Dr. Donna Kay Beattie, one of the nation's leading authorities in art education assessment, will be the keynote speaker for the Arkansas Art Education Association Fall Conference, which will be held Thursday and Friday, November 5-6, at the Holiday Inn City Center in Little Rock. Dr. Beattie will deliver her keynote address at 8:45 a.m. on Thursday, November 5, 1998. Also, Dr. Beattie will conduct two conference workshop sessions on Thursday afternoon.
Dr. Beattie is professor of art education and assessment at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, and has done extensive research in the field of art assessment. She has written several articles and books on the subject. Her most recent publication is "Assessment in Art Education". She is a leading authority on large scale and portfolio assessment in the United States, Netherlands, and Australia. During her keynote address, Dr. Beattie will discuss effective assessment as it relates to art classroom practices.
Many educational experts recognize the importance of using various types of assessment in connection with determining student performance. "The area of art uses numerous types of assessment," said Brenda Turner, art education specialist for the Arkansas Department of Education (ADE). "In art, we've been using portfolio assessment for a number of years. We use critical analysis and some criterion-referenced assessments. These are all tools that help each student develop his or her artistic talent and appreciation," explained Turner. "Assessment in the art classroom is an important component of the expanding issue of educational assessment," said Turner. "Regular classroom teachers are now using various tools to measure student performance. With this conference, art teachers and classroom teachers can now share views, and hopefully gain a better understanding of the issues surrounding effective and integrated assessment," said Turner.