Art and Global Education

RAINFOREST ARTLINK: Connecting with the rainforest 2013

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The goal of a program called Artlink Rainforest is for students, teachers, parents and administrators to become more globally competent and connected. Artlink Rainforest which has been linking students in grades three through twelve in the United States, Guatemala and Costa Rica through visual arts and technology since 1992. Students in participating schools produced 2-dimensional art pieces using a variety of art mediums including colored pencils, pastels, watercolors, charcoal, etc. that "described" their cultures. The artwork was then swapped between the schools. Students analyzed the art, asking questions then researching either via the internet or through books, gaining a better understanding what the students value in their culture. Any unanswered questions about the art and culture were asked directly by students to students by means of video conference. 

Number of pieces of artwork exchanged this year. Next goal? To exchange between 100 schools!

I found this conference very relevant for a variety of reasons. I loved the fact that students were connected not only through technology, but first through a tangible piece of art. I wrote in my note taking that it is far more powerful to have an actual piece of art in the hands of the students then just seeing it in a photo or on the computer. There is an immediate connection that students realize they have, and that is the ability to create art. Then they start understanding the differences, and perhaps, more significantly, the similarities of their cultures. Later the presenters said the exact same thing...that part of what was so important about this program was for students to have the primary source element (the artwork) to analyze. I love the fact that this program gets students discussing art as well. I can imagine the comments and informal critiques 
that take place between the students during the video conferences. It reminds me of a program I used to have my students participate in called Art Responding Through Technology or ARTT. This was an online program that allowed student artists to post photos of their artwork to a web page where other participating students would answer questions posed by the artist. These responses could come in the form of suggestions, specific techniques or comments about the work. ARTT was a beginning to communicating using technology and a great way to get used to integrating technology with the visual arts. The Artlink Rainforest program takes this idea to the next level and is proving to be an effective way to make students more globally aware and competent. Evaluations prove that 76% of students have a better understanding of specific cultures and 78% of students have a better understanding of their own cultures! More importantly, teachers are realizing the value of the hands-on learning, creativity and integration. We do not always need to teach to the test. Art exhibits in both Guatemala and Hartford, CT honor artists and make for a great culminating event. 

Attending this online conference was far more accessible than I thought it would be. I didn't know exactly what to expect and was thinking that the topics would be a bit intimidating. This was not the case and I was pleasantly surprised at the variety of presentations and relevance of this particular one to what I do. The most important thing I realized in participating in this conference was that it makes me what to investigate more into this program or similar programs. In addition, I loved the immediate feedback after I asked a question in the chat room. 

Lastly, the conference was presented bilingually which was necessary for the audience. Very cool. For more information on this and other programs visit: http://www.creativeconnections.org