Make Something: Inside an Elementary Nonformal Media Arts Studio

• In Event: Roundtable Session 23
  In Roundtable Session: Eisner in Perspective: An Eclectic Imagination for Contemporary Education

Abstract

Many children engage with digital media during their out-of-school, personal time (Wartella, et al., 2013). Given the increasing omnipresence of technology in our everyday lives, children’s digital media playtime is often taken for granted. In this paper, I present a case study of children's experiences in an out-of-school, media arts studio. Drawing on Eisner (2002) and Dewey (1938), I argue the environment highlights possibilities for developing children's interests, in turn contributing to children’s sense of personal power as they make and/or play with digital artifacts. Findings point to the need for further investigation regarding the role of nonformal, elementary, media arts studios across a variety of contexts - as means to possibly augment children’s interest and personal power development.

Author

• Kathryn L. Shively, Ball State University