Summative Reflection.

As a reflection of this course, Overview of Art Education we have discussed the following themes...

Viewing and responding to art: I have realized just how important it is to be constantly showing students artwork. Especially, the artists that relate to the mediums and big ideas of the student's project at hand. This serves as background knowledge and inspiration for your students as they begin their work. It also shows them that they are not alone in this medium or big idea, which can make them feel safe in expression and risk taking. It also connects the students to a larger historical connection to art across time and cultures. A new technique I have witnessed in order to look at art is called Visual Thinking Strategies. This technique accepts all answers and ideas while valuing the individual opinion. Students are forced to find evidence for their thoughts, which develops critical thinking strategies that are utilized in all literacy forms.

Developing art curriculum: developing curriculum is time consuming and must be thought through thoroughly. While standards and technical skills are essential, it does not mean that they get to run the show of the art curriculum. Standards and skill can be subservient to a big idea. If a big idea is utilized in the art classroom, it allows students to be more expressive and think holistically. It also makes the project more personal, exciting, and memorable. Teachers who are producing projects that are craft oriented in order to fulfill standards are doing a disservice to their students on multiple levels.

Teaching art: To teach art you must be an artist and an educator. We should be producing and exploring our own artwork while serving as an educator to students. We have to know the developmental needs of students at different ages, and what they are technically capable of doing. As mentioned though, no matter the age, we still respect our students by honoring their high levels of thinking when including big ideas. We should be energetic, passionate, friendly, and inspiring. We should make students feel safe in our classroom environment by making it safe to taken risks and express oneself. This requires the teacher demanding respect at all times, valuing risk takers, noticing personal improvement, and being a role model themselves. Classroom management and organization is key for a classroom to run efficiently. Assessments should be both formative and summative. However, summative assessment does not always have to be based upon a numerical point system. There are other assessment tools such as one page portfolios that can be uses as a summative assessment tool. The teacher could also choose to assign final grades in a manner of A, B, or do again. Teachers have the power to provide coping strategies, develop critical and holistic thinking, provide a break from standardization, and allow students to find their own voice.

Peer units & revised teaching portfolio: The peer units showed me that it is possible to work with big ideas for students at all ages. I also saw the endless possibilities of big ideas and artists who can support them. There seemed to be no end to the inspiration one can draw from current and previous artists. All that matters is how a teacher breaks the big idea down for students to understand and set an appropriate expectation for medium and skill level. They seemed to remind me that even when you think you are out of big ideas, you can keep digging for more.

I realized the importance of a teacher portfolio, and how it should include your work as an artist and an educator. We should have content rich work that also shows our wide range of material use. Our voice and inspiration of artwork should subtly be connected back to what we hope our students could one day do with their own artwork. Noticing our growth and changing our ways of thinking is a good way to show our future employers the way we will continue to be observant in the art classroom. Our curriculum documents and student work should also match our philosophy as evidence that we follow through with our ideas and they are possible. My portfolio will be close at hand the rest of my time at Mizzou in order to keep adding artwork, documents, and revisions to my teaching philosophy.