The Legacy of Harry Broudy Creative Arts Educator / Philosopher of Education
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Posted by Jo Murphy Feb 13, 2009 |
Harry Broudy was considered a major philosopher of his time. He wrote mainly on the field of Visual Arts but also talked of Music Education. Broudy saw the Philosophy of Arts Education in his era being about the struggle of art education to move from the periphery to the core of schooling. It still is!
He expressed this as tension between creative arts and other subjects that were seen as more essential. He wanted arts subjects to move to a more core position. The Creative Arts, he said, should be described as "necessary " rather than as "nice." As described in an article cited below, he claimed that imagination cultivated through Arts Education provided essential support to other functions of the educated minds.
Community Excellence
Students can cultivate awareness and understanding through aesthetic experience. This awareness serves to broaden and differentiate student repertoire of feeling and values. This means that students have more chance of becoming compassionate citizens. It is in the awareness of citizenship issues that Broudy talks of democracy and the compatability of excellence. On this account excellence becomes a group phenomana, in much the way that acheveiment of excellence and attainment Level Five functioning are described in Tribal Leadership.
The Value of The Arts
When heightened aesthetic experience penetrates the educational process, illuminating every mode of experience, students become much more tuned in and engaged by the entire curriulum.
On this account of education, mere fact recall is not sufficient. To be good members of a democracy students must acquire the ability to seek knowledge (inquire), and to understand issues with empathy and compassion. It is only then that young people become ready to make the informed choices that inclusion in social politics requires.
These articles
discuss the ideas outlined above at length.