Self-determination, a main variable to affect the quality of life, indicates the ability, attitudes,
and skills to set goals and achieve them based on self-understanding and self-esteem. This study
examined how a self-determination-enhancement-model-oriented art class influences general and
disabled children\'s self-determination ability. This study was conducted in two sixth-grade
classes at B Elementary School in Incheon: One was the experimental group and the other was
the control group. Twenty-eight general students and two mentally retarded students
participated in each group. The general students\' self-determination ability was measured by the
Arc\'s Self-Determination Scale. For the analysis of the mentally retarded students\'
self-determination, the researcher first categorized their self-determination behavior into four
groups: (1) choice-making, (2) decision, (3) participation, and (4) evaluation, and subdivided each
group into four skills, for a total of sixteen skills. Then, the researcher examined how frequently
each skill occurred from videotaped classroom observation data. The self-determination model
for the art class consists of four steps: (1) know and value yourself, (2) plan, (3) act, and (4)
experience outcomes and adjust. The art class based on the four phases allowed students to (1)
select several activity topics and materials, which were presented according to the objectives of
the art curriculum, and (2) make decisions while doing activities with their peers who selected
the same activity. The result demonstrated that general and mentally retarded students\'
self-determination ability in the experimental group had been improved. The result implies that
an art class is applicable for integrated classes and effective for the improvement of
self-determination. This study provided a self-determination-skill-embedded lesson plan for a
general subject area at an elementary school.