Results of an Action Research Plan to Support the Cultural Competence of Teachers and Artists Through Aesthetic Education - A Journal of Educational Research and Practice 2024 Vol. 33 (2) 55-70

Oct 15, 2026

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This journal article reports an action research project supporting the cultural competence of teachers and artists through aesthetic education. In Quebec, both teachers and artists are expected to act as cultural facilitators, yet many feel unprepared or lack information about roles and classroom expectations. The study involved eight participants and collected semi-structured interview data, meeting minutes, logbooks, and participant-created activities. A qualitative interpretive analysis showed that aesthetic education confirmed and improved existing practice while highlighting the need for experimentation opportunities, time, and guidance to strengthen cultural mediation for both groups.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages16

Reading Time40 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Teachers and artists as cultural facilitators in Quebec

Collaboration challenges and training needs

Action research project

Training in aesthetic education

Research questions and study aims

Results of an Action Research Plan to Support the Cultural Competence of Teachers and Artists Through Aesthetic Education A journal of educational research and practice 2024 Vol. 33 (2) 55−70 [https://journals.library.brocku.ca/brocked](https://journals.library.brocku.ca/brocked) Marie-Christine Beaudry 1* , Marika Crête-Reizes2 , Isabelle Carignan3 , Myriam Lemonschois4 1 Université du Québec à Montréal 2 Culture-Education Consultant 3 Université TÉLUQ 4 Université de Montréal Abstract One of the two primary skills that are expected of teachers in Quebec is to act as cultural facilitators. This skill is also required for artists who work with teachers and students in cultural activities. However, many teachers and artists feel incompetent in this area. To address this issue, we conducted an action research project to support the cultural competence of teachers and artists through aesthetic education, an approach that aims to promote education in and through the arts. The study involved eight participants, including two teachers and six artists, and aimed to explore how aesthetic education could enhance their professional practice. We gathered data from semi-structured interviews, meeting minutes, logbooks, and activities created by the participants. A qualitative interpretive approach was applied to analyze the collected data. The findings indicate that aesthetic education confirmed and improved their existing practice. They also emphasized the importance of providing experimentation opportunities, time, and guidance to support the cultural competence of both teachers and artists. Keywords: cultural mediation , professional development , teachers , artists, aesthetic education , evolving practices * [beaudry. marie-christine@uqam.ca](beaudry. marie-christine@uqam.ca) Introduction In Quebec, there is a strong will to integrate culture into the school curriculum to create culturally engaged citizens. Culture is defined by various ministerial documents to include the arts, literature, history, and sciences. Teachers and artists are encouraged by the Ministries of Education and Culture to act as cultural facilitators, helping students develop their relationship with works of art and culture in general (Gouvernement du Québec , 2018 ; Ministère del’Éducation du Québec , 2020) . The Quebec Teachers’ Competency Framework identifies the skill of acting as a facilitator of elements of culture as foundational to teaching (Ministère del’Éducation du Québec , 2020) . Teachers can use resources such as the Culture in Schools program (La culture à l’école) to diversify cultural experiences for students through collaboration with artists, writers, and cultural organizations listed in the Culture-Education directory (Gouvernement du Québec, 2023) . The Ministry of Culture's 2018-2023 cultural policy, “Partout, la culture” (“Everywhere, Culture”), also promotes visits to cultural venues and opportunities for cultural workers and students to meet in order to increase cultural experiences in schools (Gouvernement du Québec , 2018) . Moreover, the cultural policy encourages collaboration between teachers and artists in planning activities for students, as it fosters a better understanding of each other ’s roles and leads to higher quality activities (Easton, 2003; Gouvernement du Québec, 2018) . Finally, the cultural policy emphasizes the need to better integrate culture into teachers and artists’ professional practices and provide training for school staff members and cultural workers (Gouvernement du Québec , 2018) . However, many teachers may not feel adequately prepared to act as cultural facilitators (Dezutter et al. , 2019; Nadeau, 2021), and the same holds true for artists. Collaboration between artists and teachers is not systematic, and artists have reported that they often lack information about the context of their intervention and the expectations of teachers (Beaudry & Crête-Reizes, 2022) . Meanwhile, t

FAQs

What is the article’s main focus?

It examines how an action research training program in aesthetic education can strengthen the cultural competence of teachers and artists acting as cultural facilitators.

Who participated in the study and what data were collected?

The study involved eight participants, including two teachers and six artists. Data were gathered through semi-structured interviews, meeting minutes, logbooks, and activities created by participants.

What did the findings show about aesthetic education?

Aesthetic education confirmed and improved participants’ existing professional practice. Participants also stressed the importance of experimentation opportunities, time, and guidance to support cultural competence.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Blitz