An Implementation Study of the Art in Action Program
Description:
Targeting students in grades K-8, Art in Action's program consists of 12 age-appropriate lessons per year led by parent and teacher volunteers. The curriculum is based on historically significant artists and their works of art. Through semi-structured discussions, students examine a variety of masterpieces, learning about the artist as well as particular art styles and techniques. Students then apply the concepts they learned to create original works of art. Art in Action's curriculum is sequential and builds upon previous skills taught, while also introducing new material, artists, vocabulary, and techniques. Art in Action partnered with the Gardner Center in a year-long, qualitative, implementation study of its program in Bay Area schools and beyond to better understand how its curriculum is implemented within and across schools, how youth and adults perceive and experience the program, and the conditions that either hinder or support implementation. This study examined five schools in the San Francisco Bay Area, four schools outside this region, and three schools that previously partnered with Art in Action but no longer implement the program.
Suggested Citation:
Biag, M., Raab, E., & Hofstedt, M. (2015). An Implementation Study of the Art in Action Program. Stanford, CA: John W. Gardner Center for Youth and Their Communities.