The Structure of Understandings of Practitioners in an Arts and Crafts Workshop

A Case Study of “The Art Expeditionary Tour”

Abstract

In this paper I present research on the structure of understandings of the practitioners in a workshop of arts and crafts, in order to design a new approach to studying and research with the aim of supporting the practitioners’ development.

Interviews were conducted with four individuals taking part in a workshop for children called “The Art Expeditionary Tour”, which took place at the University of Tsukuba, Japan, in 2018. The interviewees were the main members of the workshop team, and were responsible for organizing the event from start to finish, including drawing up plans, making preparations, facilitating the participants’ activities, and post-workshop reflection.

As a result of analyzing the interviews, I identified the following key stages in the structure of understandings of the four members: (1) experiences and reflection in workshop practice; (2) situations and outcome of the workshop; and, (3) further development and improvement.

Finally, it was suggested that the practitioners are coming through the steps of ‘Concrete Experience’ and ‘Reflective Observation’, from the point of view of experiential learning. Consequently, how to complete the practitioners’ learning cycle by applying the two remaining steps, ‘Abstract Conceptualization’ and ‘Active Experimentation’, will be very important in supporting the practitioners’ development.