Personal art vs. public school assignments: Case studies of disengaged high school art students

The qualitative case studies focused on four students enrolled in high school beginning art classes who were motivated to produce artwork outside of class but did not engage with the class art projects. Each of these four subjects produced personal artwork outside of the school that differed from art produced for assignments in class. The study explored the motivation and work habits of these subjects. The study utilized observation of in class student work habits and behavior, and analyzed both in class and personal art work. Data was gathered from three sources: observations of students while they worked in class, the personal and class artwork of students, and interviews with students. The study arrived at common themes and issues in these students' work.