Faculty of Education - Theses
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ItemThe art of teaching( 2006)What is teaching? Is it a science; is it a technology? Elliott Eisner (1996) in his article `Is "the art of teaching" a metaphor?' argues that teaching is founded on perception, imagination, narrative, empathy, meaning making and appreciation and that the practice of these features is an artist's prerogative. In an otherwise thin collection of literature on the art of teaching Eisner's article is the stand out text. This thesis is something of a homage to the work of Eisner whose additional article, `Arts-based Educational Research' (1997), written with Thomas Barone, is the inspiration for the presentation of my research findings in an artful format. Chapter one is a telling of my researcher story - the experiences that led me to the topic; chapter two justifies the research; while chapter three, the literature review, contextualizes it. Chapter four, `the art of teaching' is the presentation of my research findings, analysis and conclusions. I utilise a postmodern perspective in this thesis which has enabled me to create a piece of work that is evocative without being dogmatic and complex without being inaccessible. The method I employed to interrogate the art of teaching was to converse with six teachers about the viability and possibilities inherent in the art of teaching as a concept for revitalizing what it means to teach and be a teacher. From these conversations seven motifs emerged: performance, improvisation, rehearsal, silence, audience, co-artistry and imagination. These motifs are confronted and interpreted through poetry. These poems and poetic representations are presented as my research findings and analysis. As research this poetic reverie is offered as a way of developing and further establishing the language of the art of teaching, and thereby its inherency to the practice of teaching.