Sunday 02 November 2008, San José, Costa
Rica
Six Months
Preventive Detention For Killer Trio
'Think
Art’ Project To Reach 13
Guanacaste Schools
Plasma Engine
Credit Restriction
Free Zones
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'Think
Art’ Project To Reach 13
Guanacaste Schools
(Infocom) — Using a
methodology that seeks
to foment critical
thinking and the
development of values
among students in both
public and private
schools, the Piensa en
Arte (Think Art) Program
began implementation
last Oct. 20 at four
elementary schools: La
Aurora and Llorente de
Flores in Heredia
province, and Honduras
and Lagos de Lindora in
Santa Ana, west of San
José.
The program — which will
incorporate 450 new
students for a total of
1,576 participating
nationwide — is to reach
public schools in the
provinces of San Jose,
Heredia and Guanacaste,
plus two private schools
in San Jose.
An initiative of the
Accion Arte Association,
Think Art is a program
based on the methodology
developed by the
international Cisneros
Foundation, which uses
works of art from the
New York Museum of
Modern Art.
In 2007, the Cisneros
Foundation (founded by
Venezuelan media and
entertainment mogul
Gustavo Cisneros and his
wife Patty) and Costa
Rica’s Ministry of
Education (MEP) signed
an agreement to
implement the program
here, incorporating
local works of art into
the educational
curriculum of public and
private schools in an
effort to promote
“transversality” among
cultural institutions.
“One of the goals of
this program is to
instill in students
tolerance toward diverse
and even contrary
opinions, where the
important thing is not
to be right but to
listen to other people’s
opinions, and learn to
think and be critical
from the starting point
of enjoying a good work
of art,” said Education
Minister Leonardo
Garnier.
Garnier added that early
exposition of students
to the works of great
art masters awakens in
them appreciation for
the arts.
In this new phase of the
program, sponsored by
transnational
corporation
Hewlett-Packard (HP)
with support from the
Business Association for
Development, 13 teachers
from the four schools
listed above were
trained.
“Our work focuses on
facilitating this type
of public-private
alliances, which, in
this particular case,
not only enrich the
educational system of
this country, but
directly benefit the
children and educators
thanks to the vision of
our associate, HP,”
explained Alicia
Fournier, executive
director of the Business
Association for
Development.
The teachers received a
program guide, an
introductory brochure
and a review of the
Think Art Program’s
methodology; 28
structured lessons
around 20 works of arts
by local and
international artists;
and 20 high-quality
posters featuring the
selected works of art to
facilitate conservations
in the classroom.
The program’s goal is to
work with these students
during three consecutive
years, incorporating 20
images per each level.
In this way, upon
completion of the
program, the students
would have gotten to
know and learned about
60 works of art from
both Costa Rican and
international artists —
including paintings,
sculptures, photographs
and installations.
Think Art is offered to
students in grades 4-6
as part of Language and
Writing curriculum,
beginning with fourth
graders. |
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