Question

an essay on 'Use of art and crafts in daily life'.

Answer 1

Art and design as a subject on the curriculum, (with craft tacit rather than explicit within its content) is generally taken for granted as an entitlement for children and young people in formal education. Images of small children cheerfully elbow deep in primary colours and young people meaningfully engaged in front of a well-known painting or actively behind a camera lens spring to mind.

These assumed images are now under considerable threat, and in many schools and settings the paints, kilns and cameras are now actively abandoned. What is happening to our subject, our teachers, our children and young people and ultimately to our creativity, culture, well-being and economic success is the issue this article will explain.

Opening doors of opportunity

Within the context of formal education the subject supports personal, social, moral, spiritual, cultural and creative development, and enables participants to engage with and explore visual, tactile and other sensory experiences and how to recognise and communicate ideas and meanings. These opportunities enable them to work with traditional and new media, so that they develop confidence, competence, imagination and creativity.

Through these opportunities they learn to appreciate and value images and artefacts across times and cultures, and to understand the contexts in which they were made. Experiences in art, craft and design enable them to learn how to reflect critically on their own and others’ work. They learn to think and act as artists, makers and designers, working creatively and intelligently. They develop an appreciation of and engagement in art, craft and design as critical consumers and audiences and an understanding of its role in the creative and cultural industries that shape and enrich their lives.