An Effect of a Group Art Treatment Program on Isolated Children's Self-Concept and Adaptation to the School Life in Elementary School

집단미술치료프로그램이 초등학교 고립아동의 자아개념 및 학교생활적응에 미치는 효과

This study aimed at examining an effect of a group art treatment program on isolated children's self-concept and adaptation to the school life in an elementary school. To achieve this goal, the two hypotheses were made. Hypothesis 1. Children in the experimental group that participated in the group art treatment program will show more improvement in self-concept than those in the control group. Hypothesis 2. Children in the experimental group that participated in the group art treatment program will show more improvement in the ability to adapt themselves to the school life than those in the control group. To test the hypotheses, the socio-emotional isolation test developed by Heo Seung-hi (1993) was carried out with 120 third-graders at K elementary school in Busan; then, 24 isolated children (12 boys and 12 girls) at the upper 25 percent level were randomly sampled and assigned to each of experimental and control groups. The five-stage art treatment program as a reconstruction of the prior study to meet the goal of this study was provided to children in the experimental group at the researcher's classroom after school for 13 sessions, two sessions per week. The self-concept test manufactured by Song In-seop (1996), the school life adaptation test developed by Lee Yeong-seon (1997), and the experimental group's school life drawing (KSD) were used to test an effect of the program. For data analysis, two methods, a quantitative analysis of two tests and a qualitative analysis of KSD, were used. The findings were as follows: After implementing the art treatment program with the experimental group, there was significant improvement in all areas. This study concluded that if a group art treatment program is applied to elementary school practice, it will help isolated children improve their self-concept and ability to adapt themselves to the school life.