An Exploration of Quality in Visual Art Teaching of the International Baccalaureate Diploma Visual Arts Program within International Schools
LETTER OF INFORMATION
You are invited to participate in a research study entitled An Exploration of Quality in Visual Art Teaching of the International Baccalaureate Diploma (IB DP ) Visual Arts (VA) Program within International Schools. The purpose of the research is to gain a better understanding of quality; defining, encouraging and supporting it within the teaching of Visual Arts in the International Baccalaureate’s Diploma program in International Schools. The results of this study will inform recommendations for IB DP VA teacher professional development.
A secondary purpose of the research is to collect data to inform a work of Research-Creation which will be a creative fictional work of writing (novella). The intention, is to allow for this work to evolve through the culminating research, collected data, combined with the principal researchers own creative self-reflections. Relevant to this form, is that the work of Research Creation will not include an identifying characteristics to the participants in the study
Why am I being asked to participate?
The research question for this study asks what does the principal researcher need to know in order to create recommendations to support professional development that encourages quality for IB DP VA teachers within the IB DP VA classroom.
You are invited to participate in this study because, as an IB DP VA teacher currently teaching the IB DP VA course within International schools, you have relevant, critical and important perspectives about defining, encouraging and supporting the pursuit of quality within your IB DP VA classroom. As principal researcher, I would be most grateful if you would be willing to share your thoughts and experiences as an IB DP VA teacher by completing an online survey and then participating in either a series of individual interviews or focus group discussion interviews as your perspective as an IB DP VA teacher is integral to my research.
What is this study about?
VA courses in many school settings have faced diminishment and are commonly marginalized. This “othering” has been well documented in Art Education literature. Marginalization is exacerbated within the IB DP program as international schools can offer the IB DP program without any Group 6 subjects, due to costs associated with maintaining those programs and/or academic directions of the students (Elpus, 2019). The IB DP VA course faces further challenges, even though it is the strongest choice among IB DP Group 6 choices, it is one of the lowest scoring courses in the entire IB DP course selection.
From my positionally as an IB DP VA teacher within the international school milieu, I can hypothesize on the struggles and challenges IB DP VA teachers face balancing IB DP VA expectations, individual school expectations and beliefs about the study of Visual Arts, their own artistic passions and motivations to teach Visual Arts and the pervasive hidden curriculums inherent within international schools, but it is increasingly relevant in the current climate of educational challenges and teacher shortages for a study to specifically focus on the experiences of the IB DP VA teacher exploring inclusive opinions and considering global perspectives.
There are currently no studies completed within this topic in the field of Art Education. As the number international schools expand globally and the IB curriculum grows, many teachers will increasingly struggle to meet the levels of experience, rigour, and quality that are anticipated by the expectations of IB DP VA and the competitive rankings of international schools.
This research will add to the conversation of teaching the IB DP VA curriculum and give recommendations to enhance professional development for IB DP VA teachers through a written dissertation and subsequent published articles in Art Education journals.
How will my information be used?
For Part 1: Online Survey:
Coding done by the principal researcher, will focus on numerical analysis of responses using Excel to record data and create visual data forms such as charts and diagrams. At the end of the online survey, participants can select to be notified of the finding of the study upon its completion and of the dissemination (through publication) of the work of Research Creation.
Part 2: Case Study:
After each interview, the transcribed interview text will be shared with the participant via email for their verification.
Results of both the Survey and the Case Study will be coded and shared as research to inform the written dissertation. The written dissertation will be available through the Concordia library and results from the study will be shared in subsequent published papers in Art Education journals.
Part 3: Research Creation:
The Research-Creation will be a creative fictional work of writing (novella). The findings from the research will inform the work. It is the intention of the principal researcher to disseminate the fictional work through publication.
This research is being led by principal researcher Amy Atkinson ([email protected]), a PhD Candidate in the Faculty of Art Education at Concordia University in Montreal under the supervision of Dr. Lorrie Blair ([email protected]), Professor, Art Education, Concordia University
Your Involvement
There are two components to this study:
Part One: An Online Survey:
If you consent to participate, participation in the online survey should take 30-45 minutes. The focus on this survey is for Secondary VA teachers currently teaching the IB DP VA curriculum within International Schools to share their perspectives on the teaching of the IB DP VA course. Please note that participation in this survey/questionnaire is anonymous except for those who opt into the follow-up Individual Interviews and/or Focus Group Interviews.
Part Two: A Case Study
At the conclusion of the survey, you will invited to participate further in the Case Study; either as a solo participant in a series of 3 individual interviews or as a member of a 3-5 member panel in a series of focus group discussions interviews.
Both individual interviews and focus group discussion interviews will be conducted in a series of 3 thirty minute online focus group discussional interviews using the zoom platform scheduled at key points throughout the 2023/2024 school year (beginning/mid/end :September/January/April).
The focus of the Case Study (both individual interviews and focus group discussion interviews) is to explore your perspective as an IB DP VA teacher on quality teaching within the IB DP VA program relevant to your own teaching practice.
Conditions of Participation
You do not have to participate in this research. It is purely your decision. If you do participate, you can stop at any time. You can also ask that the information you provided not be used, and your choice will be respected.
There are no negative consequences for not participating, stopping in the middle, or asking us not to use your information.
Due to the nature of the focus group discussional interviews, please note, it will be impossible to withdraw all contributions made before your decision to stop participation.
If at any time, you decide that you would like to stop participation or don’t want your information used within the research, please inform the principal researcher ([email protected]) or their supervisor Dr. Lorrie Blair ([email protected]) within 30 days of your final focus group discussional interview participation
Risks and Benefits
There is no harm, potential risk, or inconveniences to you other than your time. This research is not intended to benefit you personally.
However, there are potential benefits that could impact you positively, such as having an opportunity to have your voice heard and share your experience to benefit the development of IB DP VA professional development. Possible networking opportunities with other IB DP VA teachers within international schools could be an additional benefit.
A report of the research findings can be made available to you at the conclusion of the study. You may request this by selecting so at the conclusion of the online survey or request them by emailing principal researcher Amy Atkinson ([email protected]) or supervisor Dr. Lorrie Blair ([email protected])
Confidentiality
The medium for the interviews will be a recorded zoom platform online. During the interviews, the principal researcher will take notes and the zoom interview will be recorded. The recording will be transcribed using ‘happyscribe’ (happyscribe.com) to text. The information gathered will be coded. That means when the recording is transcribed, your name will be replaced with an alpha-numberical code. The principal researcher will have a list that links the code to your name.
After each interview, the transcribed interview text will be shared with the participants via email for their verification.
Transcripts of interviews and any data shared will be kept on the principal researcher’s personal external hard drive (password protected) and will only be shared with my supervisor.
Pertinent information derived from the data will be shared within the written dissertation in the form of graphs and charts, word clouds and selected quotes. The intention is to share the results of the research in the submission of a written dissertation which will be available through Concordia library and results from the study will be shared in subsequent published papers in Art Education journals.
There is a possibility that data from the interviews will be used to inform a work of Research-Creation which will be a creative fictional work of writing (novella). The work of Research Creation will not include an identifying characteristics to the participants in the study. It is the intention of the principal researcher to disseminate the fictional work of research creation through publication.
It will not be possible to identify you in the published results.
No one will have access to the stored information, except the principal researcher and their supervisor. The information will only be used for the purposes of the research described in this form.
All files related to this study will be deleted and discarded after 5 years of the conclusion of the study (proposed December 2024). Date proposed for deletion of files is December 2029.
This study has been considered acceptable on ethical grounds for research involving human subjects by members of the University Human Research Ethics Committee at Concordia University. Certification Number: 30018397 (July 31, 2023 - July 31, 2024)
If you have any questions about the research, please do not hesitate to contact the principal researcher, Amy Atkinson ([email protected]) or supervisor, Dr. Lorrie Blair ([email protected])
Thank-you for your time and participation. I appreciate your consideration of my request. The members of the University Human Research Ethics Committee have examined the application for a grant to support the above-named project, and consider the experimental procedures, as outlined by the applicant, to be acceptable on ethical grounds for research involving human subjects.
