Apathetic Tool-Workshop for Research Essay On Art and Context

APATHETIC TOOL

Workshop for Research Essay On Art and Context INTRODUCTION ACTIVITY BY STEPS APATHETIC TOOL FEEDBACK A FUTURE REMINDER

By Lixin Kang Workshop engagement & Apathetic Tool co-designed with the ESL program and first-year writing at UAr ts

INTRODUCTION Problem Statement: During the fall of 2016, I worked with a team of educators to re-engage ways of sharing the research essay outline in class discussion for ESL and American students at UArts. All first-year writing students have to complete the research essay on art and context assignment. Both the international and American students respond with apathy.

How Do We Get There?

The co-design process with writing teachers benefited from their rich experience in education. I moved from the observation to prototyping phase in the class as quickly as possible. As a result, the activities are a series of apathetic tools that complement the students’ essay writing process.

What Do We Aim For? This series of apathetic tools aims to help students (international + American) develop, organize and share their thoughts for the final research essay. These activities have been designed to connect international and American students and professors without being constrained by their current language capacity.

My Apathetic Tools Overview The apathetic tools include three activities that complement the research

essay during the workshop. The three parts are the most challenging for the students’ essays.

Assignment Objectives Description Assignment: Students will reflect on their past experience and inspiration that contributed to their essay development as artists, musicians or designers. They form a description of an art work that they are interested in writing about.

Context Assignment: For this assignment, students will try to understand the context in which the art was created.

Analysis Assignment: Students will give their own interpretation of the art work.

Three Activities The three sessions using apathetic tools will help students who are starting their research essay assignment to discuss and reflect on their learning experience with American students in a new way. Students will structure their essay ideas based on the apathetic tools. Students will apply their speaking skills and practice speaking strategies by presenting their partner’s work.

Students will practice active listening skills and give feedback to their peers.

Start: Suggested time: 40-60minutes Level of difficulty: 2nd level first year writing ( developmental track) Participants: International students and American students Materials needed: Sharpies, post-it notes, long roll of paper, tape.

Room Setup & tools: 1. Long tables covered with paper 2. A screen can be used to project the introduction 3.Post-it notes in four colors 4.Sharpies 5. Printed assignment sheets (Letter size, for each student) Description Assignment What is it?

What form is it in and what style?

What does it look like or remind you of?

How does it make you feel?

Context Assignment Who is your selected artist? What creative work or works by this artist do you want to focus on?

List the time period and country (or countries) in which this artist did his or her major work.

18TH CENTURY

19TH CENTURY

20TH CENTURY

What was happening in the world and society during the time that this artist was creating?

What do you like about it?

What is it about?

War_____________________________ Europe North America

Asian

Social movement ____________________

Africa Artistic movement ___________________ Latin America Big technological development __________

Analysis Assignment

How does this artist fit into the historical genres?

Connect a description post-it to a context post-it and create analysis questions.

Did your artist start or fit into a new genre?

Is there an aspect of the artist’s life/career (biography) important to understanding the work?

How did critics or the public receive the artist’s work at that time?

What do people think of the artist now?

6. Printed wall sign (Tabloid size, for two groups of students)

Description Assignment

Context Assignment

Analysis Assignment

7. Post-it notes: Corresponding to the colors of wall signs

8. Feedback or comment notes:

ACTIVITY BY STEPS Step 1: Introduce the tool DESCRIPTION-PINK STICKIES -Ask your partner questions about description (from handout) -Take notes on your partner’s answers using post-its and sharpies, e.g. “Looks Like a Picasso” CONTEXT-GREEN STICKIES -Ask your partner questions about context (from handout) -Take notes using post-its and sharpies ANALYSIS-BLUE STICKIES -Match context post-its with description post-its and create a question that leads to analysis -Finish questions for homework to develop outline

Step 2: Create your partner’s notes Students’ work together on their assignment Group 1

Group 2

Step 3: Share Students share their partner’s research, and the other students listen and ask questions to gain clarity about the details of the assignment.

Group 1

Group 2

APATHETIC TOOL Printable tools

Assignment Sheets

Description Assignment What is it?

What form is it in and what style?

What does it look like or remind you of?

How does it make you feel?

What do you like about it?

What is it about?

Context Assignment Who is your selected artist? What creative work or works by this artist do you want to focus on?

List the time period and country (or countries) in which this artist did his or her major work.

18TH CENTURY

19TH CENTURY

20TH CENTURY

What was happening in the world and society during the time that this artist was creating?

War_____________________________ Europe North America

Asia

Social movement ____________________

Africa Artistic movement ___________________ Latin America Big technological development __________

How does this artist fit into the historical genres?

Did your artist start or fit into a new genre?

Is there an aspect of the artist’s life/career (biography) important to understanding the work?

How did critics or the public receive the artist’s work at that time?

What do people think of the artist now?

Analysis Assignment Connect a description post-it to a context post-it and create analysis questions.

APATHETIC TOOL Printable tools

Wall Sign

Description Assignment

Context Assignment

Analysis Assignment

FEEDBACK It went really well.

The students had a lot of fun and got a lot of work done.

Christy Blanca Gonzalez

I really appreciated the opportunity to work with Blanca’s class, and to use Lixin’s tools.

My students liked the communicative aspects of the activity; they found Blanca’s students to be friendly and easy to talk to. I think it helped them overcome some nervousness about Melanie Boston

talking with American classmates.

My students were hoping to get more specific feedback on improving their outlines, so maybe some of the questions were too basic or repetitive.

A FUTURE REMINDER They commented that the visuals for the Context Assignment were really helpful, so I would suggest introducing that earlier in the process next time. They could probably do that independently or with peers from their own class, and then spend more time on Description and Analysis with the American students.

Melanie Boston

Special thanks to the staff of the ESL and First-Year Writing Programs at UArts: Mara Flamm, Melanie Boston and Christy Blanca Gonzalez.

This project couldn’t be done without their enthusiasm in education. I appreciated international and American participants’ thorough engagement in those activities.

APATHETIC TOOL

Workshop for Research Essay On Art and Context