Toward a Pedagogy of Critical and Social Imagination: The Arts in Adult Education

Abstract

We present an argument for a higher priority for art in the educational system and “make a case” for the arts—to provide a rationale for its priority in adult education. This is the plan: to provide this rationale; to present practical guidelines for the processes of engaging in art that may be transformative and critical for individuals and for society; and to illustrate the powerful potential of art as a way of teaching for democratic citizenship. We move toward a Pedagogy of Social Imagination in Art and Adult Education by recounting a real-life empirical study of creating opportunities for transformative learning through engagements with art. John Dewey and Maxine Greene assist in outlining a rationale for exploring arts in adult education.