Doctoral study turns art teachers’ pandemic lessons into teaching patterns

Art teachers’ experiences of teaching online during the COVID-19 pandemic have been organised into practical teaching patterns that other educators can use, ERR reports. Antonina Korepanova developed the patterns in a doctoral study defended at Tallinn University.

When art classes moved online, teachers had to find ways to teach a practical subject through screens. Korepanova’s research identified solutions teachers found effective, many of which had previously remained known only to the educators who developed them.

She interviewed 24 university art teachers from the United States, Europe and China, all of whom had taught both in person and online. She also held a group discussion with seven teachers about generative artificial intelligence and compared the findings with 48 published studies.

The research identified 15 challenges in online art teaching, grouped into six categories. Some are specific to visual arts and require tailored solutions. Teachers addressed the challenges through three main strategies, each linked to a set of teaching patterns describing the problem and approaches that worked. Korepanova compared a pattern to a recipe.

Design thinking is not enough

Design thinking, a problem-solving approach common in creative fields, is often seen as central to art education. But the study found it covers only part of teachers’ work: they also support students’ personal and professional development. The patterns are therefore linked to learning goals, helping teachers choose an approach for a particular lesson.

Korepanova also created a prototype of an open online tool that presents the teaching patterns through data visualisation, allowing teachers to share their experiences. The study concludes that online art teaching poses specific but manageable challenges.