The Necessity of Aesthetic Education: The place of the arts on the curriculum

Research output: Book/ReportBook

Abstract

The Necessity of Aesthetic Education is a manifesto. That which is experienced through engagement with art, through the many various and diverse art forms and media, is uniquely and essentially valuable to the lives of human beings. In order to fully appreciate and gain the most out of the arts, which offer a variety of aesthetic experience, there are concepts, skills and techniques integral to such understanding. In this book, Laura D'Olimpio argues that aesthetic education ought to be a compulsory part of education for all school-aged students, from pre-primary to high school, on the basis of its distinctive value. Such an argument is timely, given the so-called crisis in the arts and humanities, with declining student numbers in subjects that do not have a direct vocational correlative, and increased focus on science, engineering, technology and mathematics (STEM) subjects. As funding cuts increasingly slash the support for the arts, there is a need to argue for why the arts and arts education is valuable, for their own sake, as well as for the positive contributions they can and do make to society. Through critical engagement with a range of thinkers including Maxine Green, John Dewey and Elliot Eisner, D'Olimpio offers a unique and important contribution to aesthetic education, and to research within philosophy of education.
Original languageEnglish
Place of PublicationLondon
PublisherBloomsbury Publishing
Number of pages184
Edition1st
ISBN (Electronic)9781350120914 (PDF), 9781350120921 (Epub & Mobi)
ISBN (Print)9781350120907
Publication statusPublished - 2 May 2024

Publication series

NameBloomsbury Philosophy of Education
PublisherBloomsbury

Bibliographical note

Dr Laura D'Olimpio is associate professor in philosophy of education at the University of Birmingham and co-founding editor of the Journal of Philosophy in Schools.

Keywords

  • philosophy
  • aesthetics
  • education
  • Aesthetics and ethics
  • aesthetic education
  • curriculum

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Philosophy
  • Education

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