Portfolios 55 Utah Core Standards, Objectives, and Indicators 57 Standard 1, Making 57 Standard 2, Perceiving 58 Standard 3, Expressing 59 Standard 4, Contextualizing 61 Exceptions to the General Standards and Objectives 62 Assessment 64 Senior Syllabus Analysis 65 Purpose of the Senior Syllabus 66 Senior Syllabus Components 69 Section 1, Rationale 70 Section 2, Global Aims 71 ix Section 3, General Objectives 72 Section 4, Course Organization 75 Section 5, Learning Experiences 79 Section 6, Assessment 80 Section 7, Work Program Requirements 85 Sections 8 and 9 86 Utah Core and Senior Syllabus Comparison 87 Comparison of Document Contents 87 Comparison of Standards 88 Comparison of Curriculum 88 Comparison of Assessment 90 Comparison of Accountability 91 CHAPTER 3 93 Research Goals 93 Preliminary Research 93 Principal Research 95 Methodology 98 Methodology for Preliminary Research 99 Methodology for Principal Research 100 Establishing Reliable Subjects 101 Determining Methodology for Queensland Research 103 Principal Research Implementation 107 Data Collection 108 Content Analysis 109 Comparative Analysis 113 CHAPTER 4 115 Queensland Secondary Education Basics 115 QSA Administrative Structure 116 Queensland Secondary Education Course Types 119 Queensland Student Rankings 120 Queensland Tertiary Education System 122 Moderated School-based Assessment in Queensland 124 Moderation Procedures 125 Accreditation 125 Review 127 x Monitoring 127 Verification 128 Approvals 132 Random Sampling 132 Calculation of Student Rankings 133 History of Education in Queensland 138 Strengths and Weaknesses of the QSA System 166 Perceived QSA Strengths 167 Perceived QSA Weaknesses 172 Summary of QSA Strengths and Weaknesses 180 CHAPTER 5 183 Recommendation for Utah Art Education 184 Recommendation for United States Art Education 188 Curriculum Guide 189 CURRICULUM GUIDE 192 References 200 Appendix A, Utah State Visual Arts Core Appendix B, Visual Art Senior Syllabus 2001 Appendix C, The Moderation Handbook Appendix D, Calculating OPs: The Basic Principles xi List of Tables Table 1, United States Visual Arts Standards Policies 19 Table 2, Demographic Comparison of Utah and Queensland 33 Table 3, Economic Comparison of Utah and Queensland 34 Table 4, Comparability of Visual Arts Standards in Utah and Queensland 74 Table 5, Queensland Research Profile 111 xii List of Figures Figure 1, Utah State Visual Arts Core standards and objectives. Comparison of information flow between state governments, 67 teachers, and students, according to the USOE (Utah) Core and the QSA (Queensland) Senior Syllabus.
1 CHAPTER 1 Utah has recently embarked upon a campaign to improve fine arts education. Introduced in 2001, the High School Visual Arts Core Curriculum (Utah Core) marks a concerted effort to define state standards that are aligned with national standards, easy to understand, and measurable. The effectiveness of the Utah Core, however, must be brought into question: Do school curricula and student performance reflect the identified standards? Presently, the Utah does not have accountability measures in place for district or individual school programs, which would ensure statewide consistency in addressing state standards. According to Carol Goodson of the Utah State Office of Education (USOE), this problem has been acknowledged at the state level, but the USOE has decided against imposing accountability measures in the foreseeable future (personal communication, December 4, 2003).
Because schools are not held accountable for the implementation of standards in visual arts, uncertainty exists with respect to standards in terms of curriculum, assessment, and learning outcomes. Additionally, the United States Department of Education (USDE) has instated the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), which demands attention and accountability to standards in core content areas. Fine arts, including visual arts, has been identified as a core subject area, and is, therefore, subject to the stipulations of NCLB. The USDE (2004) states, All states must implement statewide accountability systems.
These systems will: [sic] set academic standards in each content area for what students should know and be able to do; gather specific, objective data through tests aligned with those 2 standards; use test data to identify strengths and weaknesses in the system; …and direct changes in schools that need help. If standards are to be effective, it is imperative that visual arts educators in the United States seek solutions as to how they might be improved, implemented, and assessed. Queensland, Australia addressed a similar crisis with its general education system in the early 1970s. The Queensland Studies Authority (QSA) developed, over time, a cooperative system in which grades eleven and twelve curricula, called work programs, are assessed by groups of peer experts, called review panels.
Thirteen district review panels evaluate the effectiveness of local work programs and intervene whenever a work program is considered incomplete in addressing standards with reliability and consistency. Through moderation, district review panels support teachers “by providing feedback on how they might improve their curriculum design, assessment and application of standards to student work” (B. Lea, personal communication, April 21, 2004). Additionally, a state review panel (in each discipline) oversees the thirteen district panels, and analyzes samples of student work and work programs to ensure educational consistency throughout Queensland.
State panels also work with teachers who are unable to appease district panels, although this is rarely necessary. The result is exceptional quality and consistency of curricula and assessment, with respect to state standards. Through experimentation and diligence, Queensland has emerged as a global leader in school-based assessment, which has implications for visual arts assessment in Utah and many other states. This thesis compares Utah and Queensland policies on secondary visual arts education, with respect to state standards, curriculum and assessment guidelines, and 3 reporting procedures.
Research has been conducted in order to discern the merits and implications of Queensland’s system of art education, as compared to Utah art education. The research goal of this thesis has included three sequential components: (1) to establish credible grounds for comparing Utah and Queensland based on similarity of demographics and art education goals, (2) to evaluate and compare the contents and quality of visual arts programs in Utah and Queensland, and (3) to construct recommendations for Utah and other states on how to increase quality and consistency of visual arts education by revising state education policies on accountability measures. Indeed, research has yielded positive conclusions. First, preliminary research has provided evidence that Utah and Queensland are similar in terms of demographic makeup and in terms of secondary visual arts education goals and standards.
These results are detailed in chapter 2. Second, research has been conducted at both sites to determine the quality and consistency of art education. The most compelling conclusion pertains to consistency: USOE does not hold schools accountable to its mandated standards, whereas QSA does measure students’ and schools’ application and achievement of standards. Queensland is able to quantify its success in meeting standards, whereas Utah cannot.