1. Art portfolios in preschool teachers’ initial education as a means of acquiring professional competences and reflective practiceMarijana Županić Benić, 2025, original scientific article Abstract: The study sought to examine the art portfolios of second-year undergraduate students of Early and Preschool Education at the Faculty of Teacher Education in Zagreb and their reflections on their own artwork. The aim was to examine how students experience, reflect on and interpret their creative work process. By reflecting, students acquire deeper understanding of art expression and perfect the ability to plan and evaluate visual art activities for implementation in their future work with children. The results show that students whose reflections on their own artwork through portfolios are more detailed show greater levels of self-awareness, creativity and pedagogical competence.
Keywords: reflection, visual art education, portfolios, preschool teachers, professional competences
Published in DKUM: 02.10.2025; Views: 0; Downloads: 6
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2. Explaining preferences for illustration style and characteristics in early childhoodMarijana Županić Benić, Kristina Kalić, 2019, original scientific article Abstract: The purpose of this study was to explore how children perceive the style and characteristics of illustrations in picture books. It was found that six-year-old children preferred expressionist and surrealist illustrations, whereas four-year-old children preferred expressionist and romantic illustrations. They liked illustrations mostly because they were colorful, but also because they saw familiar motifs and actions in those illustrations. Children are also likely to prefer illustrations that are textile-shaped, illustrations that resemble children’s drawings, and naive, happy illustrations. These findings are consistent with previous studies of children’s preferences for illustrations and serve as a reference point for future studies.
Keywords: artistic styles, ilustration characteristics, picture book, preschool child
Published in DKUM: 18.06.2025; Views: 0; Downloads: 2
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3. The relation between student mood and handicrafts in the constructivist classroomMarijana Županić Benić, 2018, original scientific article Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to emphasize the importance of handicrafts from the perspective of various pedagogical perspectives. Although the findings of numerous researchers support the positive effects of handicrafts, those teaching methods are rarely used in school either. The empirical section of this paper aimed to explore the relation between student mood after performing a handicraft assignment and attitudes towards the assignment. A total of 16 students between the ages of 11 and 12 were sampled from the same classroom in order to conduct this preliminary study. All the students had previous experience with sewing, which was taught to them by their teacher, with whom they have been working on various handicraft activities since the first grade of elementary school. An anonymous survey was created and administered to the participants. The results of this study suggest that handiwork in the classroom has potential implications for improving the students’ mood and creating a positive learning environment.
Keywords: constructivism, handicrafts, mood, sewing
Published in DKUM: 04.06.2025; Views: 0; Downloads: 1
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4. Opinion of Croatian teacher education students regarding the quality of the visual arts teaching didactics courseMarijana Županić Benić, 2017, original scientific article Abstract: The purpose of this study was to assess student satisfaction with the Visual Arts Teaching Methodology course taught at the Croatian faculties of teacher education and identify important areas for improvement. The students’ open-ended, qualitative responses were reviewed and each response was assigned to one or more of the following categories: teacher performance, student teaching practice, assessment and grading, course organization, availability of learning materials and resources, and student teaching competences. The results indicate that the students are most satisfied with teacher performance, but they are also the least satisfied with course organization and recommend the most improvements in this area.
Keywords: course quality, student satisfaction, student opinions, didactics, visual art didactics
Published in DKUM: 30.11.2017; Views: 1495; Downloads: 390
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5. Findings of visual arts research in early childhood and primary educationMarijana Županić Benić, 2016, review article Abstract: Arts research was introduced in the field of education during the 1990s by Barone and Eisner, but their methodology is rarely used because it is not considered to be consistent with traditional paradigms of the scientific method. This review identified only seven visual arts research studies in early childhood education and primary education. Four studies were conducted in early childhood education settings, and two of those studies used quantitative methods to investigate the effects of art on early childhood development. The three studies that were conducted in primary education used a case study approach to examine art projects in the community or the classroom. Participation in visual arts was associated with enhanced learning outcomes in other areas and the development of individual and social competences, but it was not found to facilitate the development of age-dependent abilities, such as visual or grapho-motor abilities. Visual arts also proved to be an effective method of communication for children in preschool and primary education institutions because it is easier for them to express their opinions and beliefs to adults with visual media than with words.
Keywords: arts-based research, arts-informed research, preschool, primary school
Published in DKUM: 21.09.2017; Views: 1054; Downloads: 142
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