Optimising flow through material engagements in the visual arts : an a/r/tographic inquiry

This study engaged seventeen middle years student-participants in a Visual Arts program to explore material engagement and flow experiences in the secondary school setting. Engaging A/r/tography as methodology, the study found the majority of student-participants experienced flow from active engagement with Art materials and that the Visual Art Program promoted social cooperative behaviours within the classroom. This study proposes a shift from current neoliberal economic agendas influencing educational directives, towards the prioritisation of the social, emotional, moral and intellectual development of the whole child in educational settings that are inclusive of persistent patterns of human engagement, such as the Arts