The Sketchbook as a Learning Tool to Support Student Well-Being: Examining the Perspectives and Practices of Visual Art Teachers

Abstract

This study explores the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on art education in Ontario, focusing on the sketchbook pedagogies of six secondary Visual Art teachers in the District School Board of Niagara (DSBN). The study investigates whether teachers have modified their sketchbook practices due to the pandemic, and asks for their perspectives on how sketchbooks influence student learning and well-being. Findings indicated that teachers perceived sketchbooks as flexible, holistic, and instrumental to effective art instruction. A majority of teachers noticed an increase in sketchbook use to support student well-being during the pandemic, and many maintained efforts to use sketchbooks this way during the return to in-school instruction. Concerns presented by teachers included a lack of engagement from students when asked to complete practice and planning-based sketchbook tasks, as well as difficulties assessing sketchbooks. Data analysis identified implications for future research regarding sketchbook assessment practices, how to promote student buy-in in light of decreasing motivation, and how to develop purposeful adaptive strategies via sketchbook use for student well-being. The results of this study influenced a companion project in the form of a manual titled: Sketchbooks: A Reference for New Art Educators.