Fourteenth International Conference on the Arts in Society

Abstract

Schools are complex institutions where teachers’ different personalities come together in a combined vision to teach in a manner that will motivate learning. The needs of children are complex, individual and varied, and at a small rural school in the north of New Zealand, six teachers have committed to using Arts Integration as a teaching method, in order to meet the needs of their students. The school’s population is 95% Maori and the socio-economic circumstances of the parent body is very low. The teaching and learning process is realised through arts activities where students engage in doing, making, problem solving and collaboration. While research suggests that students will benefit from engaging in enjoyable activities and learning through doing, change is not always easy and unexpected events can hinder a straightforward change to the new pedagogical approach of Arts Integration. This paper will reveal the hidden problems in a whole-school approach to Arts Integration and how these problems are dealt with in the interests of the children at Oturu School.