Paul Carney
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Going where the Evidence Leads
My reason for believing that a Deist, non-interventionist God created our universe, is that, while no evidence for God has been found within the universe, there are enough reasons to assume one created it. This is because: The universe is… Continue reading
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Hold All
What personal belongings do you hold most dear? There is something very cathartic about freeing yourself of all your possessions and moving on. I’ve done it a few times in my life. I used to travel from town to town… Continue reading
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What is the shape of the universe?
Cosmologists aren’t sure what shape the universe is. And, while this may sound like a pointless thing to think about, it is actually a profound question that has significant implications. There are three leading models for the shape of the… Continue reading
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NHS sticker album
Do you have any collections? Yes, I’m collecting medical conditions. So far, I’ve got twelve. I’m only looking for one more to complete the set and I’ll get a commemorative medal from the NHS. It would be nice if they… Continue reading
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Que sera sera
What is the legacy you want to leave behind? The legacy I’d like to leave behind is both personal and creative. On a personal level I’d like my family, friends and past pupils, to think of me fondly and remember… Continue reading
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The Way of Paul : updated for 2025!
How do you balance work and home life? It’s easier for me to answer this question now I’ve retired. When I was working, I can tell you I was a workaholic. I had a full-time teaching job, and I built… Continue reading
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Facts about electrons
Taken from the article What is an Electron? by Peter Ripota Continue reading
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A Little Less of What You Fancy
What sacrifices have you made in life? As a kid, growing up in a devout Christian household, we used to give something up for Lent. It was nearly always sweets of course, and I was terrible at it. I wouldn’t… Continue reading
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Wrinkles
What’s the oldest things you’re wearing today? My skin Continue reading
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And Still the Weeds Grow
A story about a lifetime with ADHD “A father went out to sow his seed…” so the parable of Jesus went. To paraphrase, some fell on the rocks, some fell in the thorns, and others produced a bountiful crop. Guess… Continue reading
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Suspicion album
In 2010 I recorded an album of my own songs, using what was then state-of-the-art software in GarageBand and Logic Pro. Everything was either played and recorded by me, or built from samples. The vocals were done by singing into… Continue reading
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Paul, the passive Pied Piper?
Are you a leader or a follower? I follow those who are worth following and lead those who need to be led. I went for a government interview once, to fast-track into senior leadership of schools. The interview was in… Continue reading
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Fine Fruits
List your top 5 favorite fruits. 1. 🫐 2. 🍇 3. 🍓 4. 🍌 5. 🍒 Continue reading
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The Arthrobot Scriptures
I used AI to create some illustrations for my young adult fiction novel, the Arthrobot Scriptures which is out on Amazon. It’s a humorous adventure about an old woman who has her brain uploaded into a robotic insect and must… Continue reading
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Could’s and Should’s
What’s one small improvement you can make in your life? Small improvements I should make in my life: I should exercise more. Really fit people go jogging. I should do that. I should eat less crap, and only eat fresh… Continue reading
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Strict Father Model
The strict father model of government is the mainstay of the Conservative, Reform, and Republican party’s manifestos. It helps keep the rich, rich and the poor, poor, yet it is incredible how many poor people think it is ‘right’. It… Continue reading
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An Elegant and Persuasive Power
Why should we believe in something that only adds an immaterial layer to the scientific view, and which takes away the profound, revelatory nature of religion? I’ve set out in earlier blog posts what my evidence is for believing there… Continue reading
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I am that I am
Remember, every atom in my body was forged in a star, This body is mostly just empty space after all, and solid matter? It’s just energy vibrating very slowly. There is no me. There never was. The electrons of my… Continue reading
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Freedom, I won’t let you down
What does freedom mean to you? Those who deny freedom to others, deserve it not for themselves Abraham Lincoln I don’t have any personal experience of oppression. I haven’t had my rights denied, been racially abused, or sexually oppressed. I’ve… Continue reading
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I won’t Reform
What public figure do you disagree with the most? It used to be common for politicians to resign if they were caught lying. John Profumo resigned in 1963 after lying to parliament about his affair. Yet, Boris Johnson lied to… Continue reading
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A glittering career
What is your career plan? My first job aged 15, was working on a market stall every Saturday selling ladies clothes. I got that job myself, I had no support or encouragement to do it. I was always very determined… Continue reading
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Sublime Symphony
What was the last live performance you saw? The last live concert I saw was at the Glasshouse, Gateshead. It was a performance by the Northern Sinfonia orchestra of Brahms’ Third Symphony, and Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 17. There was… Continue reading
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Shape and Form
Spring brings so many new forms and shapes into our lives. Often we are drawn into colour, which captivates us of course, but shape and form are also worth our attention. Here are some photos of mine. Continue reading
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More Time to Do Less
What do you do to be involved in the community? I used to do quite a bit of volunteering up until recently. I did volunteer work for my local nature reserve, taking classes of schoolchildren around to show them the… Continue reading
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Busy doing nothing
What’s a job you would like to do for just one day? I found it very difficult to think of a job I would like to do for one day. Every time I thought of a job that would be… Continue reading
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Paul’s Comfort
One of my many jobs in life was as an advertising salesman. My job was to concoct all manner of ways and methods to entice people into buying things. I was creative, so I was good at it. In the… Continue reading
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100 Subscribers
Thank you so much for helping me reach 100 subscribers. It really means a lot to be part of this wonderful community of writers and thinkers who want to make the world a brighter, more creative place. Continue reading
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Towers of Strength that support me
List the people you admire and look to for advice… I admire and listen to my wife. She diffuses my emotional outbursts and gives me sound advice. ❤️ I also go to my brother and sister for advice. They have… Continue reading
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Voting Rights and Voting Wrongs
Do you vote in political elections? I’m what they call a floating voter. I don’t affiliate myself to any one party because I prefer to use reason and judgment about which party I think will best represent the country or… Continue reading
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My life’s directions
What gives you direction in life? Continue reading
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Oaths to Myself
Things to lead a more fulfilling life. Continue reading
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Quotes to live by
Do you have a quote you live your life by or think of often? “Before you speak, let your words pass through three gates: Is it true? Is it necessary? Is it kind?” – BUDDHA You have power over your… Continue reading
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Happy Holidays
What is your favorite holiday? Why is it your favorite? I’m not that good at going on holiday. I think you’re meant to relax and unwind but my ADHD brain doesn’t let me do that. I have to be active… Continue reading
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Camping Chaos
Have you ever been camping? I have had many happy holidays camping. When I was recently divorced I was unable to take my two kids on expensive holidays, I bought a second-hand tent and some stoves, and we went camping.… Continue reading
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Curiouser and Curiouser
When do you feel most productive? I feel most productive when I’m inspired. Inspiration comes in many forms, but is most often derived from reading or listening to new insights about a range of topics. I love podcasts, and they… Continue reading
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Speaking without words
What are your favorite emojis? 🎨✍️🌺❤️🎸🎤🦢🦚✏️📖🧬🔭🤣🍔🧁🍹📺 🍬 Continue reading
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Lonely Culture Vulture
What topics do you like to discuss? I do sometimes feel like I’m a potato growing in a field of cabbages. I like to talk about culture: art, music, philosophy, religion, and science, but those around me detest them. My… Continue reading
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More is Different
The constant void enables one to observe the true essence. The constant being enables one to see the outward manifestations. These two come paired from the same origin. But when the essence is manifested, It has a different name. Tao… Continue reading
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Howay the Toon
Describe a risk you took that you do not regret. I took a big risk to move to Newcastle upon Tyne 21 years ago, to live with my then girlfriend. I had to give up my house which had been… Continue reading
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I’m not off to see the wizard…
Write about a time when you didn’t take action but wish you had. What would you do differently? Looking back on my life, there are many occasions when taking a different course of action would have led to much more… Continue reading
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A born worrier
What makes you nervous? What makes me nervous? Hmmmn well, I’ve had anxiety all my life so I guess I’d say that, free-floating anxiety plagues me really. It’s pretty weird. I worry about all kinds of stupid little things like… Continue reading
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The fuse of time
It occurred to me that our perception of time and reality is like a burning fuse. We experience the point of ignition in unison, all of us moving along in the heat of a singular moment, burning our available energies,… Continue reading
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Gratitude
How do you unwind after a demanding day? How do I relax? The thing is, we have the luxury to be able to do these things. How fortunate are we, that most of us have a safe, comfortable home we… Continue reading
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Woeful Media
How do you use social media? I don’t use social media much at all these days. I can’t stand it to be honest. The world seems full of people ranting and raging about injustice, espousing all manner of ill informed… Continue reading
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Getting out more
Jot down the first thing that comes to your mind. The first thing that came into my mind this morning was Dark Matter. I need to get out more. I mean, really. Who is even bothered? 😕 Why do we… Continue reading
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What Matters?
Is matter all there is? The prevailing scientific viewpoint leaves some big unanswered questions. Materialism is a philosophical and scientific viewpoint that states that matter is the fundamental substance in nature, and that all things, including consciousness, are the result… Continue reading
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Jenga
Describe a decision you made in the past that helped you learn or grow. A decision I’ve made that helped me grow? All of them. I think that it is important to understand that every decision we make, good or… Continue reading
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Cold, cold Oymyakon
What place in the world do you never want to visit? Why? The place I would never want to visit, at least in winter, is Oymyakon, in Russia, which is the coldest permanently inhabited human settlement on Earth. I hate being… Continue reading
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My Angel
Describe a positive thing a family member has done for you. My wife is a constant, kind, loving, gentle presence in my life. She is always giving, always supportive, always ready to give me a hand up. She never loses… Continue reading
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Plain Eater
What is your favorite restaurant? I don’t go to restaurants. I live on a modest retirement income, so I can’t afford them. However, I’ve never been a foodie and am slightly irritated by all those people who drool over tiny… Continue reading
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Explaining premonitions of future events during dreams
Introduction – Much has been written about premonitions during dreams, which seem to be a recurring phenomenon throughout human history. My theory is that some people can ‘tune in’ to EMF waves emitted by temporal future events during deep sleep.… Continue reading
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The long goodbye
Where do you see yourself in 10 years? Where do I see myself in 10 years? Dead. Or if not dead, then the pretty close to it. I’ll be 72 then and I do not want to live a long… Continue reading
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Happy Paul
What are 5 everyday things that bring you happiness? Continue reading
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Truth seekers and way seekers
There’s a fundamental difference between the approach western philosophy takes to living and that practised in the east. Truth Seekers – Western philosophy and science seeks to find the ’truth’ of nature and reality. It tries to describe the basic… Continue reading
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Classroom Catastrophe’s: Silver Spoon
Describe something you learned in high school. The thing I learned in school was that there are some people with a hell of a lot more advantage than others. For example, there are people my age now who talk about… Continue reading
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Is God an invention?
Are religious people deluded? Do we simply invent Gods that don’t exist in reality? Evidence shows that religious belief is actually a natural state of human consciousness. This may actually prove God’s existence, rather than disproving it. I argue that… Continue reading
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Letting go
Describe one positive change you have made in your life. I would have to say retiring early at 61 was the most positive thing I’ve done. It wasn’t until then that I realised how much of my thoughts and actions… Continue reading
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These boots were made for walking
What’s the most fun way to exercise? After a lifetime of being a couch potato, I got into the gym in my late fifties and started going 4 times a week. I would do weights, cardio and aerobic. I could… Continue reading
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Reading Habits
What book could you read over and over again? I mostly read in two ways: 1. To learn 2. To cheer me up. Most of my books are non fiction, and I’m reading a lot of philosophy at the moment.… Continue reading
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James Herriot
If you could be a character from a book or film, who would you be? Why? I couldn’t think of being anyone better than James Herriot in All Creatures Great and Small. I mean, there was a war on, extreme… Continue reading
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Me and my dog
What animals make the best/worst pets? Our Mam was severely asthmatic, so animals were always problematic as kids. More than that though, she hated animals. So much so, that when my Dad brought an injured dog home that he’d found… Continue reading
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Free nature
What job would you do for free? I volunteer at a local nature reserve, giving classes and tours of a protected woodland to local school children. Mostly I do art classes, but also do other activities such as pond dipping,… Continue reading
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Giving back to nature
How would you improve your community? Five years ago, I investigated what environmentally friendly building materials were commercially available, that could transform my local community into a nature friendly one. I feel that, with a few modifications that wouldn’t really… Continue reading
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Lucky guy
How have you adapted to the changes brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic? I was lucky. I didn’t get too ill and nor did most of my immediate family, except my nephew who got long covid and is still quite… Continue reading
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Evidence the Universe was created
A scientific summary, from an agnostic viewpoint, as to why I believe the universe was created. Continue reading
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Does evil exist, and if so, who or what creates it?
An agnostic’s analysis of the big question: is God evil? Continue reading
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Carney’s delicious devices
If you could have something named after you, what would it be? What horrible narcissism is this? I couldn’t think of anything worse than having something named after me. But if I had to, maybe: A special spoon that stops… Continue reading
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Dad Jokes daily
What makes you laugh? Dad Jokes daily is a superb app that delivers me free jokes to start my day. It’s a lovely way to remember that smiling lifts our spirits. Continue reading
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Fulfilling my dreams
When you were five, what did you want to be when you grew up? I’ve always wanted to be an artist, even as a little kid. Sometimes that fluctuated between being an astronaut or a singer, but art was always… Continue reading
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Reality? There’s nothing to it!
What’s something most people don’t understand? Everything in the universe is made of 17 elementary particles and four forces. Those particles are incredibly small. Barely even a dot. As far as anyone knows, they are point-like, exhibiting no finite and… Continue reading
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There’s something about a storm.
What is your favorite type of weather? There’s something about a storm. The power, the foreboding, the potency, the strength and might of it. Especially at sea, when the waves thunder and violently roar in response to the anger of… Continue reading
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Inspirational teachers
Who was your most influential teacher? Why? I thoroughly loved my primary school. It was small, cosy, the teachers were kind but firm and I excelled at art, music and maths. Mr McCormack read me stories, and Mrs Gallagher was… Continue reading
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Sands of Time
What do you wish you could do more every day? I used to always be rushing around. Hyperactive. Always working, always busy, always something on my mind, always trying to do one last thing before bed, always up early and… Continue reading
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What is a flower?
If you want to know what a flower is, be mindful of who you ask, because this will determine the answer you get. All of them are properly answering your question. All of them are providing you with knowledge about… Continue reading
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Tattoo you
What tattoo do you want and where would you put it? I have three tattoos, the first of which I didn’t get until I was 56! I decided to get one of my own raven drawings done as a tattoo… Continue reading
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Mr Grump
What is one word that describes you? My wife said – ‘grumpy’. I would say – sensitive. 😂 Continue reading
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Sunday morning blues
What was the best compliment you’ve received? When I was recording and performing music, there was a website you could upload your music to for review by fellow musicians. This was around 2010, so it was in the early days… Continue reading
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Paul’s travel log: star date 17th March 2025
You’re going on a cross-country trip. Airplane, train, bus, car, or bike? Personally, I prefer to travel by train – so long as I get a decent seat in the quiet coach. It’s lovely to not have to think about… Continue reading
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Life in the Grey
Who is the most confident person you know? My brother is, in my opinion, extremely confident, without being arrogant. It’s rare to find this I think. Too many confident people are brash and overzealous. With him, forty years of Indian… Continue reading
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My insidious interlopers
What strategies do you use to cope with negative feelings? Negative feelings have been the mainstay of my mind all of my life. Negative thoughts crept in through the back door when I was a child, locked all the doors,… Continue reading
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The hard problem of Paul
What is it about us that makes us, us? Continue reading
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Flow theory
What activities do you lose yourself in? Psychologist Mihaly Csíkszentmihályi: Flow is a pleasurable psychological state people experience when engaged in an activity that is both appropriately challenging to one’s skill level, often resulting in immersion and concentrated focus on… Continue reading
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Chief Inspector Nonsense
What movies or TV series have you watched more than 5 times? I can’t think why I would ever want to watch a TV programme 5 times, but I know a fair few I’ve been made to watch. Growing up,… Continue reading
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Am I superstitious? Am I!
Are you superstitious? Am I superstitious? You’re asking me this the day before the 13th? Are you crazy? I’ve thrown some salt over my left shoulder just in case you’ve jinxed me. Next, you’ll be putting your shoes on the… Continue reading
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DeliverGentoo Penguin
Which animal would you compare yourself to and why? I’d compare myself to a penguin. Particularly a Gentoo penguin. They are the ones that woo their potential partner with a pebble. If she accepts, they mate for life. Any infidelity… Continue reading
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Scientific facts that blow my mind
Amazing scientific facts Continue reading
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Yippee
Write a letter to your 100-year-old self. Superb news! That £1 bet you made back in 1986 that you’d live to 100 has paid off and you can collect your £1 million winnings. Open the champagne! You’ve still got the… Continue reading
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The book store
Where would you go on a shopping spree? I HATE shopping! My wife doesn’t like going shopping with me. I just like to go in the shop, find what I want and leave. I find no pleasure in browsing and… Continue reading
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Cool names and cool kids
What is your middle name? Does it carry any special meaning/significance? I don’t have a middle name and it was a such a source of irritation for me for the longest time. In fact, my whole name was. My parents… Continue reading
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The Great Attractor
What is the last thing you learned? The last thing I’ve learned is that our galaxy, and millions of other galaxies, are flowing through space in a vast, cosmic, three-dimensional river, towards a galactic supercluster called The Great Attractor, which… Continue reading
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Questions keep me relevant
What is one question you hate to be asked? Explain. There are lots of low-level questions that irritate me: Dad, can I borrow…? Have you vacuumed the stairs yet? Will you take the bins out? Can you give me a… Continue reading
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Success? I’m working on it
How has a failure, or apparent failure, set you up for later success? I really struggled with the prompt today and I couldn’t figure out why, until I realised that I don’t assign the label ‘success’ to any of my… Continue reading
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Classroom Catastrophes: My opening line
You’re writing your autobiography. What’s your opening sentence? The opening paragraph to my autobiographical book Classroom Catastrophes is: Autobiographies tend to be written by famous people who have led incredibly rich and exciting lives, so I suppose I’d better start… Continue reading
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What in the World…
Science tells us that everything is made from particles and forces, but this does not tell us why these things exist or where they come from. Everything is particles and forces According to science, the four forces of nature and… Continue reading
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Three things I couldn’t live without
What are three objects you couldn’t live without? Obviously, I’m going to sidestep essential things such as food, water, a home, electricity etc. in the interests of keeping this post interesting. 1. My wife – I know she isn’t an… Continue reading
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What experiences in life helped me grow the most?
What experiences in life helped you grow the most? My first thought was: grow in what way? Growth can be negative as well as positive, and so, all life is growth; some good, some not so good. Next, I’d ask:… Continue reading
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Come on down, try your luck on Fortuna’s Wheel of Destiny!
Do you believe in fate/destiny? From physicist Sabine Hossenfelder: There is nothing in physics that distinguishes the past, present and future from each another. It’s simply that we can only access the present. According to the currently established laws of… Continue reading
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So long good health, my fair weather friend, hello twilight
Describe a phase in life that was difficult to say goodbye to. Good health. I was fit, lean, young, and quick. Time, entropy and gradual physical decline has made me older, slower, and less able. I miss being able to… Continue reading
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Paul’s Art Shed
I’ve been refurbishing my art shed at the bottom of my garden. It got neglected for a couple of years and, while it still isn’t in the best state, I thought I’d move my stuff back in it and make… Continue reading
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Art and philosophy
Kenshō philosophy believes in seeing nature as it is, by aesthetic, rather than rational means. I love this quote by Japanese philosopher Kitaro Nishida: ‘It is the artist not the scholar, who arrives at the true nature of reality.’ We… Continue reading
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Education education education
What advice would you give to your teenage self? Stop dreaming and finish your education. Everything good will come to you from education. Continue reading
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Abstractions of Microbes
A selection from a series of drawings I did based on microbiology. These are produced digitally on an iPad using an Apple Pencil in Procreate. Continue reading
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Tea total
What is your favorite drink? I used to LOVE red wine but then in 2015 I gave up alcohol because my liver scores weren’t very good and I wasn’t well. I have a weak liver and my Dad died of… Continue reading
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My favourite person
Who are your favourite people to be around? My wife. We spend all day together, every day and I never tire of being with her. However, my other favourite person is my granddaughter. Once a week we take her for… Continue reading
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Am I going bananas?
Alethea thought she was going mad. When she awoke that morning, she went downstairs for breakfast and her banana started talking to her! It said it wasn’t really real. It told her it was just a shadow on a cave… Continue reading
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A bit of a twitch
The birds in my garden are a constant source of pleasure for me. I am lucky enough to live near a nature reserve and so get some real beauties visiting me. Here are some birds I’ve drawn or painted. I… Continue reading
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“This is another fine-tuned mess you’ve gotten me into…”
‘When the facts change, I change my mind. What do you do, sir?’ John Maynard Keynes ‘We have overwhelming evidence for cosmic purpose. Goal-directedness played some role in shaping the early universe. Professor Phillip Goff I recently outlined that I… Continue reading
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Sweating the small stuff
I made several observational drawings of microorganisms a while ago, and I tried to make them in the style of Renaissance drawings of the masters. Here are two drawings I really like. I hope you like them too! Continue reading
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Abstract Art
When I was an art student, many moons ago, I hated abstract art. Back then, I believed that art required skill to be ‘good’. I thought that art was a craft that needed to be honed and developed. Abstract artists,… Continue reading
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Crows, crows, and more damn crows
I went through a period of drawing nothing but crows for about two years. I really love them and enjoyed this drawing period immensely. The problem I had was that I just couldn’t get enough high quality images in the… Continue reading
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The Great Creative in the Sky
“I often wish (God) would manifest himself a bit more. He limits himself to once in a million years if we’re lucky.’ Peter Cook ***** I’m not an atheist – I don’t disbelieve in God, but I’m not religious either.… Continue reading
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Digitally hand-made crafts
Digital art gets a bad rap from some people. I’m regularly told I can’t enter my art for competitions or excluded from exhibiting because it has been produced digitally. I certainly don’t get the same social media validation as other… Continue reading
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Wise advice
I really love this quote from Plato, written nearly 2,400 years ago. It’s still resonates with me now and I think it’s good for younger people to bear in mind. Us oldies are here to help and guide. (The illustration… Continue reading
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Anatomical Self-Portraits
Here are a few anatomical self-portraits I did in 2022. I find it incredible that all of this is stuffed inside our heads! Continue reading
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Anatomical art
I produced these drawings during lockdown from medical atlases. I have a long obsession with the human body and its many intricacies. I hope you like them. Don’t forget to hit subscribe and like! If any medical students want to… Continue reading
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Everyone is Better than Me
I think this is a common thought among artists. We all doubt ourselves at times don’t we? It’s so easy for me to get caught up in negative thinking. I am diagnosed as OCD ADHD anxiety and depression. Apart from… Continue reading
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The Electric Life Orchestra
How bioelectricity shapes the whole universe and every living thing. Continue reading
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Four types of play that help us be more creative
Play is a profound way to learn and is inherent to our species. We can formulate play activities, engineer them in ways that facilitate particular experiences. In other words, we can teach it. #creativitycanbetaught 1. Conceptual Blending Combine or juxtapose… Continue reading
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Where do we go when we die?
Spirits; 0% proof I’ve been thinking quite a lot about spirits lately, and what happens to us when we die. Unfortunately for me, the spirits are the out of body kind, not the alcoholic kind, as I don’t drink. I… Continue reading
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AI – the artists friend, not foe
A while ago now, I wrote a post called Art is dead, long live AI. In it, I spelled out how AI works creatively, and gave some practical ways in which we can teach AI skills in art rooms in… Continue reading
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My Art
A huge reason why I chose to retire from education was my burning ambition to spend more time in my own art and creativity. I reckon I have a few years left in me yet and so I want to… Continue reading
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The Arthrobot Scriptures
My new novel is finally in the Amazon bookstore. It’s only taken me over 15 years to get it to this point! I wrote and re-wrote it several times during this period, pushed it one side, abandoned it, then picked… Continue reading
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Art Assessment
When it comes to inspection, inspectors are looking to see that a school’s assessment system supports the pupils’ journeys through the curriculum. Inspectors do not need to see quantities of data, spreadsheets, graphs and charts on how children are performing.… Continue reading
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Vision and its impact on learning
Outside-In model of seeing I’ve thought long and hard in the past about vision; how do we see and how is vision processed in the brain? Now, I’m an artist, not a biologist or scientist, but it seems natural to… Continue reading
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Book Review
Teaching a diverse primary art curriculum, a practical guide written and illustrated by Kaytie Holdstock Coming on the back of the Visualise: Race & Inclusion in Art Education report into diversity in art and design education, Kaytie Holdstock’s new book… Continue reading
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The Beatles’ Creative Influences
The Beatles were some of the most creative people who have graced popular culture. So, what inspired the Beatles songwriting and how might we use this to inform our own creativity? Here are some examples I recorded from Paul and… Continue reading
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Fine Motor Skills in Art
When we think of pupils making progress in art, we tend to think of pupils developing their skills or abilities in separate domains such as drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking and so on. Certainly, that’s the way most school progression maps… Continue reading
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A Potted History of Art Pedagogy
‘Pedagogy, most commonly understood as the approach to teaching, is the theory and practice of learning, and how this process influences, and is influenced by, the social, political and psychological development of learners. Pedagogy, taken as an academic discipline, is… Continue reading
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Art is dead. Long live AI
Art is dead. Surely, artists are redundant now that we can just pop a few prompts into an AI engine and get a stunning piece of art? Artificial Intelligence software can produce new images based on a set of parameters… Continue reading
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Creative Choice
Some teachers believe that we need to master skills before we can be creative. They say that creativity cannot be properly realised without the skill to express it. So, they might narrow the creative activity to focus on mastering a… Continue reading
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You CAN teach creativity
By Paul Carney http://www.paulcarneyarts.com Some very knowledgeable people say ‘you can’t teach creativity’. You can. As a creative teacher, I teach people how to be creative all the time. I can teach you the historical processes by which inventions and… Continue reading
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Developing imagination in learners
Imagination is the foundation of all inventiveness and innovation. It is uniquely human, and with it, we have been able to think, design, conceive, construct and develop our whole human society. Imagination is a powerful tool for learning and with… Continue reading
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Schemas
The term schema refers to the cognitive structures we have to describe various categories of knowledge about the world. Theorist Jean Piaget introduced the term schema, and they are linked to his theory of cognitive development, which said that children… Continue reading
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Artistic development in Children
By Paul Carney This blog post contains extracts from an essay by Anna Kindler – Art in early Childhood “One man may sketch something with his pen on half a sheet of paper in one day, or may cut it… Continue reading
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Sequencing learning in art and design? Don’t ask the DfE!
Schools all over England are being judged by Ofsted on their ability to sequence learning and progression in the subject, despite the fact that the national curriculum for art and design in England isn’t properly sequenced and it’s progression of… Continue reading
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Art and Design Process
Making art is a complex, diverse process that can take many forms and be shaped by a wide range of factors. I’ve attempted to outline the main ones in a series of graphic organisers that could help teachers plan activities… Continue reading
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Drawing to Learn Anything
The exercises and techniques used in this post are contained in my book: Drawing to Learn Anything. Buy from www.paulcarneyarts.com Drawing to Learn Anything is a collection of ideas and explorations into how simple, non-skilled drawing can help you learn… Continue reading
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Digital drawing
I am a lifelong artist, especially in the field of drawing, aged 57 years. I feel comfortable working in a variety of styles; literal or abstract, I work across a wide range of mediums and on a variety of scales,… Continue reading
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It’s patently clear what the UK’s creativity problem is…
The UK has been ranked as the 6th most innovative nation in the world by the Global Innovation Initiative in 2020. There is a lot we can be proud of. But if we are to improve our global position then… Continue reading
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Memory is human. The Hidden Half of Pedagogy.
Education is made up of a wide range of disciplines and delivered (usually) in classrooms to children aged three upwards. No two schools are identical, no class of children the same, some areas are affluent, some deprived. The education of… Continue reading
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The best way to remember something is to make it memorable.
Memory is an emotional, sensory and experiential process. Spaced retrieval is one way we can remember better, but there are other techniques have been shown to be just as, if not more, effective. The first way we remember anything is… Continue reading
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Copying the ‘masters’.
“The artist must imitate one of three objects: things as they were or are, things as they are said or thought to be, or things as they ought to be.” Aristotle 4th century BCE Aristotle’s Poetics Copying, mimesis, or iteration,… Continue reading
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Metabolic Innovation in Biology; Life’s Creative mechanisms
Creativity in nature requires a huge variety of diverse possibilities and an incredible genotype network to support an almost infinite range of options. All life is made up of cells and there are many many different types. Cells work in… Continue reading
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Drawing for Science, Invention & Discovery
Buy it from: www.paulcarneyarts.com This book is aimed at all the scientists, mathematicians, engineers, pioneers and thinkers out there who understand the value of creative thinking in their field. It identifies some of the key cognitive processes that drive innovation,… Continue reading
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Syllable Association Drawing (SAD) Memory Technique
To remember complex words and terminology try the SAD technique that uses a combination of familiar, well-researched memory techniques. I don’t lay claim to inventing the memory techniques, only that I have developed a method of combining them into an… Continue reading
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Drawing for Anatomy
I observed a second-year medical students’ practical anatomy session at the school of medical education, Newcastle University in May 2019 under the tutelage of Doctor Joanna Matthan. It was a great honour to be given an insight into this important… Continue reading
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I dont have a creative bone in my body…
“I dont have a creative bone in my body.” I hear this a lot. It usually comes from people who aren’t ‘arty’ types. These people believe that if they don’t make their own craft Christmas cards or attend local art… Continue reading
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Can Creativity be taught? Yes, I do it every day.
Creativity; noun – the use of imagination or original ideas to create something. Inventiveness. Source; Oxford English Dictionary There is a general agreement among scholars that creativity involves the production of novel, useful products,” (Mumford, 2003, p. 110) however hundreds of… Continue reading
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Perfect Child
No two things in nature are exactly the same, yet everything is made from perfect, exact particles. Nature is like some eerie living Minecraft game, where electrons and atoms simulate bricks and build incredible, unique structures. The implication of this… Continue reading
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Creativity Myths
Creativity arises naturally as a result of knowing more The most knowledgeable people aren’t necessarily the most creative. In fact, it’s often the naive newcomer with a fresh pair of eyes that makes a breakthrough. Increasing knowledge means increasing awareness… Continue reading
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Memory & learning blog 3 – MARGE
notes from the pdf MARGE by neuroscientist Arthur Shimamura. Thanks to Daniel Willingham for posting this. Learning is the ability to acquire knowledge from sensory experiences, where learning is perceptual (reading an x-ray), conceptual (linking new facts & ideas to… Continue reading
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Explaining Creativity in education
Psychologist Csikszentmihalyi says we can be creative or Creative. Small ‘c’ creativity he describes as that which does not lead to a change in the symbolic domain of the culture; so small scale, personal acts of indulging in a playful,… Continue reading
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Factual knowledge
Why increasing factual knowledge doesn’t automatically lead to greater creative insight & why simply being creative doesn’t either Psychologist Csikszentmihalyi says we can be creative or Creative. Small ‘c’ creativity he describes as that which does not lead to a… Continue reading
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10 Classroom Strategies for Enhancing Memory
This article is based on an article by Christopher Pappas for the eLearning Industry (Instructional Design -7 strategies for eLearning Professionals) and MARGE by Arthur Shimamura If we want students to remember our lessons we should try to make them… Continue reading
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The problem with Cognitive Load Theory for general learning
This article is my own summary interpretation of the paper; Cognitive Load Theory, what does it mean for learning designers? By Walkergrove 2014. Cognitive Load Theory is a well researched, well proven and generally unchallenged practice of instruction that demonstrates… Continue reading
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Memory & Learning 2: Why drilling isn’t always the best way to remember things.
From the Idiot Brain by Professor of Neurology Dean Burnett Human memory isn’t organised like files on a computer. The brain organises memories with no logic, it cuts them up, adds irrelevant bits to them and organises them in multiple… Continue reading
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Memory and Learning
Short term memory is largely aural – words and sounds. They usually last about a minute. This is why you have an internal monologue and think in sentences. Moving memories from short term to long term memory might be done… Continue reading
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Knowledge first, then skills, then creativity?
Knowledge first. Then skills. Then creativity? This makes no sense to me. What knowledge do you refer to? Which skills and what form of creativity? There are around 17 different knowledge types according but these are more commonly related to… Continue reading
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Are you teaching art all wrong?
Ok I accept this may be a fairly contentious blog post and that not everyone will agree with me, but here’s my two penneth worth. Outcome driven artMost of the art in schools I see is outcome driven. In Primary… Continue reading
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The Art of Questions
This article appeared in NSEAD’s AD Magazine January 2016 When planning and delivering lesson content teachers are continually striving for a balance between ensuring their pupils achieve the intended learning objectives and maintaining their motivation. We can’t place enjoyment above… Continue reading
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Have your students got the G Factor?
What do the scientists say really affects a person’s intelligence? Continue reading
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Key Stage 3 Art, Craft and Design Progression
Key Stage 3 Art & Design Progression Much of what we define as progress is smoke and mirrors. You can’t always demonstrate progression, because more often than not, it isn’t tangible. Often, I’ve spent two hours wrestling with an idea… Continue reading
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Developing different approaches to Art
Develop more interesting and exciting approaches to making and teaching art Continue reading
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Ten tips for improving the quality of your Art & Design teaching
Ten tips for improving the quality of your Art & Design teaching It’s very easy to get lost in the frantic world of teaching. You get caught up in the day to day and sometimes you forget what is at… Continue reading
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The Negative Impact of Assessment
Assessment can do as much harm as it can good. Avoid the minefields of negativity to develop truly positive assessment strategies. Continue reading
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Durer Drawing and Printmaking
A great drawing or printmaking lesson idea for linking traditional practice to the present day. Continue reading
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Picasso Drawing exercise
Whilst looking at Picassos lovely sketches of animals in a single continuous line, it occurred to me that this would make a lovely drawing lesson. Create your own animal drawing using a single continuous line. Lots of art teachers do… Continue reading
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Memory Art
Memory Art I learned this exercise from a session i did at the Baltic Quays gallery, Gateshead. It was in a session done by art teacher Elinor Brass so it isn’t mine, but I’m sure she won’t mind me sharing it… Continue reading
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Progression in Art & Design using revised Blooms
Revised Blooms Learning Objectives for Art & Design that facilitate progression. Continue reading
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Does anyone know of an artist who does . . . ?
Good art teaching comes from the development of planning that opens minds, it doesn’t direct outcomes. Continue reading
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Idea Mining
Idea Mining – This art lesson involves applying the objective or purpose of the idea to different thinking strands, to facilitate the more complex production of ideas. Continue reading
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So you want to study an Art, Craft or Design degree?
So you want to study an Art, Craft or Design degree? Well, there’s some great news! The number of jobs in the Creative Industries increased by 5.5 per cent between 2013 and 2014 to 1.8 million jobs. This was an… Continue reading
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The case for Art: School Performance Measures from 2016
Where previously Art played a minor role in helping students attain the 5 A*-C threshold, the new attainment measures imply that good Art & Design figures will add significant value to pupils progress targets. Far from diminishing the role of… Continue reading
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Looking at Contemporary Art
Ways of Looking Ways of Looking by Ossian Ward is an excellent introduction into contemporary art. He has developed a way of looking art that he calls TABULA where T is time, A is association, B is background, U is… Continue reading
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If you want to improve boys learning, learn what it’s like to be a boy
A lot has been written about boy’s learning that I agree with; lack of self-esteem, poor motivation, weak presentation/organisation skills, female dominated schools and inability to concentrate for long periods of time etc. I passionately believe that the way lessons… Continue reading
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Raising drawing skills or ‘Dumbeldore’s Army’
Dumbeldore’s Army and the incredible dancing bears By Paul Carney In the Harry Potter book ‘the Order of the Phoenix’ the students resort to forming a secret class to teach themselves the dark arts of magic so that they might… Continue reading
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Creative Lesson Planning
One of the ways I see creativity being stifled is when well meaning teachers plan their lessons. Instead of planning for freedom of choice, they plan very controlled experiences. Instead of encouraging risk and exploration they limit the materials to… Continue reading
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Creating creative lessons and happy, independent students
When PLANNING AND PREPARING for creative lessons consider: The creativity you want to tap into Is it a new experience or a new way of seeing, is it relative… Continue reading
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Pixel Art
This is a great lesson for pupils at Primary or Elementary age. It might even be good for older pupils, especially boys. You could do this on laptops or Pc’s using Microsoft Excel or similar. But you could just use… Continue reading
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Music
I added a music p[layer to the blog that features some of my music. I sing and play music, compose, play guitar and perform. Check the player at the bottom of the page. Continue reading
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Baseline Assessments in Art & Design
You can’t measure progress until you know your student’s general ability in the areas of: Skills, Knowledge & Creativity. I developed a simple exercise to do this that takes about an hour to do and I would do it at… Continue reading
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NCEA TEACHMEET Jan 2014 and the concept of DIRT!
#NCEAPEDAGOGY What an excellent meet this was, Jon Tait spoke of opening up Skype in the global classroom, Susan Coles gave an inspirational and silent presentation about visual literacy and Louise Gatti showed us the Wheel of wonder. There were… Continue reading
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Drawdeck
I came across this website the other day which i think is a great way to upload your students’ artwork where they can comment on each other’s work and it’s FREE!! http://drawdeck.com Continue reading
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Teaching Drawing
Whenever I get a class of art students (of any age) to draw something from observation I always get a wide set of results, ranging from excellent to struggling. That must mean that most students are not working on a… Continue reading
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Eleanor Crook
A link to the brilliant, inspirational artwork of Eleanor Crook who I had the pleasure to meet. http://www.eleanorcrook.com Continue reading
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My Pinterest Boards
Here are some boards I put together on Pinterest, please feel free to link to them Contemporary Art Fluxus Art Drawing Pop Art Sculpture Surrealism Traditional Pop Art Continue reading
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Len Tabner
A great video from the brilliant but reclusive North east painter Len Tabner Continue reading
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Tate – Youtube site
All teachers of art should have the Tate Youtube page in their browser favourites. http://www.youtube.com/user/tate?app=desktop It’s a free link to contemporary art heaven! Continue reading
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