Teaching Philosophy
I believe that giving students a well rounded education in visual art prepares them to engage critically and thoughtfully with the world around them. Art, similarly to science, expands the ways students understand and experience the world around them, by encouraging observation, experimentation, and critical thinking. In the increasing visual culture we exist in, I believe that media literacy is an essential part of an art education, and as an art educator it is my job to teach students how to critically examine visual media. By analyzing photography, video games, film and advertising with students they can develop a well rounded understanding of the visual world around them. Using these subjects students are able to connect to their daily life whether it's deciding to buy a product based on the advertising or being able to critically think about the movie they just watched.
When instructing I believe in teaching the why before the how. Art class should be more than just a step by step tutorial. Teaching the students the why part of art allows them to build personal connections, fully understand a process, and grow critical thinking skills. By facilitating peer and classroom critiques I am able to help focus students on providing positive and constructive feedback to their peers. This is done by directing comments on specific parts of the artwork to focus the conversation and teach students about why artists make certain choices. I encourage students to think critically about the choices they are making when creating by teaching about the process of artists and by using artistic behavior prompts to get their minds thinking about their own artworks.
My role as a teacher is to curate meaningful experiences that allow for students to build on prior knowledge. It is important to build a narrative to the lessons that I teach. I want students to be engaged with the art. This can be through discussions I use to lead students into making conclusions for themselves about artworks. Ultimately I want students to feel confident to create and discuss art without the fear of being wrong. My only hope for students after I have taught them is when they leave the classroom they are able to use skills I have taught them in any capacity.
When instructing I believe in teaching the why before the how. Art class should be more than just a step by step tutorial. Teaching the students the why part of art allows them to build personal connections, fully understand a process, and grow critical thinking skills. By facilitating peer and classroom critiques I am able to help focus students on providing positive and constructive feedback to their peers. This is done by directing comments on specific parts of the artwork to focus the conversation and teach students about why artists make certain choices. I encourage students to think critically about the choices they are making when creating by teaching about the process of artists and by using artistic behavior prompts to get their minds thinking about their own artworks.
My role as a teacher is to curate meaningful experiences that allow for students to build on prior knowledge. It is important to build a narrative to the lessons that I teach. I want students to be engaged with the art. This can be through discussions I use to lead students into making conclusions for themselves about artworks. Ultimately I want students to feel confident to create and discuss art without the fear of being wrong. My only hope for students after I have taught them is when they leave the classroom they are able to use skills I have taught them in any capacity.