Building Creative Capacities for the 21st Century

Moscow, 2010

Intergovernmental Foundation for Educational,

Scientific and Cultural Cooperation (IFESCCO)

Russian Institute for Cultural Research

ARTS EDUCATION IN THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION

РИК

The presentation is based on the analytical report “Arts Education in theRussian Federation: Building Creative Capacities for the 21st Century”that was drafted by Larisa Alekseeva, Irina Bykhovskaya, TatianaFedorova, Nina Kochelyaeva, Valentina Martynova, Natalia Nazarova,Elena Olesina, Lyudmila Shkolyar.

The report rests on the UNESCO’s “Road Map for Arts Education”adopted in Lisbon (2006) and Final Questionnaire on theImplementation of the Road Map for Arts Education. It was prepared inconsultation with the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation, theMinistry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation and theCommission of the Russian Federation for UNESCO.

. The system of arts education

has a rich history in Russia

Dmitry Kabalevsky

Leo Tolstoy

Ivan Shuvalov

In the 20th century, arts education was based on ideas and experiments of its first decades

The “Concept of Arts Education in the Russian Federation” (2001) suggest an explicit definition as follows: Arts Education is a process of cognizing and assimilating artistic culture, it is most important for developing and shaping personality, creativity, intellectual and emotional wealth. Arts Education includes developing

cultural and historical competences, i.e. studying theory and practical arts of different epochs and peoples;

practical arts competences, i.e. mastery of artistic expressiveness;

artistic taste and evaluative criteria in the context of spiritual and aesthetic ideals.

What is Arts Education Today?

Modern Strategy and Orientations

The basic national documents used for drafting this report are:

the National Education Doctrine of the Russian Federation,

the Concept of Arts Education in the Russian Federation,

the Concept of Advancement of Education in the Field of Culture and Arts in the Russian Federation for 2008–2015.

The unique national system of arts education has received a powerful backing from many different sections of the public.

The three-tier system of arts education and professional training for the field of culture and arts, when young children start studying in an arts school and after that can continue their studies in a college or a university, has no parallel in the world.

Four Major Approaches in the Field of Arts Education

“Mono-art” approach

“Poly-art” approach

Arts in Education approach

“School of the Future” approach

“Mono-art”

approach

is based on the general and specialized

studies of some kinds of art (music,

fine arts, choreography, etc.) within the

compulsory curriculum or through the

extracurricular art activities. This approach

is implemented in the general

secondary education system, in primary

vocational institutions

(music, arts, dancing

schools), in secondary and

higher educational vocational

establishments.

“Poly-art”

approach

is an integral approach to teaching arts when a child with the poly-art nature that is inherent in

childhood, is in the center of

attention rather than the subject (music,

fine arts, rhetoric,

literature, etc.). Under this approach

lessons are aimed at a

growing person’s

harmonious development with the help

of different kinds of

creative work – music, fine

arts, theater, dancing, etc. This approach is most widely used in pre-

school institutions and

primary schools.

Arts in Educatio

n approach

is based on the interpretation

of arts as a method

of teaching humanities, sciences and

mathematics. An example of this method application is perception of music pieces and fine arts, reference to

biographies of prominent

Russian and foreign

scientists – physicists, biologists,

physiologists and others who looked to art as

a means of support and a foundation for

new considerations,

ideas and experiments.

“School of the

Future” approach

is the universal method based on the idea to teach all subjects in a

single cultural and historical context based on the common

features and kinship of the scientific and artistic cognition. In this case

the young generation gets to know a full picture of the world given its

diversity and unity. This method has already been

applied in some pioneering educational institutions that make

efforts to stimulate children’s creative potential and talent, and

experiments proved high efficiency of the method.

primary (children’s arts schools)

secondary vocational (arts schools, colleges)

higher (arts institutes, conservatories, academies)

The Three-tier System of Arts Education

ensures accessibility, high quality and effectiveness of vocational training

Culture group: Arts group:

Main Training Areas within the "Culture and Arts" Group

of Education Specialties

Folk Culture & Arts

Socio-Cultural Activities

Light Directing

Restoration

Art Design for Textile & Light Industries

Music Art

Theater Art

Choreographic Art

Fine Arts

Literary Creation

Film Art

Design

Applied Arts & Crafts

Non-formal arts education entails various models: centers of children and youth creative

activities; clubs of interests, centers of aesthetic

development for children and youth within the houses of culture;

community centers; ethnic clubs; centers of aesthetic development for

children and young people in museums; studios and clubs in general schools

and pre-school institutions and others.

Extra education institutions under the Russian Ministry of Education count 8 million people enrolled, and 2.1 million (27.8%) of them are studying arts.

Extra (Additional) Arts EducationArt and aesthetic trend is the most widespread and popular in extra (additional) education for children and youth.

The Most Popular Fields of Arts Education in the Out-of-school Institutions are:

Fine arts (painting, graphics, sculpture, graffiti);

Choreography (ball dances, folk and modern dance);

Visual arts (photo, cinematography, computer graphics and others);

Applied arts (batik, wood and ivory carving, lace knitting and others);

Folk craftsmanship (Gzhel china, Khokhloma and Mstera lacquered boxes, other);

Music art (incl. vocal and instrumental bands, electronic music, jazz studios and clubs, etc.);

Folk ensembles (choirs, etc.).

Museum Pedagogy as an Important Component of Arts Education

Targeted programs are worked out for children and adult audience.

Newly structured sections of educations are set up.

Children’s centers, expositions, shows for families and children are arranged.

Of great interest are the cultural and education activities for children and teenagers in museums (museum pedagogy).

Partnerships

Schoolchildren and studentsattend special joint events focused on particular culturalaspects of education.

Today most of the schools have established strategic partnerships with many cultural and educational institutions such as museums, theatres, galleries, exhibitions.The development of partnerships between schools, colleges, universities, and cultural institutions gives new possibilities in education.

Arts Education – Effective Way to Support Cultural Diversity

All the activities that take into account regional features and requirements in arts education are serving to achieve one of its most significant purposes – assisting preservation and support of cultural diversity.

Evidently, knowledge and experience sharing in this segment of arts and aesthetic education is of paramount importance today.

Arts Education – Effective Way to Support the Cultural Diversity

The interesting example of such activities is an educational process in the northern areas of the Russian Far East, stressing on the support of indigenous peoples‘ culture through introduction to their traditions, languages, and crafts; by passing on skills of traditional art creative activities.

Many regions of Russian Federation have special programmes to support the cultural diversity.

New Generations – New Approaches

The new generation of young people is really a very new subject in many aspects, including

their interests; motivations to the different kinds

of activity – educational, leisure-time, creativity, etc.;

their style of consciousness (sometimes they name it

“a clip consciousness”); their technological skills,

etc.

Traditions + Modernity

Some samples of arts education in Russia give us the opportunity to reveal and to use the great potentiality of combining the young people’s interest to very traditional folk arts (e.g. native music, dancing, dressing) and their modern ardors (rock, hip-hop, computer technologies, etc.).

“Jeans- Kantele Group” (Karelia) fuse together traditional kantele instruments and modern music

Research on Arts Education and Knowledge Sharing

 

Effective and up to date arts education is impossible without elaborating relevant theoretical and methodological

support for the practical work in this area; creating environment for continuous exchange of

experience; disseminating new ideas, approaches, technologies to

attain the objectives of arts education.

In Russia there is a good practice in regular sharing of knowledge and skills between experts and practitioners in this field, in convening conferences, symposiums (interdisciplinary mostly), master-classes, etc. on various aspects of this activity.

The Institute for Arts Education

The Institute for Arts Education is the unique Russian research organization and a part of the Russian Academy of Education.

It aims not only to elaborate and to discuss different theoretical and conceptual issues but to introduce related programmes and projects in the real pedagogical process, in some experimental schools and lyceums.

A lot of significant approaches and technologies were born in this Institute.

One of them - the “pedagogy of art” - is interpreted as teaching that provides arts development embracing theory and practice of aesthetic development and arts education.

Specialized Magazines as a Tool for Experience Sharing

Specialized periodicals in the field of arts education and aesthetic development are:

a means of communication between professionals;

a tool for disseminating experience in arts education among parents and all those who strive to shape aesthetic features in their children or grandchildren by other than institutional methods.

Magazines in Arts Education

It is difficult to name all the related periodicals published in Russia. Here are some journals that base their activities both on traditions and contemporary approaches.

The “Young Painter” is a well-known magazine whose main purpose is touted by authors as awakening an interest in creative activities and, in the event of this interest already existing – providing effective and engaged support.

The “Art in School” journal is the successor to the “Music in School” periodical founded by Dmitry Kabalevsky in 1982 that changed its title in 1991. The journal informs on the best practices in teaching the world arts and culture history, fine arts, music, theater art both in school and during out-of-school activities. The journal is implementing a project called “Screen Arts: Learning through Creation”.

Children’s Magazines in Arts Education

and Art Creativity”Murzilka” magazine that enjoyed a great popularity in the Soviet times and deserved a lot of credit for the arts and aesthetic education of the growing population is now continuing its efforts in modern Russia. The magazine is addressed to children from 7 to 12. There are engraved paintings by the greatest painters. A significant part of the magazine is presentation of readers’ drawings.

“Umeika” is a children’s monthly magazine whose main purpose is also to develop children’s creative capabilities. It is aimed predominantly at children of pre-school and school age.

“Merry Painter” is a series of art magazines for children aimed at turning drawing lessons into a really fascinating and creative activity. Each issue offers special step-by-step exercises in painting, drawing and animation as well as art materials for the embodiment of ideas.

Arts Education – Creativity for LifeThe character and mechanisms of arranging an “encounter” between arts and various groups of the population, specific features of particular kinds and genres of art creative activity that are to be taken into account in elaborating issues of arts education and aesthetic development are under consideration of different specialists.

Arts Education – Love for the Arts for Life…

Moscow,

a long-line to the Museum of Fine Arts …

Designed by Irina Bykhovskaya, Tatiana Fedorova, Natalia Nazarova

The authors are responsible for the choice and the presentation of the facts contained in this presentation and for the opinions expressed therein, which are not necessarily those of UNESCO and do not commit the Organisation.

The presentation is prepared in the Russian Institute for Cultural Research within the framework of the UNESCO / IFESCCO Pilot Project

"Arts Education in the CIS Countries: Building Creative Capacities for the 21st

Century“.The presentation was produced with the financial support of UNESCO and the Intergovernmental Foundation

for Educational, Scientific and Cultural Cooperation (IFESCCO).

© UNESCO Moscow Office, 2010© Authors, 2010© Russian Institute for Cultural Research, 2010