by Kristin Proulx Jarvis
Associate Professor of Art Education Cynthia Vascak. Photo by John Hession.
Sketching plant life during a nature hike. Creating a bright mural of undersea creatures. Learning geometry by recreating Picasso or Kandinsky. Letting paintings, drawings and collages inspire the writing process. Improving reading skills with rhythm and music. Mastering the events of the Civil Rights era through dramatic performance.
These are all moments witnessed in local classrooms where teachers practice the Integrated Instructional Model (IIM), a teaching style based on arts integration, critical thinking and community building. The model was co-created eight years ago by Plymouth State University art professor Dr. Cynthia Vascak and Wendy Oellers, a third grade teacher at Gilford Elementary School.
Since its creation, the IIM program has won praise from local parents and educators as well as the State Department of Education. In 2001, the program—now in place at Gilford Elementary, Inter-Lakes Elementary and Middle School in Meredith and Ashland Elementary School—received a three-year, $500,000 federal grant for development, training and research. As part of that grant, a team of 25 elementary, special education, art, music and technology teachers has been studying the effectiveness of the model at its three sites. They have found improved test scores, strong administrative support and increased passion for learning among students and teachers.
Vascak isn’t surprised. She has seen, over and over again, the power of the arts to change minds and lives. For children, visual art, music, dance and drama are particularly ideal modes of self-expression and learning, she says. The arts capitalize on multiple intelligences. They offer hands-on experiences and showcase special talents. Vascak believes the arts can be the key to helping kids succeed in school. With the opportunity to participate in creative activities, even children who struggle academically can develop new talents.
“Kids sometimes find their way to shine through the arts, and when teachers see these kids shining, their attitudes shift,” says Vascak. “For a lot of kids who fall through the cracks, sometimes it’s the arts that are that saving hook.”
Oellers calls the IIM program “cross-training for the brain.” The model gives children an infinite number of ways to express themselves and their knowledge.
“You might have a child who is very quiet but is a phenomenal artist,” Oellers says. “Pictures can tell a thousand words.”
Vascak and Oellers began working together in 1996, when Vascak was working on her doctoral dissertation and Oellers was completing a master’s degree in education. Vascak wanted to study the effect of arts integration on elementary school classrooms, and Oellers was already providing her students with snippets of music, art and theater during the school day. They began a pilot program in Oeller’s classroom.
“We started looking at what would happen if the arts were really infused,” said Vascak.
What happened was magic. By creating paintings, collages and drawings, kids improved their writing skills and enriched their vocabularies. Reading and math—supplemented by arts activities—also improved. A few months later, administrators at Gilford Elementary were praising their efforts. Soon, more teachers became interested in the IIM model. Oellers and Vascak presented their findings to the Gilford School Board, which approved a larger pilot study in four classrooms. By the time Vascak applied for the federal grant in 2001, 10 teachers were using IIM. Now, the IIM research team numbers 25.
Many of the IIM initiatives were simple. With the grant money, schools purchased CD players and percussion instruments for each classroom so that teachers could use music during their lessons. Teachers also set up art centers and small galleries of student work in their classrooms and hallways. They used morning meetings, classroom contracts and group projects to help build camaraderie among students.
But in order to keep the program going strong, teachers have dedicated themselves to collaboration and continuing education. Professional development is critical to the success of IIM, says Vascak. Teachers need to be continually reaffirmed about their ability to integrate the arts into their classrooms, and they need to learn the techniques for how to best accomplish the creative learning and community building that form IIM’s core.
“Many adults feel, ‘I’m not an artist, so how can I work with art in the classroom?’ We try to reintroduce teachers to their inner artist,” says Vascak.
Even Oellers refused to paint alongside her students during the first years of the IIM program. One day, she and Vascak were leading a first grade class through a painting exercise. As Vivaldi played in the background, Oellers watched her students dip their paintbrushes into bright colors and turn plain white sheets of paper into bold works of art. A few students finally convinced Oellers to sit down and paint with them.
“I sat down and I started really enjoying it,” she says. “This little first-grader patted me on the back and said, ‘See, you’re an artist too.’”
To encourage teachers to explore their inner artists, Plymouth State offers a professional development program for IIM that includes an annual Arts in Education Summer Institute, on-site professional development workshops and performances, mentoring for teachers and the opportunity to attend an Integrated Arts conference held each winter. Teachers can also participate in two educational theater companies, the Educational Theatre Collaborative in Plymouth or the Kearsarge Arts Theatre in North Sutton, both founded by Integrated Arts professor Dr. Trish Lindberg. PSU also offers over 20 graduate courses in Integrated Arts throughout the year and an annual summer International Arts and Culture Institute that gives teachers the opportunity to travel to such places as Ireland, South Africa and New Zealand.
Schoolwide IIM programs such as the ones in Gilford, Meredith and Ashland also require dynamic arts educators to act as leaders and inspirations for other teachers. Vascak explains that the model is not designed to replace arts education but to supplement it. Once teachers and administrators see the results art can bring, they most often seek to increase its presence in their schools.
Julie Krisak, a music teacher at Inter-Lakes Elementary School, has seen her school’s classroom teachers use more and more music in their lessons. Fourth-graders learning about New Hampshire history write a “state government rap.” Fifth-graders compose karaoke songs based on ideas they’re learning in math, language arts or science.
“People come to me more now and ask about music, and I hear music more in the classrooms,” she says. “I think it’s a great way to learn, and the kids get a lot out of it.”
“I think IIM helps students learn in many different ways,” agrees Teresa Merrifield, who teaches art, family and consumer science and study skills at Ashland Elementary School. “They understand connections more when they’re doing hands-on projects.”
The model also provides teachers of all subjects with a chance to work together and share ideas through team teaching and other collaborations. “It helps classroom teachers see what I do in the art room,” says Merrifield. “We work together and get an appreciation for one another.”
Vascak and Oellers knew the program could not succeed without this kind of collaboration. They made sure school administrators were willing to provide teachers with time to meet and share ideas, stories and challenges. Teachers also kept parents and community members informed through newsletters and an IIM Web site (www.interlakes.org/IIM/home.htm).
Over the past four years, teachers, administrators and parents have praised the program, citing students’ improved performance and renewed enthusiasm for learning. Steven Kelley, the principal at Inter-Lakes Elementary School, gave the program his highest praise. “As an elementary principal, I can honestly say that the IIM Project has been one of the most exciting, meaningful and relevant initiatives that I have ever seen in a school.”
