Releasing the Imagination for Professionals in Education: Aesthetic Education for Transformative Experience and Multiple Perspectives

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Saturday 5:10 pm Four Seasons Ballroom 4
  In Roundtable Session: Professional Identity in the Professions (Table 7)

Abstract

This presentation explores how aesthetic education transforms the learning experiences of legal professionals by nurturing imagination, critical reflection, and multiple perspectives. Grounded in Maxine Greene’s (1995) aesthetic theories, this presentation underscores the use of object-based inquiry (OBI) to challenge Eurocentric norms and promote diversity, inclusion, procedural fairness, and bias-free decision-making. Through a memory writing on the polychromatic Augustus Primaporta, I explore how the participants engage in deep, reflective discussions on historical and social contexts. The findings demonstrate how integrating art and aesthetics into professional education enhances empathy, ethical understanding, and a commitment to justice. This approach best aligns with the 2025 AERA theme and Division I mission, offering innovative strategies for just education anew.

Author

• Seungho Moon, Loyola University Chicago