Voicing a Mindful Pedagogy: A Teacher-Artist in Action

Abstract

Historically, educators and philosophers have struggled with defining the role and the value of formal curriculum and its impact on classroom praxis. As the current accountability movement dominates discussions in education, educators are pressured to implement increasingly standardized curricula. The authors of this work consider these tensions, situated first within contrasting theories on teaching and learning. They then explore the concept of phronesis through an interpretive biography of one teacher-artist, Frieda, whose praxis also demonstrates the aesthetic and artistic side of the teaching-learning process. This ninety-yearold teacher-artist‘s experiences with implementing her curriculums suggest that it is always possible to implement one‘s praxis, despite any potential societal or legislative impediments. Frieda's story shows how a teacher‘s praxis can incorporate Eisner‘s artistic approach to curriculum as well as many of Dewey‘s principles of child-centered pedagogy

Keywords

• Dewey, Phronesis, Progressive education, Aesthetic, Art