EVENTS & MOVEMENTS

UNESCO
In 1950, the 5th general session of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) approves the continued exchange of information in the visual arts as a way of promoting international understanding and world peace. This leads to an international seminar on teaching art in general education and the founding of the International Society for Education Through Art in 1954.

Sputnik
On October 4, 1957, the Soviet Union successfully launches the first artificial satellite into orbit around the earth. At the height of the Cold War, this elicits tremendous fear in American's as they question their safety and defense against nuclear attack. As a result, math and science education come to the forefront of curriculum development while art education is neglected in a race to catch up to the Soviet Union.
NASA
SPUTNIK FLIGHT

Woods Hole Conference
In 1959, various organizations meet to discuss the status of math and science education in America’s public schools. Participants include the National Science Foundation, Carnegie Corporation, and the National Academy of Sciences. Out of this conference, Jerome Bruner develops his theory that curriculum should be developed based on problems that professionals face in academic disciplines. Manuel Barkan later applies Bruner’s theory to art education.

Arts and Humanities Program
The Arts and Humanities Program is established through the Commissioner of Education, Francis Keppel, who is appointed in 1962 by President Kennedy. This program, run by Kathryn Bloom, funds seventeen conferences on the arts between 1964 and 1966. One of the more noteworthy conferences is the 1964 Seminar on Elementary and Secondary School Education in the Visual Arts. Participants set standards for art education based on professional practice and improved teacher training.

Penn State Conference
In 1965, the Seminar in Art Education for Research and Curriculum Development is held at Pennsylvania State University. In this seminar, Manuel Barkan refers to Jerome Bruner’s earlier claim that curriculum should be developed around professional problems in a discipline. At the Penn State Conference, Barkan proposes that art is a discipline equal to those of math and science and should be taught in a similar fashion. The research proposals that develop during this conference will shape future curriculum reform.

CEMREL
The Central Midwestern Regional Educational Laboratory develops out of Barkan and Eisner’s participation in the Penn State Conference of 1965. Through this project forty-four curriculum units for the elementary classroom are developed. Resources for aesthetic education and a number of textbooks for classroom use also develop out of this program.

Discipline-Oriented Art Education
Discipline-Oriented Art Education is based on the work of Jerome Bruner and Manuel Barkan’s inclusion of their theories in art education. A discipline is a structured curriculum based on the current issues of a profession. This theory of art instruction is the precursor to the Discipline Based Art Education of the 1980s.

Arts in Education Movement
The Arts in Education Movement is based on the idea that the study of art is not based on structured inquiry but rather on the experience of creating and viewing artwork. This precludes the introduction of art being integrated into various subjects and activities of public schools. Creative Expression is prevalent in this form of art education. The JDR 3rd Fund provides monetary support to numerous districts, schools, and laboratories participating in this type of art instruction.

University City Project
The University City Project is the first project funded by the Arts in Education Movement and the JDR 3rd Fund. The goal of this project is to make art education available to every child at every educational level. The integrated curriculum is utilized as a way to achieve this goal.