Art Teaching Philosophy

Education is an important aspect of my career as a future educator because of what it has always meant to me. Through education in the arts I have found ways to meet and connect with others with similar interests and beliefs. The arts in education though has been something often overlooked throughout my academic career. It wasn’t until High school that I received a proper education in the arts, but even then it seemed like it was only prioritized in handing out a grade for the completion of fulfilling requirements meant only for culmination instead of creating an everlasting experience for each student. As a future educator my goal is to create an inclusive environment for all students to feel as though they are where they belong and thrive in. In education I believe that it is imperative to have accommodations for students with disabilities and for students with different levels of education in the arts. In doing so, my goal is for students to have a better understanding of the arts, and feel comfortable with creating art at any given moment in the classroom. The means in which this goal will be achieved is through my belief of having student centered learning that resides in the interests of students because it not only engages students productively but also uses it as a means of assessment to help understand where students are, and how to actively cater to their needs. 

Previous experiences with students and observations has led me to believe that at least 50-35% of students are actively engaged in the curriculum because of this lack of inclusivity and engagement in the classroom. With the digital age upon us, most students are invested with what goes on in the virtual world rather than what goes on in the classroom. I have noticed that since students have returned to the classroom from a long absence due to the pandemic, students are less interested in learning the content presented in the arts. My means to tackle this issue would be through more interactions with students in the classroom by being more aware of students' needs by actively engaging them by using their own interests and being mindful of each student's different learning styles. I am currently investigating different ways to approach students and questioning their abilities to further understand their reasoning for creating art besides that of being only for a grade. To me the final assessment of the students' work and effort should be in the culmination of steps and processes that led to the final product in their work instead of grading each aspect individually. I believe that in order for students to thrive in the arts, the end result shouldn’t be the only part to look forward to, but rather the entire experience as a whole because it should be something that resonates with and stays with the student forever.

Outside of art education I am interested in Illustration and actively looking for ways to incorporate aspects of both worlds in my career. I believe that Illustration is a means to use formal qualities learned in the classroom in creating artworks that will challenge the students capabilities in a way that helps them stray away from the literal in the arts by helping them think more critically and creatively in the arts through these “Non obvious Solutions”. Overall by engaging students in this mode of work, I believe that this will allow students to think differently about their artwork.