Part 6

1. _Block printing._--If the designs are so simple that the girl learns how to adapt similar simple designs to other things for her home, this problem may have value in such a course. In addition, the girl is acquiring a wall hanging or a table cover that will have an appropriate place in her home. Such simple blocks may be kept for using on a variety of articles for gifts which the girl can make at very little expense and in a short time. The "stick printing" also offers some opportunity for adapting designs.

2. _Fabric or yarn flowers for the wardrobe._--If such articles are made of appropriate materials, there is opportunity for girls to exercise judgment in the selection of colors, textures, and combinations that are suited for their use on special garments.

3. _Hand stitchery (embroidery, hemstitching, fagoting, and quilting)._--In so far as the pupils can justify the use of hand stitchery for a particular article or garment and then confine their efforts to the choosing and adapting of designs, to the planning of color combinations and to the doing of just enough of the stitchery to learn the process, stitchery problems may have a place in the art course. The actual repetition of stitches is too time consuming for class practice. Unless the pupils will finish such problems outside of class some others would better be chosen. There is an opportunity through stitchery problems to show girls how a bit of appropriate handwork may be applied to an inexpensive ready-made garment, thereby enhancing its attractiveness and value.

4. _Lamp shades._--Lamp shades may be individual class problems if the pupils have real need for them. If made in class the educational value comes through planning the size and shape, choosing suitable and inexpensive materials, and adapting appropriate designs to them.

5. _Lettering._--Since in many real situations in life one is requested to print one's name, it would seem desirable to include some very simple straight-line printing problems.

6. _Marbleized paper._--This is a possible class exercise which involves the handling of colors. Such papers may be utilized as wrapping for gifts, book covers, desk sets, or portfolios.

7. _Painting furniture._--There will probably be little opportunity or need for the actual carrying out of such a laboratory problem in the beginning course in art related to the home, but it may be used successfully in a later unit in home furnishing or in a home project. The educational value in painting furniture is confined to the choice of finish and color and in learning the manipulative processes. The actual painting of many pieces is too time consuming to be done at school and too laborious for young girls to do unassisted at home.

8. _Place cards._--The choice of size and shape of card and the placing of the name on it are the important factors in using plain place cards. Here is an opportunity for girls to make use of straight-line letters. In selecting and making decorated place cards, suitability to purpose and kind and amount of decoration are other factors that need to be considered.

9. _Portfolios._--Simple portfolios may be appropriately used as class problems provided the pupils have a need for them. They afford opportunity for the application of the principles of proportion, emphasis, and harmony as well as of color. If decoration is to be used, it should be simple and suited to the material of which the portfolio is made and to its intended use.

10. _Posters._--When the need for posters arises, a related art class may profit by applying their knowledge of color, emphasis, and space arrangement in making them. For a simple yet attractive poster, a well-mounted picture which suggests the story with one or two lines of lettering may be grouped to form a unit. This takes but a short time. For those students having difficulty in making the straight-line letters in crayon or ink, the gummed or cut letters may be used, or a school stamp lettering press may be utilized.

11. _Rug hooking._--The educational value of this problem is in the selection and adaptation of designs and colors to the spaces and materials used. Beyond this point it is largely repetitive manipulation; and unless girls want to finish rugs outside of class, and will have an opportunity to do so, such work should be discouraged.

12. _Tie dyeing._--If good dyes are procurable and the exercise is limited to using a few hues, tie dyeing may be desirable from the standpoint of developing ability to combine colors successfully and to the fitting of the design to the shape of the piece dyed. If used as a class problem, special attention needs to be given to the adaptation of design to the space. This means careful preparation of the material for the dye bath. Wise planning for the desired color effects is also essential.

Shaded dyeing offers an interesting opportunity for further use of color. The problem involves the recognition of interesting ranges of values and the determination of pleasing space relations for those values.

It has been suggested previously that handling dyes would be a more valuable experience to girls than using paints or water colors. However, to insure success, dyes of standard quality should be selected and carefully prepared. Soft water has been found best for most dyes. A soft, loosely woven material without dressing is typical of the fabrics that are most frequently dyed at home and may well be used at school. Carefully dyed yard or half-yard lengths of cheese cloth have been found valuable in supplementing other fabrics in the study of color. The experience girls gain in mixing and handling the dyes for these short length pieces has been deemed by some teachers as far more valuable than that gained through making flat washes for a color chart as a means of understanding colors and their relationships.

Much time is usually lost in having pupils attempt to mix paints for flat washes for the various hues of color charts. The purpose of making color charts is to provide the girls with a guide for recognizing and combining colors. Many teachers have found that a more successful method is to have the pupils arrange colored fabrics or papers in the order of their hue relationship. It has not been considered necessary for each pupil to do this, since the ability to recognize hues and their relationships may be equally well achieved through working in groups. A large chart of standard hues provided by the teacher will be valuable in developing understanding of color.

13. _Weaving._--This problem requires a loom, and for the small amount of weaving that should be done in school and in view of future needs, the teacher is seldom justified in asking for such a piece of equipment.

Book ends, trays, and candlesticks are essential articles from the standpoint of utility and well-selected ones are valuable as illustrative material in the development of good judgment in their selection and arrangement. When these articles are used as laboratory problems, special care should be taken to avoid placing the emphasis upon decoration.

There are no doubt other problems that may be used successfully. However, only those should be chosen that will supplement the art training advantageously and that will measure up to the five suggested standards on pages 47-48, which, stated in more specific terms, are--

1. Every article should require a relatively small amount of time and few repetitive practices.

2. Every article should be evaluated in terms of its relation to use and surroundings and chosen for a specific place.

3. Every article should meet the fundamental requirements of good design.

4. Decoration, if any is used, should make a lasting contribution rather than a temporary appeal.

5. All problems should require only that technique which can be achieved successfully by the pupils.

FIELD TRIPS

Field trips in some form have been used to quite an extent in the teaching of many subjects and have been undertaken for a variety of reasons. In the teaching of art the purpose may be fourfold:

1. To stimulate interest in beauty.

2. To provide contact with materials and articles as they are to be found in life.

3. To extend information.

4. To provide additional opportunity for exercising judgment.

Unless the trips to be made by the class are planned carefully they may become merely freedom from regular school routine. If the group has an opportunity to help plan the trip, including the route to be taken, the points of interest to be looked for and reported upon at the next regular meeting of the class, the conduct to be maintained on the trip, and the courtesy due the homemaker or the merchant or the business man who is cooperating with the class visit, there is bound to be greater interest and concentration upon the trip with more beneficial results.

Trips taken very early in the unit or course can do little more than serve as a means of stimulating interest in the new phase of work. Trips taken later may be used to verify conclusions and develop judgment in making selections as well as to create broader interests.

One class in a study of clothing selection made several trips to the local stores. The first one was preceded by a study of surface pattern in dress fabrics from the standpoint of the effect of design and color upon the appearance of the wearer. The trip to the local stores was made to determine which of the wash dresses exhibited in three store windows best met the standards which the class had set up for such a dress. The standards were as follows:

1. The style or design of the dress should be suited to the kind of fabric and the surface pattern of it.

2. The trimming should be in harmony with the construction lines and the color of the dress.

3. The surface pattern of the material should be one of which the wearer and her friends would not soon tire.

In this particular case, since the class was small and the trip included only window shopping, some discussion was carried on in the group as they stood outside of the display windows.

At a little later time the same class was taken to the stores on a shopping trip. Each pupil was asked to select material for two dresses for one of her classmates, one to be for a washable school dress and the other for a "dress-up" dress. The materials were to be selected from the standpoint of color and design for the individual and of suitability for the type of dress. The procedure set up by the class previous to the trip was to work quietly and independently at the store and to refrain from saying why they did or did not like various things they saw there. When each girl had made her selections she was to ask the clerk for small samples and to be sure that the rest of the class saw the large pieces from which she had made her selections. During the next class period each girl exhibited her samples and justified the choices she had made. The girl for whom the selections had been made was given an opportunity to express her opinion, and the remainder of the group were encouraged to comment upon the proposed materials.

When these pupils later had the problem of selecting materials for the new spring dresses they had decided to make in class, there were many evidences that the experience gained on the trips to the stores had been of real value to them.

In the study of accessories for the spring dress this class had another window-shopping trip which followed a lesson on the selection of shoes. The purpose of this trip was to see what effect trimming lines had upon the apparent width and length of the shoes and to choose from those displayed in the windows the style of shoe that would be most suitable for some member of their class to wear with a dress she had made or purchased.

Field trips that have a definite purpose and are well planned and arranged for in advance can make valuable contributions to the classroom training in art. If a class is to be taken on a trip to a store, to visit a home in the community, or to an industrial plant it is only courteous and an evidence of good management for the teacher to obtain permission and make necessary arrangements with the merchant, the homemaker, or the manager far enough in advance to avoid conflict in time and to plan in accordance with their most convenient time for visitors.

MEASURING RESULTS

How can the degree to which art training is functioning in the lives of the girls and women be determined? It is fully as important for the teacher to evaluate results of her teaching as to plan for it carefully. This has been commonly recognized as a definite part of teaching, but the procedure has been largely limited to the giving of written tests. Such tests have usually been of the type that measure factual information and have probably failed to indicate the degree to which the student's life has been improved by her use of the art information.

Tests which are thought provoking and the solving of school problems are both valuable measures, but they are not sufficient in themselves for testing art. They fail to reveal whether or not the girl is making voluntary and satisfactory art applications or appreciating beauty to any greater extent in her everyday life. Whitford[25] refers to outcomes as follows:

Two significant and fundamental outcomes of art education are revealed by an analysis of the relation of this subject to the social and occupational life of the pupil. These are, first, ability to recognize and appreciate art quality and to apply this ability to the needs of everyday life; and, secondly, ability to produce art quality even though in a relatively elementary form.

When art has been effectively taught there are many tangible evidences of its functioning in the personal and home life of the girl. What are some of these tangible evidences that indicate successful art training? The outstanding ones may be found in the girl's appearance at school and in the choice and arrangement of furnishings in her room and home.

=Evidences of the Successful Functioning of Art in the Classroom=

Improved personal appearance of pupils may manifest itself in their selection of ensembles from garments already possessed or from newly selected garments from the standpoint of--

1. Color combinations. 2. Texture combinations. 3. Appropriateness of clothing for school. 4. Appropriateness of style of garments to the girl. 5. Appropriateness of accessories.

The story of freckled-faced Mary well illustrates how art did function in one girl's life. She was an unmistakably plain high-school girl. Her hair was red, her face freckled, and her nose decidedly retrousse. Her clothes of gaudy colors never fitted and always seemed to emphasize her personal deficiencies. But one day a new teacher came to the school, whose business it was to teach home economics, and into her hands Mary, mercifully, came. A few months later the State supervisor of home economics, a close observer, visited the school, and her attention was soon drawn to Mary, not as the worst-looking girl in the school but as one of the best-looking girls in the school. Soft, becoming colors, good lines, and a suitable style of garments had brought out the best tints in her red hair, softened the freckles, and transformed a plain girl into an attractive one. All of this had been accomplished as an indirect objective of the teacher in her related art instruction in home economics. Mary had unconsciously learned that beauty is, after all, a relative term in regard to individual objects and that it is the setting that gives grace and charm.

Unless the teacher is on the alert some interesting evidences of successful teaching may go unnoticed. Some of the changes in the pupil's appearance come about gradually and without audible comment. Such was the case in one class. Most of the year Betty had been wearing an old 1-piece wool dress. During the winter she had worn a belt of the dress material at a low waistline, so that the belt covered the line at which the pleats were stitched to the dress. Early in the spring, and, as it happened, near the beginning of the art unit, Betty evidently became much interested in the styles that advocated a return of the normal waistlines and succumbed to the appeal of the new leather belts in the store window. For several days she proudly wore a wide leather belt fairly tight and high, with this straight flannel dress, all unconscious of the fullness bunching above the belt, the poor proportions of the dress, and the poorly finished seam where the pleats were joined to the dress. After some time had been spent on the art unit in which no direct reference had been made to Betty's belt, the teacher was very much pleased one morning to notice that Betty had taken in the side seams of her dress to remove some of the fullness and was wearing the leather belt a little more loosely and somewhat lower, so that the space divisions of the dress were more pleasing. Is there a better evidence of successful art training than that which shows that the pupil is able to adapt in an attractive way the garments of her present wardrobe so that they measure up to the individual's desire to be up to date?

A Kansas teacher reports that she overhears comments among girls before and after school which reveal evidences that art is influencing tastes. Here are some examples of these comments:

That color is too bright for her.

That particular green dress makes her skin look yellow.

Those beads harmonize beautifully with that dress.

She is one girl who should not wear her belt high. It makes her look so short and dumpy.

I have given my sister my colored scarf, which I now realize clashed with everything I had, but fits in with her things.

Better pupil contributions to class work constitute another evidence of the effectiveness of art instruction. These manifest themselves in--

1. Voluntary reports and comments of observations and experiences.

2. The bringing in of illustrative material for class and bulletin board use.

3. The asking of relevant questions.

Some of these may be evidenced outside the regular class period. This was true in the case of Joan, a high-school freshman in an art class, who had been rather unwilling at times to accept the art standards set up by the rest of the class. Her argument was, "What difference does it make? Why can't everyone select just the things she likes?" Very little attention was definitely directed to her for she would sulk if pressed for a reason to justify her statement that everyone should choose as she liked.

One Monday morning the teacher, upon her arrival at school, found Joan waiting in the classroom to tell her of the shopping trip she had had with her mother on Saturday. Joan had selected a red silk dress which she and her mother had both liked. After going home Joan had begun to wonder if the dress would look all right with her last year's coat and hat and wanted to know what kind of hose would be best to wear with the dress. This teacher could well feel that her art teaching was developing in Joan a real interest in art.

Assumption of greater responsibility by the pupils for more attractive arrangements at school contribute another evidence of the effectiveness of art instruction. This may manifest itself in the arrangement of--

1. Articles on tables, buffets, or bookcases. 2. Flowers in suitable bowls. 3. Books and magazines. 4. Exhibit cabinets. 5. Stage settings for class plays.

Still another criterium of the effectiveness of art instruction is the spread of interest in the work from home economics pupils to others in the school.

A teacher of related art in Missouri says:

One of the most striking and pleasing evidences of art's carrying over is the fact that so many girls outside of the home-economics department come in and ask questions regarding some of our pupils' clothing or ask to see the art work done here. The seniors in the teacher-training department are especially interested, as they expect to teach art in the rural schools and have had practically no work in it.

=Evidences of the Successful Functioning of Art in the Home=

One of the most gratifying results of art teaching is the influence it creates in improving the homes of the community. This may be seen through--

1. More attractive arrangements and rearrangements of furniture, rugs, pictures, and accessories.

2. Elimination of unnecessary bric-a-brac.

3. More suitable use of color.

4. More appropriate choice of textiles and texture combinations.

5. Improved selection and care of shrubbery, hedges, and flower beds. Removal of unnatural or grotesque shapes.

6. Improvements in walks, trellises, fences, and gates to make them more suitable for house and grounds.

A teacher in a vocational school in North Dakota reports as follows:

One of the most valuable evidences of improved practices that I see from our art work is the girls' appreciation of things that are beautiful and their desire to acquire a few truly beautiful things for their own rooms and homes.

An itinerant teacher trainer describes a lesson in related art which she observed. It is given here for its very practical suggestion of a means for measuring results of teaching:

The day before my visit the teacher had taken all the girls of her class to a city about 18 miles away to purchase Christmas gifts for their mothers. The girls had limited themselves as to possible types of gifts within their limited means and at the same time suitable for their mothers. Only one gift cost more than $1 and that was the joint gift of two sisters to their mother. The class had agreed that each gift should be of such nature that the application of art principles studied would be involved in making a choice. They had practically confined themselves to pictures, beads, book ends, or vases.

All of the gifts had been brought to the home-economics rooms for storage until the Christmas tea when they would be presented to the mothers.

The girls brought out all their purchases and all entered into the judging without false modesty. In some cases the purchasers were able to suggest improvements in future purchases.

The entire group showed unusual poise, self-confidence, and good judgment, as well as tact, in making suggestions.

The new problem arising from this lesson of designing an invitation to the annual Christmas tea for the mothers was a very real one to the girls. The principles of balance were taught and applied, and the girls decided on a design for the invitation.

Various tests and problems may also serve to measure the results of art teaching. A description of the test which was used at the end of one art unit, as a basis for determining the use the pupils were able to make of that training, is here included. It is hoped that this plan may prove suggestive to other teachers.