From DBAE to a Social Justice Arts Curriculum: Literature Review From 1990 to Present

• In Event: Art, Creativity, and Democracy

Abstract

Three Visual Arts Educators reviewed literature from the 1990s to present, documenting trends and the change in focus from a Discipline Based Art Education (DBAE) and early multicultural practices to Visual Culture Studies and an identity based, social justice curriculum. The authors of this review posit that VCAE’s postmodern, critical, deconstruction of imagery created a path for educators to introduce a Social Justice Pedagogy (SJP) and spark creative, community based action. The review considers the theory behind each movement and practical classroom applications, including lesson ideas, to support a SJP. Additionally, each educator created a handmade artifact to process research findings, personal connections, and lines of inquiry through an arts based educational research method.

Authors

• Veronica Torres-Jansen, University of Minnesota

• Amanda Budde, University of Minnesota