Abstract
This paper describes a longitudinal study of a five semester-long
after school arts technology program for middle school youth. This
research project examined the effects of the Multimedia Arts Education Program
(MAEP) on high school success, or graduation, and career aspirations on a
cohort of 29 students, 14 girls and 15 boys. Data gathered in 1996-97, the
first full year of the program, served as the base-line data for the extended
study and identified the cohort who completed the program. Twenty-nine students
graduated from the MAEP program in 1997-98. Of that number, we were unable
to contact eight. Twenty had graduated from high school, or were planning
to graduate in 2003. One had discontinued work on her GED to care for
her baby. Nine were attending the local University or the Community College.
All reported having continued use of the art technology skills they learned
in the program.
The Multimedia Arts Education Program (MAEP) was an intensive computer-mediated
arts technology program of the Tucson Pima Arts Council (TPAC), Arts Education
Department. In MAEP, middle school youth, targeted from disadvantaged families,
participated in a series after school classes (Betts, 2000). They worked
with arts professionals for a semester each in computer graphics and publishing,
language arts and word processing, computer animation, and video production.
The fifth semester portfolio class capitalized on their cumulative skills
and allowed them to revisit earlier work and produce a home page and a multimedia
newsletter publication. Students had two years to complete the
five semesters. Upon graduation they received a computer and a printer for
their personal use. Each semester they could earn money by demonstrating
competence with the technology, for which they received $25.00, and for planning,
proposing and completing their final project, also $25.00.
This study examined the role of art and technology integration in an after
school setting. The art is in the aesthetic response required in engaging
problems of design, expression, collaboration and creative thinking as higher
order thinking skills. The technology provides the cognitive support, replicability
and production accuracy. In combination, solving art problems with computers
engages learners in several ways in productive and reflective activity that
will influence school careers and possibly prepare them for the electronic
arts workplace.
Population
Most studentswere Hispanic and bilingual in Spanish to
some extent. Most started the program during their 6th or 7th grade.
The balance of male and female students was maintained by selection.
Families were required to qualify for the free or reduced lunch program at
their school and to not already have a computer in the home. Students are
not auditioned for this program. MAEP youth were selected based on factors
contributing to high-drop out rates. They were interviewed with their
parents to emphasize the duration of the commitment. MAEP students are required
to maintain a “c” average in school in order to continue in the program.
Most came from neighborhoods associated with downtown Tucson where the graduation
rate from high school is less than 40%.
Enrollment trends
The students enrolled in the program in loose cohorts
with 8 to 10 students starting in each semester since January of l996, spring
semester. Each semester a new cohort started, with those already enrolled
moving forward through the five semesters at an uneven pace. Many students
did not go straight through for five semesters, but took one or more semesters
off. In the table below the percentage of each starting cohort graduating
who graduated from the program are shown in the far right column. These
percentages are based on the number of those in the cohort who completed
their first semester.
Semester
|
#Stdnts
enrolled
|
#New
Students
|
# New Students
Compl 1st Sem.
|
# Students
Promoted
|
# of Grads
|
# Students Graduated
|
Spring
96
|
20
|
20
|
11(55%)
|
11
|
|
8 (73%)
|
Summer 96
|
24
|
17
|
16 (94%)
|
23
|
|
6 (38%)
|
Fall 96
|
27
|
13
|
11 (85%)
|
20
|
|
8 (73%)
|
Spring 97
|
36
|
12
|
9 (75%)
|
31
|
|
8 (89%)
|
Summer 97
|
40
|
14
|
11 (97%)
|
33
|
4
|
6 (55%)
|
Fall 97
|
38
|
5
|
4 (80%)
|
27
|
3
|
1 (25%)
|
Spring 98
|
44
|
15
|
13 (87%)
|
31
|
6
|
10 (77%)
|
Summer 98
|
39
|
20
|
4 (20%)
|
25
|
10
|
7 (42%)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Table One Enrollment/Graduation records 1996-’98
Of the 44 students in the Spring1998 program for example, all but two were
on free or reduced lunch programs at their school. 54% were bi-lingual
Spanish, 79% Hispanic, 7% Native American, 7% African American and 7% Anglo.
There was a waiting list of interested students and families. In the
Summer of 2000 there was a peak enrollment of 58 students with roughly the
same mix.
Theoretical background
In this study we will use Activity theory as a lens for
description and analysis of the MAEP as a complex social system (Engström,
1987, Nardi, 1996, Betts, 1999). Activity theory as a methodology can
provide an integrating framework for linking a set of principals such as
the concept of computers as mediating tools that allow us to interact with
our environments. Activity theory (Rubisov & Margolis, 1996) proposes
that a learning environment can be best understood by taking activity as
a unit of measurement. Activity includes working with others inside
a system of culturally defined tools, signs, and symbols. Activity
theory takes into account the goals and motives of the learners in the context
of the setting and its social aspects.
“Activity theory holds that the integral units of human
life - humans interacting with each other and the world - can be conceptualized
as activities (Italics in original) which serve to fulfill distinctive
motives.” (Scribner, in Tobach, 1996, p. 231)
Activity theory offers a “minimal meaningful context” for understanding
human and social activities; includes the subjects or “actor”(s) whose agency
as participants is the point of view of the analysis and the object acted
upon as well as the dynamic interactions of both (Barab, 2002). The focus
is on how participants transform objects and how the various system components
mediate this transformation.
Activity theory as a lens is inclusive, considering not merely cognitive
aspects, not merely human-computer interaction aspects, but a systemic approach
to understanding social behaviors. The following diagram is based on Yuri
Engström’s work and describes the basic structure of human activity.
Figure 1. Activity Theory diagram (after Engström)
Activities may also be thought of as having a telescoping
structure consisting of motives, goals, actions and operations in embedded
activity systems. Activity theory holds these to be appropriate units of
analysis for describing learning environments.
In the course of their activities in this setting, MAEP
students engaged in actions, such as designing and creating. The operations,
which compose actions, were both mental [learning new software] and behavioral
[drawing]. Actions were carried out for particular purposes or motives.
Students may have wished to learn more about art technology, learn new computer
skills. They may have wished to please their parents, earn money, or
get their own computer. Activities took place under particular conditions:
in the multimedia lab, adjacent to an art gallery, after school, and so on.
And with particular technical means, in this case computers, cameras, application
programs that support creativity in language arts, graphics, animation, etc.
Activities were goal-directed. One salient goal for the students is the personal
computer that would be theirs to take home when they complete the program
and graduate. Another goal is high school graduation. People engaged
in many activities concurrently. Activity theory accounts for learning in
that as a task becomes automatized it forms part of an operation that upon
mastery becomes an action that is part of an activity, which leads to goals.
The reciprocal spiral of development described may be useful in understanding
the experience of MAEP.
Because human systems have contradictions (Engeström
93), there are tensions at each juncture of the system. Systemic tensions
exist between process and product; good art and bad art, aesthetics and technology.
holistic and reductionist, (Nabar, 2002). In MAEP there were tensions
as well between the need for rules of behavior and the need for freedom for
expression, between the need to learn to use new tools and the need to solve
aesthetic problems, and between the cultures that emerged within the whole
group culture. Culture that was part school, part business, part tutoring
class, part computer lab, part art gallery, part office space, There was
a tension built into the artist/teacher positions, as each had to find a
balance between school and the workplace as a model for their lab. The division
of labor was a dynamic attribute that illustrates the trajectory of the system
through time. Teachers found that each student had different abilities
and that once the projects were undertaken, their role as co-investigator
overtook that of the transmitter of knowledge.
The Multimedia Arts Education Program
The MAEP utilized the arts and aesthetic experience as
critical factors in the mastery of computer and media technology. The MAEP
faculty was made up of professional artists, each with some teaching experience.
The large TPAC building, with several computer labs, also included an art
gallery. Many local artists passed through and influenced the culture
of the facility. Some of the initial funding for this project came from the
JTPA (Job Training Partnership Act) so the development of appropriate workplace
attitudes and behaviors was an important and appropriate goal for the program.
The curricula used in the labs each included art and design,
technology, and literacy components. Students learned several professional
level application programs. They learned to make aesthetic considerations
in design, to develop a critical eye and to revise. They kept journals and
wrote proposals for their projects, and they created storyboards, video logs
and scripts, as well as poems and stories. Attendance, punctuality
and deportment were part of the expectation for students. The rules
evolved on a situational basis among the teachers, the director and the students
and in a few years there were consequences for most lapses.
MAEP students learned to use professional computer application
programs to produce high quality work. They concentrated on each specialty
for 10 weeks at a time, using the same general procedure: new artistic and
technology skills and a completed project. In the language arts lab
students did word processing and publishing with ClarisWorks and Creative
Writer II. There is an emphasis on basic English grammar and composition
as well as on their own creativity. In the computer graphics lab they
learned to use Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator and Quark Express. These
are professional tools. Various projects, such as letterhead/business
card sets, calendars and logos involved integration of many electronic arts
tools. The Animation lab had Amiga computers. Students developed narrative
storyboards and two-dimensional computer animations with D-Paint II.
The Video lab had several camera kits with lights and microphones, S-VHS
and VHS format editors, and a Toaster special effects generator. Students
learned basic production techniques as they worked through group and individual
projects.
The various lab activities were articulated as appropriate
for the skills levels attained and products that are developed. Stories
originated in the language arts class became animations. Logos created
in the graphics lab appeared in the videos produced. And, in the final portfolio
class, final projects include revisited earlier work in multimedia form on
CD-ROM or on the World Wide Web. Many of the activities were collaborative
and required students to learn to work together on design and problem solving.
Research questions
This longitudinal study is designed to track: a) students’ success in high
school; b) the impact of the program on extended families; and c) the impact
of the program on students’ college and/or career goals.
In addition, the study looked at a) the evolution of the MAEP, its
curricula and management; b) the development of students’ perceived self-efficacy
and attitudes about art technology; c) skills development; d) evidence of
aesthetic response; and e) school-to-work skills acquisition.
Is there evidence that the MAEP art technology activities dealt with these
issues, and to what extent. Did the MAEP influence the school experience
and/or the home experience, and in what ways may it have been reciprocal?
Were the children actively engaged with the project? Was there encouragement
for them to think, talk or write about the activities? How important
were cooperation and group problem solving to the process? Were they
given opportunities to understand and express their culture? We look at the
MAEP program through this lens to see if there is any correlation with program
success. In addition, data has been analyzed for evidence of “aesthetic
response” (Vygotsky, 1973) and any correlation with student outcomes in terms
of perceived self-efficacy (Bandura, 1993), and attitudes about arts technology.
Data collection
Students and families in the cohort were contacted when
possible to ascertain the student’s situation with high school and plans
for the future. Follow up discussions with some of the MAEP graduate’s
high school teachers indicated and appreciation on their part for the skills
these students brought with them into high school. The parents we contacted
were very positive about the experience and it’s influence on their families.
Participant observation during the cohort year by
university students working as teaching assistants in the labs provided a
look at the activities of the students in each lab. Exit interviews are conducted
with each graduating class, asking them to reflect on the MAEP. Students
took pre- and post skills tests in each lab class, as well as perceived self-efficacy
and attitude questionnaires, self-evaluations, and class evaluations.
Students and teachers in most cases kept journals. Student artwork stored
in digital form as well as displayed on the World Wide Web and on the walls
of the labs showed levels of artistic accomplishment and sensitivity. Examples
of written work and teacher evaluations have been collected.
Participant observation
Over these first two semesters, graduate students and
undergraduate students worked as teaching assistants in the labs. Their
duties were to assist the artist/teachers with teaching and help the students
with their projects. They were asked to record and submit their observations
of the activities randomly twice a week. They also participated with the
teachers in codifying the curriculum for each lab. During the first semester,
two graduate students covered all five labs. They got an overview of
the program and a sense of how each lab was special and how they all worked
together. They concentrated on the Language Arts lab curriculum and
made several useful suggestions for utilizing the WWW in that context. Here
the TA’s provided help in creating assessment tools and developing curriculum.
These tests and learning objectives helped to give the lab focus.
The teaching assistant observations followed a pattern that began with orientation
and introduction, followed by engagement with the technology used, and finally
to a point where there was understanding of the dynamics of each lab and
the techniques under study. The university students became the more
competent peers in a zone of proximal development as the middle school students
acquired the skills that the various operations and actions required.
Exit interviews
At the end of each semester, this investigator interviewed the cohort students
who were about to graduate. They were each asked, among other things,
what they thought they had accomplished in five semesters, what projects
they remembered best, how it compared with school, and what were their plans
beyond high school, if any.
It seemed that these students, who had been through five
semesters of the MAEC, were pleased to have made it, to be graduating. They
were proud of what they had accomplished, for the most part, and each had
some aspect of their multimedia work that they were happy to recall. They
saw it as substantially different from their school experience. Most
felt that the language arts lab was the most helpful in their schoolwork.
There was a wide range of plans for after high school. All saw high
school graduation as a clear and attainable goal. They had few complaints
or suggestions, other than the snacks. A few of the more technologically
advanced wished there had been more computer hardware and software for their
use. They often reported that their family was proud of their accomplishment.
The new computer that they were anticipating would have a place in their
home and they were already fielding questions as to access by family members.
The goals they had for themselves and the program were generally similar
and related to new computer abilities and arts experiences. They
were somewhat motivated by the educational incentive payments, several put
these checks away for software or a printer to use with their new computer.
Skills tests
These brief tests were instituted to help the artist/teachers
develop learning objectives and a scope and sequence for each lab.
Basically, each teacher developed a series of questions based on what the
students would need to learn to meet the requirements of the lab. Test
items varied from semester to semester as the curriculum took shape.
The reward for passing the skills test was the twenty-five dollar stipend,
and the ability to use the tools to create their final project. The skills
tests helped the group to focus on the upcoming activities and provided a
benchmark for student knowledge at the beginning of the semester. When
compared with the end-of-semester test, some degree of accomplishment was
revealed.
Students were asked questions related to the operations
they were to perform in each lab. The definitions of various terms
were included, for example: pan and tilt, white balance, and control track
in the video lab; cell, squash and stretch, and frame rate in the animation
lab. Terminology use included dpi, computer, keyboard short cuts, for example.
Questionnaires
Questionnaires were administered several times over the
course of the first few years of the program. Some cohort students
took the questionnaire three times. The form asked questions regarding perceived
self-efficacy, frequency and types of arts experiences, and attitudes towards
the arts and related activities. Data from these showed certain basic attitudes
and degrees of perceived self-efficacy in areas related to the arts, technology,
work, and the community. Five of the items were language arts skills
designed to determine if any individuals were coming into the program with
serious deficits in language. Initially, the questionnaires were given
at the beginning and end of each semester. This became too much and
the teachers asked that they be given some relief from at least a few of
them. So, it was adjusted to the beginning and end of each school year
and once in the summer. There was no control group nor was there random
assignment. The statistical analyses provide one small piece of the larger
puzzle and cannot be used, in and of themselves, without references and support
from the other data collected to make conclusions about the impact of the
project.
For this study, the first (n=99) and second (n=66) questionnaire administration
were used. An Alpha (Cronbach) model of internal consistency was performed
to determine overall reliability. Overall reliability of the questionnaire
was .84 (pretest) and .85 (posttest).
Perceived Self-Efficacy
Perceived self-efficacy is defined as a person’s judgments about their ability
to succeed at a task without assistance (Bandura, 1986). Some research findings
indicate that students with more positive perceptions of their ability to
succeed on a task persist in that task longer (Butkowsky & Williows,
1980), are more accurate in their judgments of their ability in writing (McCarty,
Meier & Rindere, 1985) and, with strategy instruction, increase their
perceptions of their ability to succeed in reading (McCarthy, Meier &
Rinderer, 1985, Marsh & Penn, 1986, Parris & Oka, 1986, Schunk &
Rice, 1987).
The perceived self-efficacy (Bandura, 1993) items covered a variety of activities
in literacy, art, technology and design, as well as social abilities such
as collaboration and communication. We sought to determine each of the student’s
perceptions of efficacy in the indicated areas. Students were asked to respond
to questions on a 5-point scale, 5 being the most positive score. An example
of the perceived self-efficacy portion of the questionnaire is provided below.
Scores are indicated for the purpose of clarity for the reader. Students
were unaware of the coding system.
Example:
To what extent could you write a letter to a friend using a computer?
Score of 1 I could not do it.
Score of 2 I could do it with difficulty if I had help.
Score of 3 I could do it easily if I had help.
Score of 4 I could do it with difficulty on my own.
Score of 5 I could do it easily on my own.
Findings
A one way analysis of variance was performed on each of the perceived self-efficacy
questions. Significant differences were found in the following areas:
Literacy
Read a story: F (1, 163) = 4.189, p< .05
Write a letter: F (1, 163) = 10.921, p< .01
Read something you like: F (1, 163) = 12.512, p< .01
Read directions to put together household equipment: F (1, 163) = 5.160,
p< .05
Technology
Use a new tool: F (1, 163) = 8.471, p< .01
Design
Building something: F (1, 163) = 4.603, p< .05
Draw a picture of something in your neighborhood: F (1, 163) = 4.693, p<
.05
Design a poster: F (1, 163) = 4.872, p< .05
Design a logo: F (1, 163) = 7.396, p< .01
Social Abilities
Share ideas in a group: F (1, 163) = 3.923, p< .05
Since research may support the idea that more positive perceptions of self-efficacy
are related to persistence behavior and accurate appraisal of ability, the
findings in this area are encouraging in that their appraisal related to
skills used to complete arts related projects. However, although there were
many statistically significant improvements in students’ perceptions of their
ability to succeed in literacy, technology, and design, as well as social
abilities such as collaboration and communication, there were no like improvements
of efficacy on items that were solely arts related. This is an intriguing
finding as all the students were involved in arts related projects and this
was no secret to them. Perhaps students saw the arts activities as peripheral
to the school related skills needed to accomplish them.
Whatever the explanation, and certainly more exploration can be done on this
issue, students had more positive perceptions of their abilities to use the
skills needed to accomplish their arts related activities (i.e., literacy,
technology, and design, as well as social abilities such as collaboration
and communication) by the second questionnaire administration than they had
toward succeeding at the arts themselves.
Attitudes
Another group of items on the questionnaire dealt with students’ attitudes
regarding work, school, art, community, and the program as well as social
abilities such as collaboration and communication. Students were asked to
respond to questions on a 4-point scale, 4 being the most positive score.
An example of the attitude portion of the questionnaire is below. Scores
are indicated for the purpose of clarity for the reader. Students were unaware
of the coding system.
Example: I like to work in a group.
Score of 1 Strongly Disagree, Score of 2 Disagree,
Score of 3 Agree, Score of 4 Strongly Agree
Findings
With the exception of one item, there were no statistically significant changes
in attitudes between the first and second questionnaire administration. Attitudes
of the students towards work, school, art, community, and the program as
well as social abilities such as collaboration and communication remained
stable over time. Interestingly, the one item that was statistically significance
dealt with the concept of hard work equaling success. Students were more
likely to agree with the statement, "Job success depends on how hard you
work" by the second questionnaire administration: F (1, 157) 4.908, p<
.05. Conceivably, working hard at arts related projects and being successful
as a result of this hard work affected student thinking regarding the relationship
between hard work and success.
Arts Experience
Data on student frequency of participation in arts related activities collected.
Students were asked to circle either yes or no each question.
Example: Have you been to see a play in the last month?
There were no changes over time in the responses to the questions on frequency
of participation in arts related activities or types of arts related activities.
In fact, the experiences were amazingly consistent from the first to second
questionnaire administration. Important to note, however, is that some variables
initially received already high yes responses. More than fifty percent of
the students responded yes at the administration of the first questionnaire
to the questions below.
Have you listen to the radio in the last week? (96%)
Have you drawn a picture in the last month? (86%)
Have you written a letter in the past month? (56%)
Have you seen a movie this week? (74%)
Have you ever performed in a play? (70%)
Either students were not influenced to participate in arts related activities
as a consequence of their involvement in the project or they were, again,
not associating the project experiences with the arts at all, thus obviating
any association between the project and the arts.
Parent interviews
These interviews were conducted shortly after the students
graduated. The goal was to determine the amount of parental involvement
in the program. These interviews took place in their homes for the
most part. Most parents were willing to be interviewed, some were not,
and some were unable to make scheduled appointments due to illness or work-related
issues. Parents were asked what they thought was the most important
thing about their involvement with the MAEP, if they thought it helped in
school and were there any problems.
At the end of each interview, parents were asked to respond
to some scaled questions that helped them assign values to various aspects
of the program such as self-esteem, artistic ability, writing skills, responsibility
and the programs influence on the family.
Results from these preliminary interviews showed a high
degree of satisfaction and parental involvement the program. Parents
played an important role in helping their children meet the long-term commitment
to MAEP. Parents said that the fact that their child completed the
program was the most important aspect for them. Many said that it helped
them grow up. Several parents remarked about the job-related skills that
were required.
Most were unfamiliar with the art technology that lies at the heart of the
program, but appreciated the computer skills the students acquired.
Director interview
In a recent interview ,WP, the director of MAEP
for it’s last three years, shared anecdotes about how the program had influenced
the lives the families involved.
“There are the stories where the younger brother and sister is now using
that computer in the family, that neighborhood newsletters were produced
on those computers, that a whole family experienced the Internet for the
first time on one of those computers .So there are so many more heart warming
stories than there are down sides to the stories.”
Students found it to be a haven from dangerous neighborhoods,
Many of the families had single mothers who felt secure in their children’s
involvement in MAEP. Parents got involved at first by providing transportation
and later by attending workshop and a visiting when classes were in session.
WP felt the pressure of the declining support for the program. Shortly after
she took over as director the director of the arts council who had begun
the program left Tucson. Several collaborative grant initiatives were
unsuccessful and the business and industry community was on hard times itself.
The Family Advisory Committee that she organized met twice a month and proved
very useful in mitigating the effects of closing down the program by working
to get computers donated for the last few small classes that began under
the original commitment.
Lesson Plans
One tangible outcome of this study was the codification of lesson plans for
each of the four original labs (Betts, 2003). The teaching assistants from
the cohort years compiled the outlines and worked with the artist/teachers
to create a curriculum that is being used in other contexts. This process
was seen as helpful by the artist/teachers, who were not necessarily experienced
teachers. These materials are being used to try and start similar programs
in other after school settings. The program continued to evolve up to the
last summer when the start of a GIS (Geographic Information Systems) experience
involved students in digital photography, GPS units and a map based data
base for urban design.
Longitudinal Study
The study focused on a cohort of twenty-nine students
that graduated from the MAEP in 1996-’97. There were fifty-eight students
who completed one semester. 29 went on to complete the five-semester
program, 15 boys and 14 girls. As of this writing, eight of these individuals
were unaccounted for, as we were unable to contact them or their families
to ascertain whether they had graduated from high school. Twenty have already
graduated from high school or are planning to graduate this year (spring,
2003). Nine are attending either the University of Arizona or Pima
Community College. All reported having continued use of the art technology
skills they learned in MAEP. Some were studying graphic arts and design in
college; others had worked in the field of publishing or computer graphics.
One is planning on going into the military and two are working full-time
(one of these two will be taking computer graphics courses at night through
the community college)
Response to our contacting participants after these several
years was very positive. All students felt that they had learned something
valuable from the program. Even those not planning to pursue an art
technology related career reported that they were helped in developing important
skills, including writing skills. Most reported using technology tools
and design skills during high school. Some produced posters for organizations
they belonged to, others designed and maintained web pages for relatives
and friends. Several knew that they would be using computers in their careers,
which included Business and Nursing. They felt that MAEP had helped them
become better computer users. The seven parent/guardians we spoke with
were very positive as well about the program. Their efforts to support their
kids in this endeavor had paid off they felt. They reported that they
and their kids were proud that they were involved in the program and of what
they had learned.
The MAEP shut its doors at the Tucson Pima Arts Council
last year. However, some the talented teachers and the well-proven lesson
outlines are still available and are being used to some extent in school-associated
after school programs. The program was expensive, but the results were
quite good for those who finished the program that we could contact.
We hope that this study describes the program well enough so that others
might want to implement it and see how well it works in other contexts.
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