The in-class worksheet is the space where the students record their thoughts during the VTS sessions. We collect the worksheets as part of our assessment. Included on the worksheet is the outline of questions asked in a VTS session, as well as a follow-up: Write one research question arising from this discussion. We prompt the students to be inspired by the work of art, but to take it in the direction of their major or a course in which they are currently enrolled. The point being: this process (VTS) can inform creative thinking and approaches to your research. The prompt encourages students to also connect creativity with the research process.
Student-generated research question: "If this piece criticizes thinking processes, can we apply it to an economic style of thinking. Does the economy work in a circular fashion and can we find a better path to a desired outcome?"
Student-generated research question: "Rather than primarily learning in the classroom, what does learning look like in alternative spaces?"
Student-generated research question: "How do candidates for gov offices create their desired pool of supporters?"
"I learned to be confident in my thoughts and voice them even if they might be wrong...This exercise showed me that you aren't expected to hit the nail on the head with every thought that comes out of your mouth and that's ok, your thoughts will lead somewhere."
"Instead of just describing exactly what I saw on the portrayal of the canvas, I expanded on what I saw and made deeper connections to the depiction. This quality is most definitely crucial in my academic career...I was a little frustrated at first, but began to make deeper connections and write insightful thoughts..."
"I don't go to museum type places often, and when I do I feel out of place...Even when I was leaving I thought what I had just done was silly and a waste of my time. After completing my revised goals and upon a little reflection, I found some way to make the Peeler session useful to my life...In order to [meet my goals], I need to take a step back...This is similar to what we did at Peeler. Instead of just looking at the photo and saying 'yeah, it's an old black and white picture,' I was forced to really look at the details."
