A Historical Survey of Animation Subjects in School Textbooks of Art in High School Education in Japan

Abstract

The major aim of this study is to clarify the historical transition of education concerning animation in primary and secondary art education in Japan. This paper surveys how animation subjects were treated in school textbooks for art in high school education focusing on their education purposes. This research surveyed 44 animation subjects extracted from 113 textbooks published between 1950s and 2010s. The results of text analysis show the first example was the subject in 1972 and since then there has been 2 continuous educational purposes for animation subjects: Media Education and Education for Visual Communication. Since the 2000s, the number of animation subjects has increased rapidly and the perspective of education has expanded to 3 more purposes: Constructive Education, Education for Creativity and Education for Collaborative Communication.