Art for Change: Engaging with Art through a Critical, Socially Engaged Lense

Unit Overview

Big Idea for the Unit: Social Engagement/Change through Art

Subject/Grade Level: Upper-level high school (Advanced/Pre-AP Art), 11th or 12th

Approximate time needed to complete unit (class periods / days):

~Three weeks (14 class periods)

National/State/CCSS Standards:

From South Carolina College- and Career-Ready Standards for Visual Arts Proficiency

• Indicator VA.CR AH.1.1: I can explain and defend the choices I made to communicate my artistic ideas across multiples artworks.

• Indicator VA.P AH.3.2: I can justify the choices I made and how they support the intended purpose of the artwork.

• Indicator V A.R AH.5.1: I can justify my interpretation or intent of an artwork and how they fit into the world

Essential Questions

What role does art have to influence culture?How has art shaped political or social movements in history? How can I change the community around me through art?

Rationale

I chose to build this unit for upper-level high school students for the purpose of preparing them for either further art/art history study in college, or as if they were going to be full-time working artists. I designed the unit so that students would choose a relevant topic that they personally care for and create a work (or body of work) bringing attention to their chosen issue. Upon graduating, students will naturally become more socially engaged citizens. They will be challenged with certain topics and find themselves naturally drawn to processing difficult concepts through their art. By equipping them with the tools to find, evaluate and utilize information through a critical lens, they will be more responsible stewards of information, and be well-educated and well-informed in their civic engagements post-graduation. Through engaging with their chosen social topics through multimodal learning techniques, including written research, presenting, listening, art-creating and reading, they will have a well-developed sense of socially engaged art upon unit completion. Art is looked down upon in some spheres as a discipline lacking academic value and not teaching transferrable life skills, so I also hope to challenge that narrative by equipping young artists to be critical thinkers, research-minded, and engaged with the community and world. This project is heavily student-guided as well, centering on one of my personal teaching philosophies of choice-based art education, and student-led creativity. This project allows students to have personal investment in their topic of choice, encouraging student agency in their learning experience. By combining elements of research methods, art history, art creation, and social engagement, I hope to give students a well-rounded experience in what it can be like to be a socially active, responsible and educated member of society,

especially as an artist. This unit is meant to empower students with the tools they need to create a successful, well-informed art practice once they leave the secondary school setting.

Access the full detailed lesson plan below:

Final Unit Plan EDRD500.pdf

Download PDF • 1.78MB