Episode 128

Fostering curiosity and critical thinking on self-guided field trips

Published on: 2nd May, 2024

Today, I'm excited to chat with Kylie Neagle about fostering curiosity and critical thinking on self-guided field trips for teachers and students.

Kylie Neagle is the Education Coordinator at the Art Gallery of South Australia (AGSA) in Adelaide .

With a small team and limited resources, catering to diverse student needs can be challenging. Volunteer Gallery Guides, though invaluable, cannot always provide guided tours.

At the Art Gallery of South Australia in Adelaide (AGSA), this prompted a shift towards empowering teachers to lead self-guided tours, emphasising inquiry and engagement rather than content delivery. The aim is to discourage teachers from relying on booklets during gallery visits. When students solely focus on facts or information from wall texts, they miss out on the chance to discover artworks that genuinely pique their interest.

And this is where the Curiosity Cards come into play. These fantastic cards are a set of 52 tools designed to enhance art engagement among students. Perfect for self-guided gallery visits, they ease the pressure on teachers and empower students to articulate their thinking.

They promote 'long looking' and also foster critical thinking, creativity and confidence in discussing art, enriching the whole learning experience.