I read the article “Aesthetic Learning About, In, With and Through the Arts: A Curriculum Study” (Lindström, 2012). The article describes a conceptual framework for aesthetic learning, in which the delineation between convergent and divergent goals resonates with my pedagogic practices.
In the “Four ways of learning” section (p. 168), the article describes convergent goals as achieving something in pre-defined frameworks, and divergent goals as combining knowledge to construct something new. In the pedagogic practice of creative computing, converged and diverged learnings are equally important. A solid understanding of theories in pre-defined frameworks (e.g., computing and computer science) is a requirement. On the other hand, it is also important to have practical experience in diverged contexts. In a common setting of a creative computing classroom, information is disseminated during the lectures, and students actively test out their perceived information in practical sessions.
The divergent aspect also resonates with the constructivism learning theory (Narayan et al., 2013) that I am recently looking at, which describes applying current understandings, noting relevant elements in new experiences, and iterating knowledge.
I reflected on my teaching when I read about the four categories of learning “with”, “about”, “in”, and “through” art (p. 170). I typically focus on the “in” aspect – students experiment with techniques and materials (often digital materials such as data, models, and codes) with the goal of creating a digital artefact. And sometimes explore the “through” aspect – we reflect on what we can learn about the algorithmic and engineering aspects from applying them to the creation of art. I experimented with the “about” aspects in one of the case study, in which I framed a lecture on the algorithmic technique of “circuit bending” with the concept of appropriation in the arts. Through this experience I found how these four pillars are interweaved together as in Table 1 (p. 169) – starting with knowledge about principles, styles, and artists (“about”) to a diverged exploration space for experiments (“in”), then converge to “with” and “through” to think about what knowledge can be distilled and learnt.
Reference
- Narayan, R., Rodriguez, C., Araujo, J., Shaqlaih, A., Moss, G., 2013. Constructivism—Constructivist learning theory., in: The Handbook of Educational Theories. IAP Information Age Publishing, Charlotte, NC, US, pp. 169–183.
- Lindström, L., 2012. Aesthetic Learning About, In, With and Through the Arts: A Curriculum Study. International Journal of Art & Design Education 31, 166–179. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1476-8070.2012.01737.x