Creativity, Play and the Arts

This subject has the following teaching availabilities in 2015:

170 hours

For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Students Experiencing Academic Disadvantage Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Description, Subject Objectives, Generic Skills and Assessment Requirements of this entry.

The University is dedicated to provide support to those with special requirements. Further details on the disability support scheme can be found at the Disability Liaison website: http://www.services.unimelb.edu.au/disability

This subject focuses on the integral connection between play, the arts and engagement in childhood. Through workshops, seminars, observations and site-visits, students will interpret and examine playful, creative and artful experiences. To understand and learn how to facilitate children’s engagement, students will experience, observe and co-play in a range of real-life settings. The experiential nature of the subject is supported by knowledge drawn from a range of disciplines incorporating theories of engagement, play and creativity, artistic creation, and human development through art. Sites of practice may include museums, galleries, early learning centres, hospitals and community centres.

Students will:

• Experience and reflect critically on diverse arts and play settings for children;

• Demonstrate an understanding of the role of the arts, creativity and play in child development;

• Practice observational and analytical skills;

• Develop skills and knowledge that support engagement in play-based arts practice in a range ‘real-life’ settings.

There will be three items of assessment.

Item 1: Observation and Analysis of Play, Creativity and Artful Experience (Paper) 2,400 words, due week 8, 60%
Item 2: Description and Analysis of Engaging Practice (Paper) 1,600 words, due week 14, 40%
Item 3: Presentation (5 minutes), due week 12, hurdle requirement

Attendance at all classes (tutorial/seminars/practical classes/lectures/labs/online classes) is obligatory. Failure to attend 80% of classes will normally result in failure in the subject.

Course readings will be provided.

This subject potentially can be taken as a breadth subject component for the following courses:

• Bachelor of Arts
• Bachelor of Biomedicine
• Bachelor of Commerce
• Bachelor of Environments
• Bachelor of Music
• Bachelor of Science
• Bachelor of Engineering

You should visit learn more about breadth subjects and read the breadth requirements for your degree, and should discuss your choice with your student adviser, before deciding on your subjects.

This subject will assist students to acquire the following graduate attributes:

• expand their analytical and cognitive skills through learning experiences in diverse subjects, artforms, and settings
• the capacity to participate fully in collaborative learning and to confront unfamiliar problems
• initiate and implement constructive change in their communities, including professions and workplaces
• excellent interpersonal and decision-making skills, including an awareness of personal strengths and limitations