Category: General

Abstract

Poverty and its effects on children’s mental and physical wellbeing as well cognitive abilities are well documented. One such proposition to mitigate negative mental health outcomes is to provide intervention programs. One such environment that cushions the hardships of poverty would be an enrichment program that develops multiple growth opportunities. A good place to start would be a child’s second home, academia, specifically at the foundational level, k-5.

Intervention Opportunity for K-5 Students

School is the second most important environment for learning, nurturing, social skills, life skills, and self awareness. As a result, a student needs to see this environment as a place where they feel safe, where they are accepted, encouraged, championed, and allowed to learn and explore their immediate world as well as the world at large. The environment must model best practices in education that have garnered results while taking into consideration the unique needs of the immediate community. In addition to studies that are mandated by state and federal agencies, I would include Fine Arts studies in the curriculum as a means of teaching the humanities and creative opportunities that provide for expression and innovation. Studies have established a link between making activities and spatial reasoning. Spatial reasoning is instrumental in STEM related studies. Places of higher education and the U.S. Department of Education have identified that the nation needs more well rounded students and more innovation from it’s educated public. A Fine Arts Curriculum is necessary to round out students education as well as provide for opportunities of community, self actualization, and therapeutic avenues that help mitigate hardships in their personal lives.

Location

The Fine Arts program would be located at a primary school site, K-5 setting. Where age appropriate material would be discussed at the beginning of the lesson, with a hands on lesson to follow.

Target Audience

Children from kindergarten through fifth grade would be provided a Fine Arts lesson monthly or bi-weekly based on the curriculum and National monthly holiday celebrated, i.e. Women’s History month, African American Heritage Month, Hispanic Heritage Month, etc. where artists from around the world, all genders represented, geography and medium would be discussed either by book for younger students, and through lectures for upper class men during normal school period, typically during english class. An example of a lesson would be for Hispanic History Month. Advertise the celebration in advance to families, solicit participation by Spanish speaking children and parents, develop curriculum for artist of choice involving book or lecture. Discuss artist, geography and influences, medium of artist choice, and lesson where students create artwork.

Humanistic Model

I would choose the Humanistic Model as I am firm believer in positive experiences and Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs. If you are a child whose talents and interests are more in line with artistic endeavors, but are not afforded an opportunity to express it, you are less likely to find community at your school and you are sent a very powerful message that sports and math are the only subjects of importance. I have witnessed what it means to provide children k-5 a Fine Arts experience during the school day as a part of their curriculum. They look forward to those days, they are excited and engaged. They are proud of their creations and eager to share with anyone interested. When needs are met, such as “personally meaningful experiences, innate motivations for health growth, and the child’s purposeful creation of self” (24) are met, this contributes to interventions that help fuel identity and resilience.

Effectiveness

As for how effective the program was, I know that the school site administration credited me with helping the school to earn the coveted National Blue Ribbon Schools award for exemplary performance, as well as recognize and award me at the school district level. I created, developed and ran this program for 12 years. The current school administration told me “your legacy lives on”. I know that this program was instrumental in providing an enriching experience for the k-5 children, it provided parents an opportunity to see what their children were capable of creating with their imagination and innovative minds. It created several generations of children who through six years of Fine Arts lessons are better able to appreciate the arts which is cultural capital. When you have a school environment that considers all children’s needs, you are more likely to have more engaged students who feel seen and valued. All these factors contribute to a better sense of self and possibilities.

References

Parritz, R. H., & Troy, M. F. (2018). Disorders of childhood: Development and psychopathology

(3rd ed.). Cengage Learning.

Nature vs. Nurture as explained by Myers and DeWall (2018), is a “genetic inheritance”, meaning biology; and nurture as “our experiences”, are explained as influences from stimuli to guardians. They are equally important to the physical and mental health of the individual, subsequent offspring, and greater population.

The Individual

I would like to begin with the conception of a zygote, which represents a fertilized human egg (Fowler, et al, 2017, p. 135). The joining of the 46 chromosomes, represents the “nature” and “nurture” of two different humans. If healthy and successful, produce offspring with optimum variability and better odds in terms of natural selection, adaptation, and “reproductive potential” (7). However, even then, Fowler (2018) explains that optimal beginnings are not static, “as an environment changes, natural selection causes the characteristics of the individuals in a population to track those changes” (p. 7). These “changes” are influenced by early experiences (nurture) as well as environment (nature) mentioned in Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs (Myers & DeWall, 2018, p. 257), which are building blocks for physical as well as mental needs. If your foundational necessities are not met, you are less likely to have the foundation necessary to build on “esteem needs” and “self-actualization needs” (p. 257). In an “Emerging Science” report provided by Parritz & Troy, (2017), they write about “Differential Sensitivity: Interactions among Genes, Temperament, and Parenting”, which outlines how “genetics, interact with social and physical environments in meaningful ways” (p. 70), The “Diathesis” model and explanation spotlight how stresses a child experience which are highlighted in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs are a given; what makes the difference is the environment, parenting, coping mechanisms, and support from the guardian(s) that help to mitigate whether a child develops “psychological disorders such as schizophrenia, depression, and anxiety” (p. 70).

Conclusion

Many of the concepts learned in Biology, Geography, Psychology, and Humanities are familiar to me. After concluding courses as a student, what’s been cemented in my mind is that much like how our environment is circular and what happens in one corner of the world in terms of ecology affects us all in a trickle-down effect. It’s the same for humans and our offspring. Everyone’s mental wellbeing and physical wellbeing influences their DNA. This DNA is subsequently handed down to our children as well as the ecology they draw sustenance from. This symbiotic relationship requires tending, balance, and respect for all “ingredients” that contribute to our existence. It’s not a matter of strictly nature or nurture, it’s both. In one interesting article by Alana Connor Snibbe, “Taking the ‘vs.’ out of nature vs.nurture, for the American Psychological Association, (2004), discusses how evolutionary and cultural science communities long maintained their prominence or belief that one trumped the other. What they’ve come to appreciate is that both have a “legitimate explanatory role” (par. 3).

References

Fowler, S., Roush, R., Wise, J., (2017). Concepts of Biology. OpenStax.

https://openstax.org/details/books/concepts-biology

Parritz, R. H., & Troy, M. F. (2018). Disorders of childhood: Development and psychopathology

(3rd ed.). Cengage Learning.

Snibbe, A. C. (2004, November). Taking the ‘vs. ‘ out of nature vs. Nurture. Monitor on

Psychology, 35(10). https://www.apa.org/monitor/nov04/nature

Creativity is a Human Necessity

If you use LinkedIn, Instagram, or BlueSky, you’ve likely seen a plethora of businesses and practitioners vying for a slice of the burgeoning “Creativity” market.

We don’t often hear the talking points on how the arts contribute to a nation better prepared to compete globally in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), let alone how the arts serve as a powerful positive intervention in the subjective and psychological well-being of children.

There is ample literature correlating the arts and improved performance in STEM-related subjects. The issue is understanding the research, determining whether a study generalizes to your population, the realities of being able to replicate conditions from a study without requiring an Institutional Review Board (IRB), which is required if you work with human participants, and buy-in from all the necessary stakeholders to deploy a comprehensive and successful arts intervention. 

It can be a daunting initiative. It’s no wonder some administrators and educators are left overwhelmed. This explains why some school districts have yet to utilize Proposition 28 funds, while others are ahead of the curve. 

The need to incorporate the arts in the American education system has been well-documented for nearly a century. The Truman Commission of 1947 and the Spellings Commission of 2006 saw a need for drastic education reform, explicitly calling for a more well-rounded curriculum. One important point mentioned is “citing the growing success of higher education in other nations and the simultaneous stagnation in quality at U.S. Institutions”.

Although this information may be dated and primarily relates to college students, it remains relevant for two key reasons. First, college students were once elementary grade students, and second, not much has changed from the previous claim. A 2022 global Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) comparison of literacy scores from approximately 81 nations portrays the United States as struggling globally. The United States ranked 34th with an average score of 465, falling below the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) average of 472. 

Of course, there are many variables contributing to these scores; however, one common denominator for many of the higher-performing nations is that they recognize the value of a quality arts curriculum. They see it reflected in their children’s academic performance, as well as subjective and psychological well-being. 

When you have experience with the arts as a consumer and producer at an early age, you are more likely to support it in adulthood, according to a 2018 Americans for the Arts public opinion report. Additionally, there are inherent life lessons to be learned, such as cultural sensitivity, cultural capital, community, belonging, and spatial skills, which are critical to performance in core subjects. The arts, when done well, cultivate these timeless attributes.