From Part One of this 389 page book: "Anyone planning to teach art, no matter at what level, ought to know what art is, or what experts believe it is. It is also desirable, clearly, to have had experience in the practice of art. But a book cannot provide practical experience. Besides, proficiency in the practice of any art can hardly be gained in the time expended on one or two college courses. Consequently, the person who has the responsibility for teaching a great many subjects in addition to art needs a comprehensive idea of the nature of art along with an understanding of the ways art is practiced and studied in schools." The contents are broken down into the following categories: The Nature of Art: Anthropological and Historical Dimensions; Creative and Psychological Dimensions; Social and Cultural Dimensions; Part Two: The Character of Learning: Knowledge and Performance; Ethics and Aesthetics; Part Three: The Creativity of Children: The Theory of Child Art; Toward a New Theory; The New Creative Situation; and Part Four: Understanding the World; Learning the Language of Art; Studying Varieties of the Language; and Mastering the Techniques of Art Criticism. Photos and reproduction of art through the ages are found throughout along with accompanying text.