How in-school artists helped boost creativity

As was the case for many in education, Sir Ken Robinson’s death last year hit me hard. 

跟许多教育界人士一样，去年肯·罗宾逊爵士的去世对我打击很大。

His message regarding the importance of creativity in schools, and of recognising and cultivating individual talents, still resonates with those who remain committed to the grassroots revolution he inspired. 

他所发出的关于学校创造力，以及承认和培养个人才能重要性的声音依然引起了那些致力于他的基层革命的人们的共鸣。

Yet finding practical, effective ways to engender creativity in schools can be as challenging as it is rewarding.

然而，在校园内寻找那些实用，有效的方法来激发创造力，这是一项既具有挑战性但又能带来回报的工作。

However, after several years of working at an international school doing just this, I believe there are ways we can achieve it – and in such a way as to have a meaningful impact on the teaching and learning that takes place.

然而，经过好几年的国际学校工作之后，我相信我们学校可以通过一些方法来实现这种理念，并且以这样一种方式对现在所进行的教育和学习产生深远意义的影响。

The models we have used are based on ideas I had explored while working in the UK arts and cultural sector as an education and creative projects manager, but I think any school could learn from. 

我们套用的模式是基于我在英国艺术和文化领域担任教育及创意项目经理时所探索出来的一套思维模式，但我认为任何学校都可以从中学习。

Education and the arts in harmony  教育与艺术的和谐统一

To start, a question: how often have you noticed during a trip to a gallery, museum or other arts and culture centre that they have a dedicated educational outreach function?

首先，想问你们一个问题：你们在参观画廊、博物馆或者其他艺术文化中心的时候，你通常会注意到他们有专门的教育拓展功能吗？

The needs of schools are key considerations when a theatre, museum or gallery produces or presents new work, and it’s not uncommon for the educational and community offerings to be as carefully considered as the artistic one. 

当剧院，博物馆或画廊厂家展示新作品的时候，学校的需求是他们关键的考虑因素，因为对于把教育机构和社区提供的作品与正式的艺术作品放在一起进行仔细端详，这样的情况并不罕见。

This realisation, alongside Sir Ken’s philosophy concerning creativity, were key to my decision to accept a role at Prem Tinsulanonda International School and Traidhos Three-Generation Community for Learning with the remit to develop “education for creativity” across the school, curriculum and wider community.

基于这种认识，加上肯爵士的关于创造力的哲学理论，是我决定接受普林国际学校和特拉伊多斯（Traidhos）三代学习社区职位的关键因素，而我的职责是在让学校、课程、和更广泛的社区积极发展“创造力教育”。

As I began the role, I asked myself what would happen if we replicated the approach that I had witnessed in the UK. Was there a way to embed a professional arts organisation into the centre of a school?

当我开始担任这个职务的时候，我问自己，如果我照搬我在英国所亲身经历的那套做法，会发生什么？有没有办法把一个专业的艺术组织摆在学校的重点位置去看待？

This question prompted more: what tangible benefits and what particular learning might happen if you merge the ideas and approaches of artists, creative practitioners and creative thinkers, with those of teachers, educational leaders and young people? 

这个问题引发了我更多的思考：如果将艺术家，创意实践者和创意思想家的想法和方法，跟教师，教育领袖人物和年轻人的想法方法结合起来，会有什么切实的好处和独特的学习技巧？

To find answers to these questions, a creativity committee was formed and, from this, a bold idea was conceived.

为了解答我的这些疑问，我们成立了一个创意委员会，并从中产生一个大胆的想法。

We would create our own developmental learning laboratory that sits at the centre of the school, integrating the practice of participants into teaching, learning and community engagement. We named it Artist Residency Thailand.

The concept could easily have been rejected had I not been able to point towards data collected while working with organisations such as Artswork and campaigns I had conceived that had been fronted by Sir Ken. 

我们将在学校的中心创建我们自己的发展性学习实验室，将参与者的实践活动融入到教学，学习和社区中。我们把它命名为”泰国艺术家驻地”。

如果我不能指明我的设想 ，例如与类似Artswork的活动组织合作时收集的数据，没有与肯爵士的理念一致的话，那么我的这个概念很可能会被否定。

With backing from the top, we could begin. The overarching idea was to create a vehicle with which to drive the centralising of creativity across the school and wider organisation. To support the costs involved, we established a partnership with ISTA (The International Schools Theatre Association) and accredited the programme through Res Artis, a worldwide network of arts residencies. 

有了高层的支持，我们的计划就可以开始了。我们的总体想法是创建一个推动这件事情发展的工具，使学校和更广泛的组织可以集中于创造力教育，关于其中所涉及的费用问题，我们与国际学校戏剧协会建立了合作伙伴关系，计划通过全球艺术驻地网络阿尔蒂斯艺术村的认证，以获得他们的支持。

What started with a handful of applications in the first year grew to nearly 400 in its fifth. Pre-Covid, we spent every April and May discussing approaches and ideas with practitioners, department heads, programme leaders and the leadership team, and then welcomed selected participants for eight residencies throughout each following academic year.  

从第一年申请的人数寥寥无几，到第五年增长到近400人。在新冠疫情之前，我们每年四月和五月都会与参与者、部门负责人、项目负责人和领导团队讨论方法思路， 然后在接下来的每个学年都会欢迎经过挑选的候选人去参加为期八次的驻院实习。

All programme participants give an average of four hours of their time each day to work with our community and, in return, they benefit from resource access, opportunities for piloting ideas and mentoring, as well as research, exhibition and performance spaces. 

所有项目的参与者平均每天花四个小时跟我们社区合作，作为回报，他们受益于资源获取，因为我们给他们提供了试点想法和指导的机会，以及研究，展览和表演空间。

Meanwhile, we benefit from their ideas, approaches, expertise and creative energy. 

同时，老师们也从他们的想法，方法，专业知识和创造力中吸取经验。

Students work with UK Theatre Director Ben Harrisson to explore devising narrative through architecture . 

From philosophers in junior school classrooms and ceramicists in science labs, to theatre directors in English lessons and conceptual artists in early years classrooms, the programme provides a plethora of learning lenses, benefiting educators, students and the wider school community. 

学生们会跟英国戏剧导演本.哈里森合作，通过建筑设计探索设计的叙述。

从初中课堂的哲学家到科学实验室的陶艺家，从英语课的戏剧导演和早教课堂的概念艺术家，该计划提供了大量的学习纽带，使教育工作者、学生和更广泛的学校社区受益其中。

Each residency is different and participants deliver everything from stand-alone masterclasses or seminars to month-long engagements that are driven by project-based learning. 

每个驻地的活动内容都是不同的，我们给参与者提供从独立的大师班或研讨会到由基于项目的学习驱动的为期一个月的所有活动内容。

Often, participants hold events, debates, concerts and performances, framing the school and campus as a cultural hub for the wider community.  

通常，参与者会举办活动、辩论、音乐会和表演，将学校和校园塑造成更广泛社区的文化中心。

There are practical exchanges, too. The school offers housing and transport, pastoral care, marketing, networking and mentoring opportunities for all participants.

但也有实际的交流。 学校为所有参与者提供住宿交通、教牧关怀、营销、网络和指导机会。

To strategically manage this work, a new leadership role of creative director was developed, working in partnership with the head of school and the chief executive to help ensure the projects chosen effectively develop the school’s creative vision.

为了更有策略地进行这项工作，创意总监这样一个新的领导角色被开发出来，与学校校长和首席执行官合作，以确保我们所选择的项目正在有效地朝着学校的创意愿景发展。

Essential in helping focus this vision and ensuring meaningful engagement for students, we introduced four guiding principles that practitioners and teachers alike can use to inform their approaches: 

为了帮助集中发展这一愿景并确保学生们进行了有意义的参与，我们引入了四项指导原则，学生和教师都可以通过这些原则来告示他们自己：

Engage: Get students excited about their learning.

Enhance: Go beyond what we have done before.

Enliven: animate our campus and community with learning and expression and make learning visible.

Empower: Develop resilient and confident young people and progressive, open-minded educators.

Over the past eight years, these approaches have created impactful learning experiences for students, invaluable professional development opportunities for staff and inspiring cultural engagements for our community. 

参与：让学生对他们的学习感到兴奋。

增强：超越我们之前所做的一切教育。

充满活力：通过学习和表达使我们的校园和社区充满活力，并使学习过程看得见摸得着。 

赋权：培养具有韧性和自信的年轻人，和进取的、思维开放的教育工作者。

在过去的八年里，这些方法为学生创造了富有影响力的学习体验，为员工创造了宝贵的职业发展机会，并为我们的社区带来了令人激动的文化参与。

Our students are now more likely to see their learning taking place in different and unusual areas of our campus, interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary approaches are more imaginative and collaborative in nature; and our educators are more confident borrowing lenses and connections introduced by practitioners. 

我们的学生现在更能看到自己的学习已经跨越了学校里常规的课程领域； 交叉学科和跨学科的方法在本质上更具想象力和协作性； 我们的教育工作者在借用实践者描述的视角和圈子时变得更加自信。

Choreographer Fleur Darkin working with students to explore personal identity through movement

编舞老师菲尔·达金与学生一起通过运动探索个人特点

Staff have benefited from professional development that has included artists from ISTA and other programme participants. Many “non-arts” subject teachers now have an understanding of arts-centralised skills that can be used to aid inquiry or manage energy levels within all subject areas. 

教职工们也从专业发展中获益良多，其中包括来自国际学校戏剧学会的艺术家和其他计划参与者。 因为许多“非艺术”学科教师已经了解到如何运用以艺术为中心的教育技巧，这些技巧可用于帮助探究或管理所有学科领域的潜力水平。

Screenings by filmmakers, seminars from philosophers and concerts from indie-pop musicians have brought our community together outside of the classroom and work explored, developed and started here has been performed, shared and celebrated internationally.  

电影制作人的放映会、哲学家的研讨会和独立流行音乐家的音乐会把我们的社区活动聚集在教室之外。我们在这里探索，发展和工作成果已经在国际上传开和庆祝，并被同仁与之分享。

Managing this process has shown that there are practical ways to nurture creativity in our schools and create the kind of grass-roots transformation that Sir Ken inspired so many to begin. 

通过管理这一过程表明，有一些实用的方法可以培养我们学校学生的创造力，并创造一套符合肯爵士启发许多人开始进行的那种基层变革。

As he stated: “A vibrant school can nourish a whole community by becoming a source of hope and creative energy.”

正如亚历山大先生所说的：“一所充满活力的学校可以通过成为希望和创造力的源泉来滋养整个社区。”

I believe what we have piloted demonstrates that there are practical ways to achieve that and very good reasons for others to explore similar approaches. 

我相信我们的试验已经表明，有切实可行的方法可以实现这一目标，并且有很好的理由让其他人也去探索类似的教育方法。

Alex Soulsby is a creative education specialist and the creative director for Prem Tinsulanonda International School and its Artist Residency Thailand programme. 

亚历山大先生是一位创意教育专家，也是普林国际学校及其泰国艺术家驻留项目的创意总监。