THE BROADER PROFESSIONAL CONTEXT:

My current teaching and art practice exists in a situation that is constantly shifting its paradigm. Arts education and the notion of education is currently undergoing a huge transformation after decades of conventional teaching methods and educational programs. Both, Gardner (1991) and Robinson (2007) have advocated and contributed their invaluable research to establish a learner-centered educational philosophy that could enable a shift in educational paradigm. Gardner (1991) looked at the psychological point of view while Ken Robinson locates the significance of creativity in the contemporary life of a 21^st Century learner from a post-industrial perspective.

The two most significant aspects of educational paradigms in the current educational systems particularly in the developed countries are adopting relational pedagogy and learner-centered education. The relational pedagogy identifies the cultural context with an education system. In New Zealand, the education policy is framed to accommodate the bi-cultural treaty of Waitangi. This is how the culture is connected to the learner’s identity and their culture. The shift in the power held by a teacher in a conventional practice is now transferred to a common ground where the power is shared between the teacher and the student. Learner-centered education is a new paradigm that restores an individual’s autonomy to be a learner and making choices.  Apart from these, the current trends in education are dominated by the digital and collaborative learning processes.

In the Global Trends: The Paradox of Progress (2017, p.17), the implications of a various national and international resources are analysed to contextualize the socio-economic and political conditions. These are further observed to have an interconnectedness in the form of globalization. “Populism will increase over the next two decades should current demographic, economic, and governance trends hold. So, too, will exclusionary national and religious identities, as the interplay between technology and culture accelerates and people seek meaning and security in the context of rapid and disorienting economic, social, and technological change.” With current unstable economies and political unrest in many countries, we have seen more migrations than ever before. People are relocating and looking for jobs and a peaceful life. This situation is common to Marlborough region where we see people coming from various Pacific islands to work in vineyards and fruit gardens. These families have children who appear in our classrooms. The socio-economic conditions are manifested in the migrant community here, which becomes a part of my classroom and school culture.

The current trend of education is totally inclined towards incorporating digital learning in schools. A large number of schools have branded themselves as BYOD schools and my school is one of them. Technology has dominated the majority of this world and the prospects for any country is mostly depending on how much technologically they are developed. The 21st-century learner is a digital citizen and the information and communication are mostly via computer technology. Books are replaced with electronic devices. Lessons are recorded on videos and learning happens virtually. The future is changing so fast that the future occupations and professions can completely change. The future jobs may not look like what we currently have now. The future is evolving into more as a digital world where human interactions and communications are being taken over by electronic devices.

 Apart from this, ICT has connected my world with that of the distance world making it possible for me to collaborate with distance educational institutions across the globe. My wider networking with my fellow artist and teachers made it possible for me to locate my position in my classroom. The contemporary art world has direct links to my pedagogy and my curriculum is dictated by the established practices. The established practices are directly influenced by the socio-economic situations, both as a reaction and a response by an individual artist about the world they live in. This connects us culturally and socially to concepts and ideas about this globalized world.

My travel and artist in residency participation around the world has given me insights into other cultures and their educational systems. This has formed into a very strong personal identity that not only resonates in my art practice but also in my teaching. Finally, my experiences with Mindlab community has connected me to a wider community of educators.  

References:

Gardner, H. (1991) The unschooled mind: how children think and how schools should teach. NewYork: Basic BooksInc

TED. (2007, January 6). Sir Ken Robinson: Do schools kill creativity? [Video file]. Retrieved on November 7, 2017, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG9CE55wbtY

National Intelligence Council. (2017). Global trends: The Paradox of Progress. National Intelligence Council: US. Retrieved from https://www.dni.gov/files/images/globalTrends/documents/GT-Main-Report.pdf

OECD. (2016) Trends Shaping Education 2016, OECD Publishing, Paris. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/trends_edu-2016-en(this publication can be read online by following its DOI’s hyperlink)