Research
Research in visual arts education is essential for deepening understanding, fostering creativity, and shaping effective teaching practices. By grounding art education in research, we ensure it remains dynamic, relevant, and empowering for diverse learners.
Resources to Support Arts Education Research
Studies, Findings, and Resources
View monumental studies and findings. These resources on curriculum approaches and policy issues inform research initiatives, classroom practice, and arguments for documenting the value of art education research and practice.
Research Commission-Recommended NAEA Publications
Looking for books on assessment/evaluation, social justice, emerging technology, demographic data, and more? These titles can help inform your research.
Research Commission Conversations
Take part in a conversation or ask questions about using, conducting, and implementing research through this exclusive member resource hosted through NAEA’s Collaborate community.
NAEF Grants
The National Art Education Foundation (NAEF) invests in innovative initiatives to support instructional practice, research, and leadership in visual arts education.
On Demand Learning
The Research Commission regularly hosts live virtual events. Access featured archived research content below.
Join members of the NAEA Research Commission Mixed Methods Working Group as they explain what Mixed Methods research is, why it is a vital need in art education, and how you can make your mark using it. Veteran and emerging researchers will share examples of successful mixed methods studies. Watch now.
Join the NAEA Research Commission’s Data Visualization Work Group as teachers, students, artists, and researchers present data visualization projects in alignment with the four pillars of the National Core Art Standards (2014): Create, Present, Respond, Connect. Watch now.
When traveling on airplanes, adults are asked to secure their own oxygen masks before assisting children. This directive can also apply to art educators, who often find themselves challenged by the variety of challenges our learners encounter and bring with them to the classroom. Research indicates that educators should develop social–emotional competencies, be able to manage their stress and regulate their emotions, and strive to develop resilience. It is imperative that educators recognize their need for self-care, are equipped with an understanding of what self-care is, and know what they can do to develop this practice. Self-care for busy educators is not a selfish use of one’s time. In fact, by tending to our own self-care needs, we are better able to support our learners. This session, organized by the NAEA Research Commission’s Professional Learning Through Research Working Group, explores how self-care can contribute to our professional success. Watch now.
The Professional Learning Through Research (PLR) working group has curated a dynamic webcast of five art educators who will speak to a variety of topics that will be applicable for NAEA members across all divisions. This online event casts art educators in the varying identities they embody through their activism and research. Presenters will provide accessible, relevant examples through research methods such as narrative inquiry, arts-based research, and autoethnography. All educators from all backgrounds and contexts are invited and encouraged to attend this session and realize their potential to enact change through art and research. Watch now.
Have you ever asked yourself: What is visual arts education research? Who are researchers in our field? What do these researchers do? How does it impact my students? How does this research get published? We’ll answer these questions and more through a pre-recorded discussion followed by a live, interactive Q&A session. Watch now.
Research Commission
The NAEA Research Commission works to meet the ongoing research needs of the visual arts education field. Commissioners coordinate and communicate about research that relates to the needs of practitioners and stakeholders who are concerned with understanding critical questions of importance to the field in order to provide the highest quality visual arts education possible in our schools and educational institutions.