Hello! Regarding the 3rd subtest, does anyone know/remember if there are any questions pertaining to the history of music, dance, and theatre? It's quite a lot of details for me to memorize for each time period, and I've read that the fine arts sections mainly focus on application and benefits of the arts, as opposed to fine details such as historical time periods. Does anyone happen to know anything on this? Any help is appreciated!
There can certainly be questions on the history and development of the arts, yes, not to mention questions that are less obviously about arts history but for which a grasp of who-did-what-how-and-when can be extremely helpful. Try mapping the timelines of visual art, music, drama, and dance together and onto a timeline of general history and the history. Pay attention to the movements or major eras, and look for patterns. (The literature and arts of a period in time reflect the history and economics of that time - which means, in part, the preferences of those who had the social power and the money to shape art and literature by their patronage, but also the media available. And the arts and literature do also play a role in shaping history and economics, though that tends to be somewhat less obvious.) Doing the unified timeline yourself, even if you're copying from an existing source, will add a bit of muscle memory to the learning process.
Thanks for the detailed reply, I actually really like the unified timeline idea! I'm trying to prioritize my memorization the best I can; do you happen to know if the free-response questions will have us write about history? That's what I'm most afraid of. I'm hoping the free-response is primarily focused on day-to-day application and benefits of the arts for children.
Is it possible that having a grasp of major movements and names could be useful in answering a Subtest III constructed response? Yes. But constructed responses generally focus less on the history of the artform than on either analyzing an artwork or outlining key considerations in assembling one. Know the design principles of the arts, know the elements of each kind of art, and be prepared to use appropriate technical terminology. As for day-to-day application and benefits of the arts for children, if you're expected to put a pedagogical spin on the question, it will say so - but CSET exams as a class focus more on what the test taker knows about the subject than on how the test taker will teach it, and in Subtest III even a question that is framed in terms of a classroom scenario can be answered quite adequately based on subject-matter knowledge, not on pedagogical chops.
Thank you for another great answer, they've been very helpful! I'll try to utilize all you've said the best I can.
