Integrating the Arts into Science Teaching and Learning: a Literature Review

Abstract

Science is creative. Write it big, shout it loud, because the message is not getting through. (Howe, 2004, p.14) The American educational system has experienced a recent and increased focus on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM), and researchers and practitioners have argued for equal emphasis on the arts as well. According to Hartle and colleagues, incorporating the arts into learning is considered important and useful for four basic reasons (Hartle, Pinciotti, & Gorton, 2015). First, all cultures demonstrate some sort of need for aesthetic beauty and harmony, making the arts culturally universal. Second, we process sensory information through the arts, which embodies the arts into a system of learning. A third reason is that in our 21 st century multicultural world, the arts provide a language that everyone understands without need for translation. Finally, the arts "provide a natural, and intrinsically motivating medium for children to work 'in advance of themselves' to demonstrate a capacity to work 'as if' they are painters, scientists, presidents, or rock stars" (p. 294). The importance of an increased emphasis on the arts has led to broadening STEM to include the arts. The term STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) was introduced by Yakman, who realized that, "We live in a world where you can't understand science without technology, which couches most of if its research and development in engineering, which you can't create without an understanding of the arts and mathematics" (2012, p.15). The ability of art to inspire creativity in scientific thinking, educate young learners in a holistic manner, and offer another pathway for making and communicating meaning provide important reasons for integrating the arts into science learning. Arts Integration Defined The incorporation of the arts into teaching and learning is called arts integration (AI). The arts include both visual arts (paintings, sculptures) and performing arts (music, dance, drama). Science and art can be seen as opposites, but these two subjects also share commonalities. For instance, Journal of Science Education, and Research in Science Education. Finally, the authors used a snowballing approach to gather articles that were cited by authors of articles already included in the literature review. A total of 11 additional articles resulted from this second phase of the search process, yielding a total of 65 articles for inclusion in the review. All journals and the number of articles found in each journal are listed in Table 1.

Water education, ocean literacy and arts integration

“…Arts integration develops arts-based methods, which we understand as activating and pedagogical forces promoting indeterminacy and openness for spaces of transformation. A comprehensive international review of arts and science integration within schools (Green et al, 2018) found that arts integration improved science academic performance as well as general use and understanding of science vocabulary. Ralph Buck and Barbara Snook (2016) found improved understanding of science concepts within their New Zealand based arts and science combined study.…”

“…Ralph Buck and Barbara Snook (2016) found improved understanding of science concepts within their New Zealand based arts and science combined study. Previous research combining arts and science in creative practices further demonstrates a significant opportunity to develop the emotional and behavioral foci in educational programs and projects (Buck & Snook, 2016;Green et al, 2018;Ward, 2005;Winks et al, 2020;Østern & Strømme, 2014;Østern et al, 2019). The arts can play an inclusive, dynamic, and leading role in engaging children and young people's visions for the valuing of water in sustainable ways that are relevant to those children's and young people's cultural and geographical contexts.…”

Development and validation of an astronomy self-efficacy instrument for understanding and doing

“…Astronomical images using telescopes provides vital scientific information for the development of space exploration and furthering knowledge. Research into the influence of incorporating art and imagery [71,72] to improve girls' science engagement demonstrates the importance for the use of astronomical imaging technologies to increase the future success of women in astronomy. A potential significant outcome in the study of the impact of telescope use is improving access for women and minorities to the STEM pipeline [15,21,22,[73][74][75][76][77].…”

The Concept of Early Childhood Science Learning

“…Integrated learning activities aim to create more enticing learning activities as well as rich in content. For example, the integration between science and art, where children taught not only the ability to think scientifically but also the aesthetics of art simultaneously [23]. González study stated that involving children in science activities presents challenges for children [24].…”