Samoa School Syllabus - Visual Arts

This syllabus outlines the Visual Arts curriculum for students in Samoa, focusing on fostering creativity, self-expression, and cultural understanding through various art forms. The curriculum emphasizes a thematic approach, integrating practical art making with critical analysis and appreciation.

I. Curriculum Structure

The Visual Arts curriculum is structured around four major strands:

1. Developing Creativity and Imagination: Students explore ideas through observation, memory, imagination, and experiences, experimenting with different materials and techniques.

2. Developing Skills and Processes: Students learn to use visual language, various art forms, and diverse materials and techniques to create artworks. They also develop skills in verbal language to describe, analyze, and discuss art.

3. Developing Critical Responses: Students develop the ability to critically analyze and appreciate artworks, both their own and those of others, drawing on their own experiences and cultural understanding.

4. Understanding Art in Its Cultural and Social Environment: Students learn about the cultural and social contexts in which artworks are created, and how art influences these environments. They explore the relationship between art and Samoan heritage and material culture.

II. Thematic Units

The curriculum is delivered through four thematic units, each focusing on a key aspect of Samoan culture and identity:

1. My Samoan Identity: This unit explores personal identity, family, social structures, belief systems, and current issues facing Samoan society.

2. Samoan Material Culture and Ceremonies: This unit examines traditional patterns and designs, weaving and body adornment, siapo and tatau, and traditional ceremonies.

3. Samoa, Our Land, Our Heritage, Our Future: This unit focuses on environmental awareness and sustainability, exploring themes such as vanishing forests, fragile mangroves and marine ecosystems, endangered species, and the future of Samoa.

4. Samoan Oratory, Proverbs, and Storytelling: This unit delves into Samoan oral traditions, including songs, chants, proverbs, oratory, myths, legends, and folktales. Students explore how these traditions can be expressed through visual art forms.

III. Learning Outcomes and Experiences

Each thematic unit outlines specific learning outcomes and expected learning experiences for students. These experiences involve a range of activities, including discussions, research, sketching, drawing, painting, creating multimedia artworks, analyzing artworks by other artists, and exploring different art techniques and processes.

IV. Assessment and Evaluation

Assessment in the Visual Arts curriculum is ongoing and multifaceted, focusing on both the process of art making and the final product. It includes assessment of student artworks, process diaries, portfolios, exhibitions, critical studies (essays, presentations, project reviews), and historical studies. Assessment is designed to be diagnostic, informative, and supportive, providing feedback to students to improve their learning.

V. Essential Skills

The Visual Arts curriculum aims to develop a range of essential skills, including analytical skills, communication skills, planning skills, cooperative skills, technical skills, and problem-solving skills. These skills are considered valuable for both further education and employment opportunities.

VI. Values and Attitudes

The curriculum promotes positive values and attitudes, such as fairness, honesty, excellence, responsibility, respect, tolerance, open-mindedness, perseverance, and a sense of cultural understanding. Students are encouraged to explore and clarify their own values and attitudes through their engagement with art.

VII. Recommended Artists and Artworks

The syllabus recommends the study of artworks by various artists, including Picasso, Van Gogh, Cezanne, Matisse, Leger, and several Samoan artists such as Lalovai Peseta, Vanya Taulealo, Momoe Von Reiche, and Pelenato Liufau. These artists provide examples of diverse artistic styles and approaches, and their works can inspire students in their own creative endeavors.