Revised Teaching Philosophy

TDP 4730                                                                                                                    Lauren Holland

REVISED TEACHING PHILOSOPHY

        I believe that the arts are the purest, most effective form of self-expression in existence. Fine arts in particular can be a powerful tool to engage and promote healthy problem-solving, critical thinking, creativity, empathy and communications. It is the duty of the art teacher to train students to channel these tools effectively and to be able to speak their minds through a universal visual language that has endured throughout time and across cultures.

        Art is the only subject still taught in our schools that cannot and absolutely should not be taught by the books. There are no right or wrong answers, and anyone can be an artist if they want to be. That being said, it is impossible to grow without first being challenged. Every art class I ever took in within the K-12 period was heartbreakingly dumbed down, lacking in depth, and bereft of perspective. Teaching visual art is so much more than cut and dry principles and elements, and to simplify it to such is a discredit to the subject. Students deserve to be introduced to ground-breaking artists from whom they can draw insight and inspiration. They must be given opportunities to represent what they have learned through a variety of media, and they need the content to be connected to important big ideas that they can take and make into their own personal messages to the world. Personal connections are the cornerstone of successful, meaningful making.

        To be an effective teacher, I will need to have extensive knowledge of the dynamics of the art world both past and present, and I will have to be able to make the subject matter real to my students by presenting it in a way that they can relate to. My curriculum will incorporate both classical and 21^st century methods of art making. Students will always be able to count on me for an interesting and differentiated lesson execution, fair and non-biased assessment, and an abundance of extra help wherever/whenever it is needed. I will see evidence of my effectiveness as a teacher through the quality and thoughtfulness of the artwork my students produce, insightful questions and explanations posed, and continuous progress in both of these areas throughout the year.

        I have observed time and time again that students are almost always more interested in how much a teachers cares about them than they are in how much he or she actually knows. Even more important than an instructor’s wealth of knowledge is their ability to build students’ sense of self-efficacy and self-worth. Before they can ever feel compelled to make anything, children need to understand that their opinions and perspectives are valid and worthy of visual representation. My art classroom will be a sanctuary for uninhibited free-thinking and self-expression. Visual literacy is vital, but I am also a big believer in encouraging students to speak their minds through interviews, class discussions, journals, and peer critiques so as to create beneficial student-teacher relationships as well as a community of learners. In a nutshell, an effective arts education begins with knowledgeable, caring, responsive and perpetually positive educators. These kids are our future, and they deserve no less than the very best.

Course Reflection

TDP 4730                                                                                                                                                               Lauren Holland

COURSE REFLECTION

          In regards to viewing and responding to art, I learned more in just this one semester than I’ve learned in my entire art education. For example, as ridiculous as this may sound, I had never before been encouraged to work through big ideas or even experienced a thorough and complete art lesson. The day that we went to Rockbridge to hear Abbey speak was the day I finally began to understand exactly what I was getting into. In the presentation of her own creation, Abbey cleverly used “fear,” a common emotion experienced by and therefore connecting all human beings, to create a meaningful theme. She carefully selected a range of exemplary artists who all had a very different take one this big idea, and the following art making activity was an in-depth, multi-media project that students could not help but immerse themselves in. When she showed us her freshman students’ finished artwork, I was impressed, inspired, and a little upset that my own high school art teachers couldn’t hold a candle to what this young woman was doing. That being was my very first exposure to a real art lesson, I became very afraid. If everything I had observed about art education up to that point had been incorrect, then I had absolutely no idea what I was doing after all. Thankfully that was just the beginning of an entire semesters worth of professional training, and what an eye-opening beginning it was!

          I also thoroughly enjoyed the VTS discussions lead by Dr. Mary Franco at the Museum of Art and Archeology. I had never heard of Visual Thinking Strategy before but was very taken with it and intend to use it with my own students in the future. What I found most fascinating was the fact that everyone noticed something different when they first looked at the painting, but with each suggestion and new ideas put forth by the students, deeper underlying meanings and a possible big idea (resignation) began to form. This was entirely backwards from the way I was normally would have gone about observing and responding to art. However, I almost feel as if VTS was a more effective means of interpretation than if we had been told what the painting was about from the beginning because deep seeing was required to get to that point. This added another super useful strategy to my teacher repertoire, and I am more willing and excited to try new strategies that I may not have considered before after experiencing the effectiveness of a VTS (or VTesque) discussion.

          Until this semester I had absolutely no knowledge of how to even go about developing art curricula. This was the main source of my initial stress and doubt that I was feeling after Abbey’s presentation. The Tiger Artist Lesson was such a pivotal moment for me. After my group executed our much anticipated lesson on “perspective”, I had a new outlook on my career. I will always remember walking out of that classroom smiling and thinking to myself for the first time ‘I can do this!’ Working with my group was a great way to ease into individual lesson planning, and it reminded me of the benefits of collaboration. From that point on I began to brainstorm group projects for my future students, and I made sure to incorporate this idea of teamwork into my unit plan.

          The creation of the unit plan for this course was by far the most difficult and time consuming task I have been challenged with thus far in my college education, but I learned so much that I have to admit it was totally worth it. The first lesson seemed to take forever and a day and I hit a couple of road blocks, but by the third lesson I felt like I was getting the hang of it. Shortly after completion of my unit plan I had to create another lesson plan for a different class, and because I actually knew what I was doing this time around it was a very sweet piece of cake. Good teachers put a good deal of effort and thought into the creation of their curricula, and I really do believe that students deserve nothing less. I may have missed out on a solid arts education growing up, but I swear up and down that no student of mine will ever be able to say the same.

          The Tiger Artist activity was a beautiful and incredibly educational experience, but I think I learned the most about teaching art from my field course. It was the first time I had ever worked in an actual art classroom, and to be able to be there on a regular basis and work on something new every time was really insightful. When teaching art, students need to be shown what they being asked to do, and progress needs to be monitored and encouraged every step of the way. It is important to point out specific areas where a student’s work is successful, and as long as this positive feedback occurs first the students are usually open to suggestions in regards to where they could improve. The elementary school children that I worked with in my field course constantly wanted my approval of their creations, even if they knew good and well that they had done a fine job. Kids want to know that their work has worth and is appreciated by the adults that ask them to do it. The more you believe in them, the more they believe in themselves.

          Though time consuming, the peer unit reviews were highly educational for me as a future teacher. I absolutely love that everyone was willing to share all the hard work that they put into making their unit plans with fellow classmates. I gleaned a plethora of new ideas and perspectives I had never even considered before by watching everyone else’s presentations, and I was glad for their feedback when it came time to present my own.

          My portfolio is my treasure chest. Inside is all of the evidence I have thus far of my ability to be an effective art teacher. As I put it together I reminisced over all the “epiphanous” moments I’ve enjoyed throughout the semester, and I realized that I am more prepared now than ever before to embark on this journey of a career. I was scared in the beginning, but now I’m just excited!