The Arts PROPEL initiative was born out of Project Zero, Harvard University and supported by Educational Testing Services. It was implemented as a field test in Pittsburgh Public Schools for a period of five years, 1986-1991. The project was funded by The Rockefeller Foundation. Project Zero was heavily influenced by research in the fields of education, developmental psychology, cognitive psychology, and educational measurement. The Arts PROPEL curriculum model utilizes research findings of the above studies, implanting them into practice. Emphasis is placed on alternative assessment appropriate for the Visual Arts, Music, and Imaginative Writing. For obvious reasons, my focus here is on Visual Arts. The majority of my information on Arts PROPEL comes from "Arts PROPEL: A Handbook for Visual Arts." The handbook is available from the Project Zero website.

The Arts PROPEL model is primarily concerned with three distinct conponents inherent in the Visual Arts; Production, Perception, and Reflection; and it is driven by two main vehicles, "domain projects" and "process portfolios."

Production - the making/creating of art, students' "getting their hands dirty," the basis from which student's construct their knowledge
Reflection - responding to works of art, thinking about the process of making works of art, the reflecting upon both in writing or through speaking
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Perception - comparing, distinguishing, considering, judging, and seeing a variety of perspectives of one's art, and others'
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Learning - making connections and creating meaning for one's own understanding of the world

Production
From a developmental standpoint, students learn best through opportunities which offer hands on experiences. From their tangible experiences, students construct knowledge and find connections, thus making their experiences mre meaningful. Production is central to the Arts PROPEL model, Perception and Reflection feed into and from the making of art. These three components are interwoven in each lesson. Art history, art criticism, and aesthetics are integrated when naturally appropriate. An ideal curriculum unit in the arts will seemlessly combine each of these aspects of the visual arts culture.

There are three conditions of production for successful learning; 1) Personal invesment by students, 2) exploration of concepts over time, and 3) process of development (with each step left open-ended). Personal investment is acheived through (but not limited to) an inventive use of media, self-expression, and/or communication of an idea. The exploration of concepts over time could be over the course of a semester, or year. This idea is also present in thematic instruction. The process of development emphasizes the PROPEL philosophy (among others) that the process is often more important then the product. In other words, students learn during the process, the product is simply the exemplar of the students' learning. Some are great, some are not; but in each, the student still has learned. Furthermore, the steps in the process should be open-ended to allow for periodic return for student self-assessment and change.

Production acivities are designed to shift student focus from the final product to the process that gets them there. Production is monitored by student reflection and informed by student perception.

Reflection
Reflection can be thought of as students' ongoing and consistent self-assessment. Through reflection students become more aware of their thoughts, mistakes, discoveries, successes, challenges, and so on. They should also have oppurtunities to reflect on others' processes (as well as products) as a way of comparing/contrasting themselves in relation to. Reflection occurs through looking at and thinking, writing, and talking about whatever it is they are refecting upon. It can be a brief, informal dialog with peers, teacher, or self; or it can be a formal written critique. Likewise, it can be a quick journal entry documenting the challenge of using a particular media, or a class discussion on the progress of a project. I see reflecting is a form of scaffolding. Often students (as well as adults) will go through a process (of anything, really) and simply go though the motions, usually not paying attention to the process, but focusing on the product. Without reflecting, or making oneself consciously aware of all that occurs through the process, much learning is lost to the end result when what is really important is the little lessons learned on the journey that got you there.

Perception
Perception most generally refers to Looking Closely. Students should have opportunities to look at and analyze works of art from other cultures, traditions, times, peers, and self, as well as natural and human environments. Perception also refers to working with art materials. Sensitivity to art materials is important for the appropriate choosing of media for a project. Objects and themes of perception are nearly limitless, bound only by appropriateness for the educational environment (ie. you generally want to avoid adult subjects).