This book describes unique aspects of the education system in Israel, specifically focusing on art education, and its role in fostering social change and diversity. It delves into art-based research, autobiographical methodologies, and interviews, showcasing the transformative potential of qualitative research in capturing authentic experiences and promoting social engagement through art education. It shows how practitioner-researchers navigate the complexities of art education, shaping and refining their teaching methodologies to effectively meet the needs of their students.

By exhibiting viewpoints from secular and religious Jewish-Israelis, Palestinian citizens of Israel, as well as diverse gender and ethnic communities within Israeli society, it encapsulates the vibrant texture of the country's educational landscape. It also highlights the actions of women as educators and activists who resist oppression wherever it may exist. The book demonstrates a multifaceted perspective on the potential for healing that can be harnessed through art education within specific societal and contextual settings. This vision can be applied and adapted to various other locations worldwide.

This book offers rich descriptions of the concerns and dynamics that characterize Israeli art education projects, as a model for other places around the world dealing with similar issues of ethnic and national diversity, political conflicts, violent extremism, and migration. It is beneficial to readers who aim to improve social dimensions such as recognizing a diversity of cultures and developing innovation in teaching methods, with art education as the catalyst.

Autorentext

Dr. Sigal Barkai is an educator, curator, artist and researcher of contemporary Israeli art. Since 2022 she is the director of the Arts Division in the Israeli Ministry of Education. Between 2011 and 2023 she was the National Supervisor of Art Education in the Israeli Ministry of Education. Sigal Barkai have published numerous papers and articles about Israeli visual arts from a feminist and sociopolitical point of view. She was the Collection Gallery curator and Assistant Director at the Petach-Tikva Museum of Art, Israel (2005-2009) and since then she has been an independent curator who curated exhibitions at a variety of art venues in Israel.

Dr. David Pariser has been a full Professor since 1995, in the Department of Art Education in the Faculty of Fine Arts at Concordia University, Montreal. He is a Distinguished Fellow of the National Art Education Association (USA). He was awarded the Gaitskell Lecture for his contributions to Canadian art education- (Lecture titled: Just Remember, Wherever you Are, There You Are, or how Postmodern Rhetoric Impoverishes Art Teaching.