"Better, Not Perfect": Design Principles for Learning Through Digital Art-Making

• In Event: 54.080 - Roundtable Session 22
  In Roundtable Session: 54.080-15 - Opportunities and Challenges for Technology in the Arts

Abstract

In this paper I examine student learning in and through the arts in the context of a 4th grade digital art making project. This study is theoretically tied to constructivist and sociocultural theories of learning and positions art making as the intricate processes involved in creating, not solely the result or final product. Drawing from video data of student interviews and collaborative digital art making, I outline working design principles for student engagement with projects that use low and high-tech forms of art. Principles include positioning mistakes as opportunities for growth, incorporating diverse sources of expertise, and encouraging collaborative decision-making that offers students ownership over the creative process.

Author

• Maggie Dahn, University of California - Los Angeles