By Amy Knutson, Education & Programs Assistant
At P.S. ARTS, we place a great emphasis on technology in the classroom. iPads in particular are a great tool for education, especially for the arts, because they introduce students to technology and digital media while retaining the hands-on appeal of both visual and performing arts. Fortunately, with a very generous grant from The Ahmanson Foundation, we were able to purchase a classroom set of iPads, which are available to all of our Teaching Artists, and an interactive whiteboard for one of our classrooms. To encourage our Teaching Artists to integrate technology into the classroom, we are concurrently providing them with technology training to ensure they have the necessary tools to fully utilize the apps, websites, and gadgets available to them.
What does technology integration in a classroom look like? At P.S. ARTS, it depends on the discipline and the specific project our Teaching Artists are working on with their students. At Grand View Boulevard Elementary School, where we launched the arts inclusion program last year, Visual Arts Teaching Artist Tamie Smith uses iPads as a way to encourage students to research and collaborate on projects. When I stopped by her room last week to say hello, students were researching Australian animals for a project on Aboriginal Dreamtime.
Tamie told me the iPads have been invaluable in her classes, not only for the practical benefits, but because it allows the students to have more freedom in their choices and spend more time being thoughtful about their artistic process. For example, in Tamie’s Aboriginal Dream unit, students were able to research different animals, watch videos of them, and learn more about the Aboriginal culture by using the smartboard and iPads in her class. Printing pictures can be costly, so it is incredibly efficient and useful. Our organization has also explored using technology in our theater classes and last year we hosted an after-school residency at Camino Nuevo Charter Academy – Harvard where middle schools students wrote, acted in, and directed stop-animation videos that are incredible. You can watch a couple of them below.
CNCA Harvard Stop Animation Projects 2013: Video Game Malfunction from P.S. ARTS on Vimeo.
CNCA Harvard Stop Animation Projects 2013: Amber The Cheater from P.S. ARTS on Vimeo.
So why are we so focused on integrating technology with our classes?
- Students, even elementary school students, are bombarded with digital media through cartoons, films, game, and television. We want to teach them at an early age how to combine technology and aesthetic judgment.
- When using technologies like iPads, students of all abilities can freely experiment without using up materials, explore works of art through museum websites, and build both technical skills and confidence.
- Technology fosters curiosity and innovation; by having an iPad in hand or a smart board in the classroom, students have vast amounts of information at their disposal. Instead of waiting for the solution or a suggestion from the teacher, they are encouraged to discover the answers themselves.
- P.S. ARTS loves technology integration because it levels the playing field for students. Our Teaching Artists work with students of all abilities, so their projects and lessons must be accessible for all types of learners. In this case, technology allows the students who may not have the motor capability to grasp a paintbrush, dip it in paint, and move it across a canvas still be able to participate in art making by moving their finger across an iPad screen to have the same effect. We’re big advocates of Universal Design for Learning (UDL), and technology is a natural fit for this, providing all learning types with access to information and the opportunity to engage in critical thinking skills through visual, auditory, and collaborative means.
One of our partner schools, Baldwin Hills Elementary, recently received iPads from LAUSD as part of their pilot iPad program. The teachers in this school are as thrilled as the students to have integrated technology at their disposal. Ms. Porter-Morris of Baldwin Hills says in the article, ‘A lot of [our students] don’t actually have technology at home, so it’s going to open up a whole new world for them… We’re excited to offer iPads as part of our program to allow access to students who may not have the opportunity to use technology every day like some of their peers.”
By integrating technology into weekly art class (whether it’s dance, music, theater, or visual art), we hope our students are inspired to explore their dreams and expand their universe (which, coincidentally, is our classroom theme for the year!). Once again, a huge thank you to The Ahmanson Foundation for providing our students with access to these innovative tools; we are proud to offer the children we serve a comprehensive and dynamic arts education.
