Study of Eisner’s Concept

Eisner’s concept of the role of forms in arts is inspirational for education. The traditional view sees education as the transfer of knowledge from the instructor to students. More recently, co-creation of knowledge by students and the instructor is considered more appropriate. However, our exploration of the role of compelling experience makes it clear that effective learning should be a process of knowledge co-creation with emotion as lubrication. That is, students should enjoy a learning process to maximize the learning outcome. The issue is how to make education a blend of rational and emotional endeavor?

According to Eisner, forms are important for all fields of art. I prefer to see Eisner’s forms as the ways of aesthetic expression. As we know, to simulate a particular feeling among an audience, a painter may paint something, a composer may write a song, and a dancer may dance, all using their own “way of aesthetic expression.” If they are all good in terms of using the way of aesthetic expression in respective fields, a “work of art” can be created.

Educators are creators, too. I’m thinking about how to apply this forms idea to education. We need to be innovative and find the right forms in our instruction. For example, when we make a PPT for a lecture, we could use text only for all the information or better yet, we could add graphics or even interesting video clips. In most cases, a multimedia approach in teaching is more appealing and effective because it injects emotional elements into the learning process.

Along a different line of thinking, interaction and engagement with students is equally important, as a unique form of education. Compared with a straight lecture, lively discussion with students or among students can simulate understanding with emotion. We all remember how pleasing a good discussion for the class. Of course, we have to be creative for each lecture in terms of the right forms—anything may loss novelty if it stays unchanged for too long. That is the real challenge for effective teaching and active learning. So our quest for right forms of education will never end.