Learning in and through the arts

Abstract

In this special issue we argue that the arts are central to our understanding of learning and knowing and therefore of crucial importance to the learning sciences, even though our field is primarily known for its studies of learning in STEM fields. We see the origins of importance of the arts beginning about 20 years ago, when STEM education policy increasingly began to emphasize creative thinking. The increasing interest in STEM creativity is connected to the perceived economic need to foster creativity and innovation in graduates (e.g., OECD, 2008). This shift has provided a fruitful context to re-insert the arts into conversations about what counts in education as more than just decorative add-ons to make STEM learning more appealing to students. In fact, the arts can transform STEM teaching and learning by highlighting creativity, innovation, and problem solving as core practices (Stewart, Mueller, & Tippins, 2019). This special issue brings the arts to our learning sciences colleagues through a focus on creative practices both for their own sake and in how they connect to more familiar STEM learning outcomes. The four articles and the concluding commentary make intellectual contributions that bring together recent research developments related to creativity and the arts, including articles that analyze visual arts (in school classrooms), dance (in out-of-school learning environments), and architecture design (in a museum) as valued sites for learning. The arts play a large role in our goal, as learning scientists, to reimagine teaching and learning. Taking up Gloria Ladson-Billings’ call for a “hard reset” on education (2021), this special issue puts forward the bold claim that arts practices can serve as new models for learning that align with the latest learning sciences research. Arts practice provides us with new ways to advance cognitive, social, cultural, and historical perspectives on learning, showing ways to redesign learning environments that work for all children. We assembled this special issue in the spirit of