Abstract

My thesis elucidates an attempt to make mutually reflective creative dialogues about art making, between student participants and their instructor(s), a more conscious practice in art-education studio classrooms. It builds its conclusions through the methodology of dialogue journal research, ethnographic case construction and narrative inquiry. Art educators have been interested in the role that reflective thinking plays in creativity. My study confirms that role and suggests that models of creative thinking and reflective thinking run on parallel lines. It proposes that reflective thinking and creative art making are functions of the "personal narrative" of the participant. My thesis suggests that Art Education research in these areas needs to expand its approach to incorporate narrative inquiry methods if it wishes to further open up the creative possibilities for the student and the teacher to employ reflective practice in the studio classroom.