Práctica pedagógicas del programa de licenciatura en artes del Instituto Universitario de la Paz

Abstract

This research is part of the Education, society and Cultures branch of the master's degree of the Universidad Santo Tomás. Its objective was to analyze the pedagogical practicum of the Bachelor of Arts program of the Instituto Universitario de la Paz (UNIPAZ) and its contribution to the professional training of the students enrolled in the program in 2019 through the reflection of teachers and students to identify their strengths and difficulties for art education. A qualitative approach, supported by the hermeneutical paradigm, was used to detailing the theoretical foundations of teaching-learning concerning the following categories: pedagogical practicum perceptions, teaching and learning, and type of training used. Participants were 5 teachers and 9 students of the 9th semester from the Bachelor of Arts program who were given information through different techniques such as the nonparticipant observation, semi-structured interview, and focus groups. Results stated that teachers begin from a planned practicum followed by the action-reflection of the theoretical or practical area contents, and finally, an assessment to prove there was the comprehension of the topics. Regarding to teaching and learning, teachers agree that they start from a horizontal (non-hierarchical) relationship with the student, from a didactics focused on practice, ludic and traditional games and collaborative work; all this process, given the characteristics of the field of art, it is first taken to practice followed by theory because in this way it is possible to measure and understand the meaning of the object or topic of study. On the other hand, concerning the pedagogical practicum perceptions, teachers show a divergence influenced by the diversity of the curricular themes in the program, so that to teach music, theater, pedagogy or plastic teachers turn to a specific didactic. Finally, concerning the type of training used, teachers agree that students must be trained not only in the specific knowledge of their area but also in the knowledge aimed at the acquisition of values, citizen training, and unexplored talents. Also, they stated that when the conditions to teach from content and performance standards are given, there is more difficulty with the transfer standards (resources such as theater, music-enabled spaces, equipment), necessary for an efficient content standards development (what should be taught) and the performance as well (low, medium, high). Thus, teachers assume an analytical attitude towards the curriculum based on the socio-critical approach. Additionally, students claim that they are being trained through a good pedagogy that addresses the theoretical-practical, along with qualified teachers who have experience in their field of training; however, they also consider that there must be an improvement of the traditional teaching-learning trends focused on the master class. Moreover, they are aware of the limitations in the economic status of the program which influences the quality of their training process and the pedagogical practicum of their teachers for a proficient adaptation of the teaching-learning processes for art training.