Pedagogical criteria of cognition and evaluation of children’s drawings in the perspective of the model of figurative imaging

Abstract

Introduction: Groping in the dark, over-theorising, subjectivity of recognition and evaluation of children’s artistic creativity are responsible for lowering children’s self-esteem and making them dependent on adults instead of stimulating, motivating and bosting children’s self-esteem. The lack of criteria of recognition results in superficial analyses, hasty diagnoses and assessments that are inadequate for children’s development and abilities. Aim of study: The article analyses the literature on the subject of children’s artistic creativity within the figurative imaging period, focusing on showing visual values of plastic form that can be treated as a clear-cut criterion for pedagogical recognition and objective evaluation of children’s drawings. It shows which visual elements of the plastic form of children’s drawings should be considered; how developmentally different are the notions of line, shape, colour, space and compositional structure; which new formal features can be ascribed to children’s drawings in the period of figurative imaging. State of knowledge: The notion of recognition and evaluation of children’s drawings was undertaken by Stefan Szuman in the 60s of XX century. Some references to those issues can be found in the research by, among others, V. Lowenfeld and W. L. Brittain, R. Arnheim, as well as S. Popek. Pedagogical recognition and evaluation of children’s drawings is represented in the description of the development of plastic form in the model of figurative imaging by M. Uberman. Summary: Pedagogical recognition and evaluation of children’s artistic creativity should be objective and based on measurable key of qualitative-quantitative analysis of the plastic form of the given work.