INTERNSHIP 1 PRACTICUM

INTERNSHIP I PRACTICUM -  ED 5308, Weeks 1 & 2

Hello My Name Is:  Presentation of Self as Artist-Teacher-Learner

Essential Questions: 

What role does vulnerable and authentic sharing of the self play in forming relationships with others? 

How can reflecting upon one’s own identity as a human and as an artist-teacher create an empathetic partnership with the learner? 

Learning Outcomes: 

I can present aspects of my world view, cultural background, and personal interests visually and verbally to the classroom community.

I can create an empathetic partnership with learners through sharing my current and/or past artmaking experiences.  

I can present myself in the role of the teacher through my physical and vocal presence in the classroom. 

Rationale: These learners (preservice artist-teachers) are embarking upon their first MICA MAT teaching internship placement. In this particular placement, this group of interns will be working with high-school-aged artist-learners in a Foundations of Art course. For some of these interns, it is their first time ever working with students in the the field, and for others it is their first time working with high-school-aged learners. 

They are entering into this learning context one day a week for the course of the semester, and will be taking on a role of authority in the room on a rotating “guest” basis. Because of our school’s A-Day/B-Day schedule, they see each class of learners only every two weeks. Building rapport with students is critical, and must begin with an introduction of the preservice artist-teachers’ authentic selves at the outset of their placements.

Doing so with accompanying visuals that provide a window into the preservice artist-teachers’ studio practices allows the learners to view the artist-teacher as a partner in learning about and through artmaking. It also allows learners to gather information about the artist-teacher’s world view, interests, cultural background, conceptual curiosities, and technical skills. It is therefore an opportunity to find common ground, invite further conversation, and to gain respect. It is an opportunity as well for the artist-teachers to lead with vulnerability so that if and when they ask learners to share about their own world views, interests, cultural backgrounds, curiosities, and technical skills it may feel safer to do so. 

In order for the preservice teachers to empathize with the developmental stage of their learners, I also prompt them to look for (and if possible, include) work or imagery from their own high school artmaking experiences so they can speak about their background and journey, both to remind themselves of what they felt like at this stage in their lives, but also so that learners can envision them as relatable humans with shared experiences.

Learning Tasks: 

• Week 1 Preparatory work: Create your Artist-Teacher-Self presentation. Please use Google Slides as a holding form, but what you embed in those slides is up to you! (Images? Animations? Gifs? Audio? Video? Other media?) Share your slides at least the day before so that I can have your documents ready to present on my teacher computer. 

• The length should be no more than five minutes (be sure to rehearse it and time it so you ensure you are aware of the timeframe!) 

• Craft your remarks; they should be planned/articulated ahead of time--so that you are not speaking spontaneously, but rather, have curated your thoughts to the essence of what you want to say. Practice your clear teacher voice. 

• Your presentation should look visually engaging: a combination of words, images, videos, whatever media you wish. Your presentations should reflect that you are an artist! 

• Content specifications and prompting questions:

• WHO ARE YOU? Let your authentic self shine through! Consider sharing information about your journey from being a high school aged artist-learner to being an an undergraduate or graduate artist-learner-teacher.

• HOW DO YOU CREATE? Share visuals that illuminate your process, your materials, and the rituals or strategies that you engage in 

• WHAT DO YOU CREATE? Share final products that show cohesion in ideas--you can share more than one body of work that might have different underlying ideas, but pick the things you feel most connected to right now. 

• WHY DO YOU CREATE? Share some of the themes/concepts you explore in your work, your interests and the things that motivate you to engage in making processes.

• Make sure that all images/information are appropriate to be presented in a public school setting. 

• Week 2 Field Visit: Present your Artist-Teacher-Self presentation - During the allotted class time, present your artist-teacher-self to the students. If time allows, invite and answer learners’ questions.

• Week 2 Post-placement debrief: Share your reflections with your mentor and teammates - What went well? What was challenging? How did you feel in the role of the teacher? What would you improve if you could? What did you learn/take away/discover as a result of this experience? How will this impact your next steps?