2/14 "Why did you decide to go into art education?"

Today was the second day at MHS. I asked Mr. R why he had decided to go into art education. His response was atypical of what I have heard in the past. He said that when he began his teaching observation he was not guaranteed a placement in his field (art). He then said that his observation was not all that he had expected in fact it was a rather negative experience, because a cooperating teacher he had been placed with had essentially not taught him anything nor given him much feedback and another would not really allow him to participate in any classroom activities. Due to this lack of feedback and experience his practicum placement had been, as he had put it, "a complete failure". Eventually he had to re-do his practicum to receive a satisfactory grade. His eventual decision of continuing with art education came with the second cooperating teacher who would direct him from the back of the class and provide in-depth accurate feedback after each observation and guide him through different classroom management techniques.

2/9 Guest Speaker

Today we had a guest speaker, Ms. O from DHS. Ms. O is a very energetic woman who still seems very much in love with her career and very dedicated to her students. I really enjoyed the creativity that Ms. O puts into her lessons and how she involves her students in the lesson planning process, by asking them what they want to do and adjusting her lessons to suit those wants. Ms. O showed us a very entertaining video of a performance painting that some of her students did alongside the school choir/band. Although the painting may have not been perfectly executed the students were very expressive and it sounds like the audience really enjoyed the performance in its entirety. Ms. O's advice was very different than that of what I have heard from other art educators, in that her entire approach to education is student based and for the most part choice based. I really enjoyed that she was still so passionate about everything she was doing and hadn't become jaded by the politics of education.

2/7 First day at MHS

Today was my first day at MHS with Mr. R. In all the day was rather informative and slightly eventful. Not having a lot of experience with high school aged students, I found Mr. R very helpful in easing my nerves. My biggest concern with working with high schoolers is that I am relatively close in age to them, Mr. R said that although we (the students and I) are close in age that I should still present and carry myself like a professional. I feel that there is a large difference between high schoolers and elementary aged students not only in stature but also in attitude towards both art and their teachers. For the most part I felt well received although there were a couple of students who seemed rather stand-offish. Overall the first day went really well and I'm really looking forward to continuing my experience at MHS.

Curriculum

Do you teach a discipline-based art curriculum or a choice-based one?
I think that the students themselves will dictate my choice of curriculum. Students who are younger or need more guidance through projects, discipline based will be more appropriate. Where as older students who have more ideas about where they want to go with their work, the choice based may be more appropriate for students to explore their own ideas, rather than having their ideas dictated to them. Of course there is always a time and place for both discipline and choice within the classroom and even within a lesson.

Trends in education

"Can you talk about trends in education to which you are professionally committed?"

There are a few educational trends that I am professionally committed to, DBAE as well as RtI. I feel that I am most committed to because these are the two that I am most familiar with. DBAE, Discipline Based Art Education, is very important to consider when teaching because it forces the teacher to look at different aspects of art aside from art making. RtI, Response to Intervention, is a great trend that I hope stays for a while because it allows in-depth participation of faculty, students and parents. RtI is also one of the most comprehensive ways of addressing student learning discrepancies.

What is more important?

What is more important art or teacher?

I feel that in order to be proficient in either you must be proficient in both art and teaching. However if I were forced to chose I would say that teaching is something that you can be taught but it is not necessarily an easily acquired trait. Working with students can be very trying at times and you must have the passion to continue to do it. Art on the other hand, while also being trying is also more about self than about others. Skills in art may be acquired over time but not everyone has the ability to acquire the skills to be a great teacher.

Do you need to be an artist to be an art teacher?

I think that being an artist is greatly beneficial in teaching art however as many art teachers have told me, once you become a teacher your art takes a backseat. Yet I still believe that having the artist mentality is needed when teaching young people to become artists themselves. Being an artists gives you a unique perspective that many other people do not have.