The Study On The Development Of Art Education Thoughts In The United States Of America

The study on the development of art education thoughts in the United States of America is a complex and challenging research topic in the field of art education research. Its complexity means that it has much contact with multi-disciplinary fields, such as politics, economy, society, history, culture, communication study, psychology, philosophy, etc. Its challenge lies in that the thesis can only summarize reliable and novel conclusions through the collection, classification, grooming, reading and using of considerable data.The United States of America is one of the most developed countries in education research in the world on an aspect of art education.The compatibility, richness, representativeness and defect of American art education are worth studying and exploring. How have American art education thoughts been developing and changing? What are the historical origins? What are the elements that affect the development of American art education thoughts? What kind of education thoughts were used by American art educators to direct art education practice at every historical development stage? The series of questions are necessary for us to explore in depths and to be resolved. The thesis views the representative educators'art education thoughts during the history of the development of American art education as the research object, systematically elaborates the process of the study on the development of American art education thoughts, mainly focuses on the development process of American art education thoughts from the beginning of 19th century to the 90s of 20th century, analyzes the major ideological basis, characteristics and influence elements of the development of American art education thoughts, summarizes the overall features in the development and evolution of American art education thoughts.Apart from the introduction and conclusion, the thesis consists of five chapters.In the introduction, it mainly talks about the significance of the research topic, the present situations and methods of research home and abroad, defines and explains the related core concept.The main text is divided into five chapters as follows:Chapter I is the origin and initial development of American art education thoughts. It basically makes a brief explanation for the developing process of European art education thoughts, the aim is to explore the important theory basis for the succession, extension and development of American art education thoughts by going back the development of European art education thoughts. The thoughts such as culture, arts, education and religion brought by the European immigrants have laid a solid foundation for the development of American art education thoughts.Chapter II is the American instrumentalism art education thoughts. It fully analyzes and discusses the American instrumentalism art education thoughts from three aspects: the social developing background of forming American instrumentalism art education thoughts, the theory basis and its characteristics, emphasizes some instrumentalism education points of view and instrumentalism teaching methods represented by Lowenfeld and Herb Reed.Chapter III is the American essentialism art education thoughts. It mainly describes a series of events of the formation and development of the essentialism arts education thoughts, which have become an inevitable trend for the naissance of the essentialism art education thoughts. The chapter analyzes the characteristics of essentialism art education thoughts, and explores the effects that the Eisner's "subject-centered" essentialism art education pedagogy has brought to the field of American art education.Chapter IV is the American multiculturalism art education thoughts. It gives the theoretical inspection of multiculturalism art education thoughts, examines the multiculturalism educational thoughts in American art education from the multiculturalism background, discriminates the comprehensive art education thoughts complemented and interacted by four disciplines: art criticism, art history, artistic creativity and aesthetics in American art education, generalizes the main characteristics of the American multiculturalism art education thoughts.Chapter V is the comprehensive analysis of the development of American art education thoughts. After the whole study of it, the chapter summarizes its characteristics from four aspects:The first, Transplantation, Attachment and Innovation: the development way of American art education thoughts; The second, the process of the modernization in American society and the evolution of art education thoughts; The third, the evolution of art education thoughts under the influence of Macro-social education ideas; The fourth, the change of American art education practices and the conversion of art education research paradigm.In the conclusion, according to the detailed discussion on the above five chapters, it draws five conclusions: First, the developing history of American art education is a complex and gradual changing process; Second, the pragmatism-oriented utilitarianism has played a dominant role in American art education thoughts; Third, the development of American art education thoughts is related to the social situation, economic condition and educational development at that time; Fourth, there is no unified method for art education teaching thoughts, and the methods are always proceeding with changes; Fifth, art education has not been an emphasis of the teaching plans in American schools, not only in the past but at present.