Professor Dr Nicole Berner (*1981) studied art pedagogics, psychology and general pedagogics. In 2013, she obtained a doctoral degree, having researched the topic of artistic creativeness at primary school age. Since 2016, she has been a professor of art pedagogics and art didactics at the School of Education of the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland, where she has the professorial chair of didactics in art and design at the Institute for the Secondary School Level I and II. She was previously a Junior Professor at the Alanus University of Arts and Social Sciences in Germany, where she headed the “Kunstlabor an und mit Schulen” (KLAUS for short – art laboratory for and with schools) and headed scientific support of the trial model. Her research concentrates on issues of promoting creativity and on the quality of artistic teaching and learning processes in the school and extra-school fields. In addition to her academic work, she has so far pursued various classroom and teaching activities at primary and upper secondary schools, in extra-school education for youths and adults and in further education and training for teachers.
What is your professional focus?
As an art pedagogue, I engage in research and teach in the field of art education. Here, my teaching and research activities focus on the subject and subject didactical professionalisation of teachers in the school sector.
What potentials do you see in the certificate course “Artistic Interventions in Cultural Education” for your specialist field?
Extracurricular art projects with artists at schools make an important contribution to the cultural participation of all pupils and offer an opportunity for interdisciplinary learning. Here, I think it is important for artists working at schools to address mediation issues, reflect their action in pedagogical contexts and develop their professional skills. This is where the certificate course can provide support and add to a honing of one’s own artistic and pedagogical profile.
Which changes are needed at cultural policy or education policy level to strengthen the potentials of cooperation with artists for Cultural Education in Germany?
In the school context, a much greater effort has to be made by the institutions and the artists to identify common ground and understand each other. Today’s school system is in need of reform regarding its structure, and unfortunately, it does not always support the personal engagement of many who play an active role in it. All this calls for flexible structures, openness and esteem in order to enable the respective potentials of working together with artists to develop to the full.
Nicole Berner at “Artistic Interventions in Cultural Education”
Nicole Berner is taking part in the course framework as a lecturer in Module 4: “Cultural Education in school contexts”. Furthermore, Nicole Berner, together with Magdalena von Rudy, is also represented in the certificate course as a project partner with KLAUS – Kunstlabor an und mit Schulen. If you have any queries or are interested in cooperating, you are welcome to contact zertifikatskurs [at] uni-hildesheim [dot] de