How to bring the benefits of library learning when there is no library. Using Arts-Based Inquiry.

 

 

 

It is a constant dilemma when you work in a school without a library. It is even more challenging when the system you work in does not support or encourage the inclusion of libraries in schools. 

In our readings, we are constantly made aware of the benefits of libraries in education. Most of us already know most of the reasons, and have the reading and research to justify our reasons. As educators, we are aware of the importance of preparing our students for a rapidly changing world and finding new ways to make our programs relevant and engaging. As an arts educator with 25 years of experience, I have witnessed the way we teach change dramatically. As teachers, we are constantly reflecting and critically assessing our pedagogical approaches. We are constantly finding new ways to approach our curriculum areas, by exploring new technology and educational philosophies. 

Hannigan & Raphael (2020), in their research into arts-based Inquiry (ABI)
discussed the building of a “community of practice” through teaching through ABI with various groups including the librarian. Participants in the study reported that engaging in ABI sessions provided them with” opportunities to be more creative in their workplace with increased feelings of wellbeing and satisfaction as well as a greater inclination to adopt new techniques into their teaching practice” (Hannigan & Raphael, 2020).

I was recently introduced to the “Changing the Subject” book from High Tech High in San Diego, by a colleague in the STEAM & DigitalTechnologies team. I have been a great believer of project-based learning and connected learning projects for a long time, and have developed many cross-curriculum-connected examples over the years. The book showcase 50 examples of project-based learning initiatives that High Tech High teachers and students have implemented from when the school began in 2000. The projects showcased in the book aim to provide inspiration and a starting point for other educators in the development of their own project-based learning ideas. The examples are designed to be dually “inspiring and replicable”(Kluver & Robin, N.D.).

Most of the projects incorporate the arts to some degree, either as an end product or as part of the design cycle. These make a quite authentic inclusion of the arts in a true iteration of STEAM, rather than where the arts are just tokenistic or “tacked on”. Some of the stand-out projects are, “Lake View” which incorporates mathematics and engineering, and “Rotational Volumes” (pictured), which uses no longer needed books and turns them into 3-D sculpture (great for when weeding our collections).

This resource gave me some insight and some great ideas into how a STEAM program could be authentically incorporated into a school and how a school without a library could be making better use of inquiry-based learning opportunities while creating a strong learning community in the school.

References

Hannigan, S. M., & Raphael, J. (2020). Drawing Out,  understandings through arts-based inquiry in teacher education. Qualitative research journal, 21(1), 87-100. doi:10.1108/QRJ-03-2020-0021

Kluver, J & Robin, J. (n.d.). Changing the Subject, Twenty Years of Projects from High Tech High. Changing the Subject. https://www.changingthesubject.us/the-book.html