Philosophy of Education

A teaching coach at Greenville High School once asked at an in-service if every student could learn. She said that she did not like “Yes, but..” she just liked the “yeses.” I have never forgotten this, and as my teaching progresses this wisdom has become more and more apparent.

My first action in the art room is to assert that every child can make art. My class motto is, “Everything we do is art,” followed by, “I can.” So I propose that all children can perform art, and that it is my job as an educator to make the learner more of an artist using whatever skill level s/he brings. Some learners think a wide variety of negative things about the art making experience, thus hampering their skill level. My job as an art educator includes peeling away the preconceived notion of what skill is, erasing the idea of arts being “just” crafts, and teaching simple artistic facts and abstract techniques that take decades for professionals to perfect. Every child can make art, and an art educator has to be sensitive to each child’s ability level.

I strongly agree with Jerome S. Bruner and his belief that

….any subject can be taught effectively in some intellectually honest

form to any child at any stage of development.

(The Process of Education, 33).

I have taught learners with autism some very complex art techniques that they were able to repeat over and over as long as their intrinsic motivation was tapped. Certain students who had other exceptionalities could pose more of a challenge, but with persistence and a true desire to get the learner to reach the end result within their ability level and beyond, you can truly slay any dragon.

In the example of the birch tree watercolor for fourth grade, I had carefully scaffolded the project months in advance. The first project had to do with the Constitution of the United States and using calligraphy pens and India ink. Following the lessons on ink, the learners received a series of lessons on perspective. The learners were used to using perspective from the previous year’s lessons, but this year’s scaffold took them even further with depth of field and shadows. The next four lessons were watercolor experiments from basic to advanced. This assignment in birch trees took all these scaffolds and blended them into one piece that they were able to do with great speed, and little support.

My trip to the Washington Center enhanced my understanding about art making and the art maker. Even though the tools were alternative and the art seemingly counter intuitive, the power and weight of the importance of the art was magnified by the fragility of each child and of certain life expediencies. The care and professional treatment that went into displaying each piece throughout the building not only instills a sense of pride with each student, it sheds a light on ability level and the dedication of the art instructor to achieving high levels of art.

In an unscientific test of this theory, I took a lesson plan from the Washington Center’s art teacher and used it with one of my first grade classes that has the lowest ability levels. This lesson plan relied heavily on pasting cut objects into place. Because my teaching friend at the Washington Center uses similar scaffolding techniques, his learners used the cut objects and placed them in the correct order quickly. My students who had not done any cut and paste art making struggled when I sprung the assignment on them. I compared notes with my cooperating teacher at the Washington Center, and he was extremely surprised with the results.

With carefully guided instruction, a teacher can lead a learner with any ability level to the results similar to those of his or her peers. There is a great deal of satisfaction in watching the learners recreate your efforts in “free draw” exercises and doodles. When I see these doodles that reflect a major project that has taken months to wind your way around to, I feel a tremendous sense of pride at a scaffold well done.

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