Thematic Analysis of Students' Experiences of Social Emotional Learning Through Participating in Performing Arts Programs

• In Event: How School-Based Arts Programming Supports Social Emotional Learning for Elementary School Students

Abstract

Purposes:
This paper takes a qualitative analytical approach to the NEA Research Lab project aimed at understanding how participating in performing arts contributes to elementary students’ social and emotional learning (SEL) growth and efficacy. This paper aims to deepen our understanding of students’ SEL outcomes using constructivist Grounded Theory (Charmaz, 2006) to reveal central experiences, outcomes and themes through semi-structured interviews from participating students.

Theoretical Framework:
There is a growing body of research demonstrating that participating in arts programs has positive effects on students’ SEL skills and habits of mind (Bowen & Kisida, 2019; Edgar, 2017; Farrington et al., 2019; Hardiman & JohnBull, 2019). Nonetheless, as arts programs continue to be cut, particularly in already under-resourced neighborhoods, there is a need for more evidence on students’ perspectives of SEL outcomes in arts programs.

Modes of Inquiry:
Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 22 students in 3rd, 4th and 5th grade in an elementary school located in a midwest city in the US. Students participated in an artist-in-residence program implemented in the school as part of the NEA Research Lab project, which has implemented three arts programs as part of the research. Three interviews were conducted with students individually: pre-, mid-, and post-programming. In these interviews, students were asked to share reflections on their experiences, learning and feelings regarding the arts program in which they participated.

Data Sources:
For the purposes of this paper, a thematic analysis of the mid- and post-programming interviews has been conducted. The analysis was conducted on four layers by three researchers: first, researchers read the interview transcriptions to conduct an open coding to identify main themes; second, a focused coding was conducted by finding similar patterns across the main themes; third, main themes, feelings and experiences were clustered; last, the theoretical codes were established.

Results:
Three main themes are clear across the interviews: students expressed 1) that participating in the art program helped them gain confidence and allowed them to achieve in ways they could not previously; 2) thanks for help/support/learning from classmates; that being in the arts space made them feel safe to express how they felt and respected for who they are.

Significance of the Studys:
This study shows qualitative evidence of students’ own perspectives on how participating in performing arts programs promotes SEL outcomes. In this way, the study contributes to the increasing body of literature showing that participating in arts programs improves students’ SEL. In addition, the study advances this body of research by centering student voices to reveal the SEL outcomes, a deeply needed focus for the field of research (Lashley & Halverson, 2020). This paper will also show that themes from the student-derived interviews lift up the importance of three pillars of social and emotional human need: identity, agency and belonging (Edgar, 2021). Finally, this paper will also explore the ways that student experiences reveal key effective practices for intentional, embedded, sustained arts and SEL learning.

Authors

• Garazi Lopez de Aguileta, University of Wisconsin - Madison
  Presenting Author

• Yorel Lashley, University of Wisconsin - Madison
  Non-Presenting Author

• Mariah LeFeber, Multnomah University
  Non-Presenting Author