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.