An action research study on using elegant tasks for primary one pupils to learn art

Abstract

This action research study explored the use of Elegant Tasks for 30 Primary One pupils from a typical public school in Singapore to learn art. According to Sandra Kay, an Elegant Task is an open-ended-problem approach that serves to elicit “creative thoughts” and “elegant” or “aesthetically meaningful” solutions from pupils. Apart from making the teaching of art interesting, the use of Elegant Tasks helps to amuse the pupils into developing an awareness of his or her own style of thinking including its strong points as well as its weaknesses. Qualitative data were collected through focus group discussions. The findings from this study showed that pupils like the adoption of Elegant Tasks in their art lessons as they were given enough room to explore materials, make new discoveries, and work collaboratively in groups. Besides, this approach has also developed a strong sense of ownership and pride in their artworks as witnessed from pupils’ presentation of their artworks at the end of each Elegant Task topic.