Department of Creative Arts

The Department of Creative Arts study at the Offinso College of Education is a combined department of Design, Visual and Performing Arts (music, dance and drama) which aimed at developing a functional and all-round pre-service Creative Arts Students. The pre-service Creative Arts Students are exposed to the 4H(s) of Head (cognitive/mind/thinking), Hand (psychomotor/body), Heart (affective/feelings) and Hi-tech (Information and Communication Strategy). The Creative Arts inculcates in the pre-service teachers the basic knowledge and understanding of diverse cultures, strong logical competencies, and a range of comprehensive communication and interpersonal skills. The pre-service Creative Arts teachers are to become critical thinkers and problem solvers as a result. Their self-esteem and sense of emotional intelligence is also improved as they engage in tasks that require intuitive, emotional, holistic, nonverbal and visual spatial methods for processing ideas and issues.

PHILOSOPHY FOR LEARNING AND TEACHING
In our ever growing industrialized and technological society, there is the urgent need to generate a learning system that will not just give knowledge but also the necessary skills to individuals to develop the right values and attitudes. Creative Arts Department is to guide the pre-service Creative Arts teachers to acquire 21st century skills of communication and collaboration, critical thinking and problem solving, personal development and leadership, cultural identity and global citizenship, creativity and innovation, digital literacy, financial literacy and open-mindedness, on one hand, and instils the nation’s core values of honesty, integrity, cooperation, perseverance and grit, teamwork, respect for others and responsible citizenry, on the other.

PHILOSOPHIES UNDERPINNING LEARNING IN THE CREATIVE ARTS DEPARTMENT
The Tutors primary role is to coach and facilitate learning and overall comprehension of materials, and to measure learning through both formal and informal forms of assessment, like group projects, learners’ portfolios, and class participation. The high-tech approach to learning that utilizes different technologies to aid the pre-service Creative Arts teachers in their lecture rooms will be enhanced. As much as possible, where available, computers, tablets and internet will be used to engage learners in the learning process. The classroom environment (social and physical) should encourage the pre-service Creative Arts teachers to participate and collaborate inclusively, understand and respect their skills, abilities and experiences and those of others. This sets a sustainable pace in achieving expected learning outcomes. Ultimately, the Creative Arts Department enables the pre-service teachers to discover their talents, develop core competencies, and acquire functional and foundational skills that lead to lifelong learning.

Creative Arts Department provides opportunities for a pre-service teacher to: self-explore, self-express, build mental focus, skillfully use hands to create (physical dexterity), manage and reduce stress, achieve personal satisfaction and enjoyment. The arts inform our lives with meaning every time we experience the joy of a well-remembered song, experience the flash of inspiration that comes with immersing ourselves in an artist’s sculpture or painting, enjoying a sublime music, dance and drama learning from an exciting animation, or being moved by a captivating play. The skills acquired through the study of the Creative Arts will enable the pre-service teachers to improve their performance in other learning areas. It also prepares them for the modern world of work. In addition, we envisage that Creative Arts will be generating a significant part of the creative and intellectual capital that will drive our country’s economy in future. It will also provide an avenue for personal realization in at least one art discipline in which they will continue to be actively involved in their adult lives, as well as support in their communities.

THE MISSION STATEMENT
Short term attainment:
1. Establishment of high level strategic programme of continuous professional staff development for teaching and research.
2. Establishment of Instructional Media Centre with relevant tools, materials, equipment and educational resources to build capacity of staff in the Department and the pre-service Creative Arts teachers to research, develop and effectively use Learning and Teaching Resources (LTR(s) for academic work and Teaching Practice.

Long term attainment:
3. Establishment of Creative Arts Technological Center to complement existing library facility.
4. Establishment of Department Endowment Fund as major source of funding (funding from the philanthropies).
5. Develop a sustained programme of internal income generation activities (Establishment of Arts Centers-Music Studios for instruments learning).
6. Provision of high quality academic programmes and seminars for the Departmental Staff and the pre-service Creative Arts teachers. These activities will be carried out through a Democratic, All-inclusive Administrative strategy that harnesses the energy of the Department Management Committee system outlined in the College Statutes to promote peace and harmony to maintain a College environment that is conducive for research and academic excellence.

The sense of directions, intentions and purposes become a stratified medium of achieving a dominant goal.