Information Science & Visual Arts Integration

Abstract

While at the University of Arizona, I have learned a great deal about art education practices, such as: how to engage students and implement lesson plans. I have also had the opportunity to learn about information science topics and I have found that many of these relate directly to the typical student's life, yet there is no guarantee that students will ever study the theory behind these areas. The purpose of this thesis is to create and establish multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary lesson plans, which demonstrate how visual arts can be integrated with information science topics. Interdisciplinary approaches in art education can advance critical thinking, communication, resourcefulness, and other fundamental academic skills. I created a series of lesson plans that should be viewed as a comprehensive unit that combines art and information science topics. This paper elucidates on how visual arts have been constructively integrated into core curriculum in other subject areas and gives educators examples of how to explore the idea of integrating general education topics into art lessons. Educators will have concrete examples of lesson plans and may use these plans as finished works or as prototypes for developing their own plans that combine visual arts and information sciences.