The Use-Value of Real-World Projects: Children and Local Experts Connecting Through School Work - Abstract

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by dhado

A study examines long-term, interdisciplinary student work at King Middle School (grades 6–8) in Portland, Maine, focusing on how its aesthetic qualities reshape understandings of children’s capabilities. The paper argues that conventional “cognitive” and “practical” evaluation criteria understate the substantive value of such community-based projects, making them seem static and conventional. It proposes aesthetic criteria to assess meaning and value for audiences beyond school, emphasizing collaboration, communication, and dialogue with community experts.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages17

Reading Time43 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Overview of the Study

ISSN: 2325-3290 (online) The Use-Value of Real-World Projects: Children and Local Experts Connecting Through School Work Alison Rheingold Christa McAuliffe Charter School Jayson Seaman University of New Hampshire Abstract In this paper we discuss how the products of student work during long-term, interdisciplinary curricular units at King Middle School, a grades 6-8 public school in Portland, Maine, through their aesthetic qualities, transformed people’s understanding of what children were capable of. We argue that, to effectively understand student work of this type,‘cognitive’ and‘practical’criteria for evaluation – i.e., as a supposed indicator of what students need to know and be able to do – fail to convey the actual, substantive value of the work, rendering it relatively static and meaningless like much conventional schoolwork. Instead, we argue that aesthetic criteria can help to adequately understand and assess community-based, project work. Moreover, focusing only on student learning throughout the production process occludes the importance of collaboration, communication, and dialogue with an audience: in this case, community experts whose goals and interests must be accommodated as students do their work. The aim of the article is twofold: 1) to present a coherent picture of student project work that adequately captures its complexity both in the process of its production, and in its use-value upon completion; and 2) to argue for the importance of aesthetic criteria in planning and assessing student projects. Dr. Alison Rheingold is the Director of Professional Learning at the Christa McAuliffe Charter School in Framingham, Massachusetts. Her primary role is to develop teachers’ passion for designing and implementing community-based, interdisciplinary curriculum for middle school children. Jayson Seaman is Associate Professor of Kinesiology and Affiliate Associate Professor of Education atthe University of New Hampshire. His research interests include the historical foundations of experiential education, youth development, learning in informal settings, and adolescent identity formation. He is the co-author (with John Quay) of John Dewey and Education Outdoors (Sense, 2013) . 􀀡􀀡􀀢 Dialogic Pedagogy: An International Online Journal | [http://dpj.pitt.edu](http://dpj.pitt.edu) [DOI: 10.5195/dpj](DOI: 10.5195/dpj).2017.165 | Vol. 5 (2017) A1 The Use-Value and Real-World Projects Alison Rheingold and Jayson Seaman Introduction The function of art has always been to break through the crust of conventionalized and routine consciousness (John Dewey, 1927/1954, p. 183) Something almost indescribable happens when adults see beautiful work created by children, or when an audience watches a child’s top-notch performance; they become overtly emotional, perhaps wondering, “How can a child of this age have produced something that good?” Or they might observe: “Iam impressed that the child cared enough to work that hard on the project.” When children’s academic work embodies certain qualities, it can be much more than a demonstration of content knowledge and skills – it can transform students and audiences, functioning as art in the sense John Dewey describes. This paper discusses how the products of student work during long-term curricular units at one public middle school demonstrated this kind of aesthetic quality. We argue that, to effectively understand student work of this type, ‘cognitive’ and ‘practical’ criteria for evaluation– i.e. , as a supposed indicator of what students need to know and be able to do – fail to convey the actual, substantive value of the work, rendering it relatively static and meaningless like much conventional schoolwork. We argue that aesthetic criteria helps to adequately understand and assess project work, particularly when it communicates meaning and value to people outside of the school. Moreover, focusing only on student learning during project work obscu

FAQs

What evaluation criteria does the paper challenge for student real-world projects?

It challenges “cognitive” and “practical” criteria as they fail to convey the actual, substantive value of the work.

How does the paper propose assessing project work instead?

It argues that aesthetic criteria can adequately understand and assess community-based, project work, especially when it communicates meaning and value to people outside school.

Why does the paper emphasize collaboration with an audience?

Because focusing only on learning during production obscures the importance of collaboration, communication, and dialogue with community experts whose goals must be accommodated throughout the process.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by dhado