Teaching Philosophy

         As an educator in art and design, I want to show my students how influential art can be outside of the classroom and how to apply art to the real world. I want to emphasize that art isn’t always about being someone who can draw well, but is about expressing yourself because I believe it is important to use art as a means of examining life and where we come from. I will use a balance of formative and summative assessment in order to examine student understanding, and adjust the curriculum and address their apprehensions if they have any. Any time I believe a student can improve on some aspect of their project, I will be sure to point out the positive characteristics and why certain parts work better than others so I am fostering a positive classroom environment. If such goals become too challenging and frustrating for a particular student, I will adjust the objectives appropriately. It is important to consider students individually because of varying learning techniques, and some methods work better than others.

         When it comes to desired learning outcomes, I want to foster an environment that encourages students to ask questions in order to cultivate critical thinking skills. I will do so by developing strategies and methods that have an appropriate amount of structure, but will be open-ended enough so students will have the opportunity to expand and develop the objectives further in order to reflect themselves. My teaching style is primarily a student-focused, constructivist approach because I believe learning is internal. Students construct their own learning through building upon prior knowledge through exploration, discovery, and questioning. Proper guidance is necessary when it comes to organization and structure; however, personal freedom is particularly important for art to truly have an impact on students. As an art educator, I want students to gain the essential skills and knowledge that can be applied to extensive situations. Learning is more than just memorization, and should incorporate personal and real-world experiences in order to make it more meaningful and relatable. Using cross-disciplinary teaching strageties is a great way to facilitate these necessary connections and helps enrich the learning experience. During lesson demonstrations, I will be sure to clearly inform the students the importance of the lesson, and how it is applicable to other circumstances.

         In order these objectives to be successful, positive relationships with the students and a positive classroom environment is crucial. I will be sure to remain enthusiastic and passionate about art and teaching because my attitude greatly impacts student learning. I want to foster a positive classroom environment that allows students to feel comfortable not only with me, but with themselves. Teaching should be an enjoyable experience for both the students and the teacher, and when there is trust, harmony and mutual respect amongst student-teacher relationships and interactions, learning becomes the number one priority. My guidelines for the classroom will encompass positivity rather than scare-tactics, encouraging responsibility, and respect; respect for yourself and respect for others. Establishing a routine in the classroom, such as setting up, procedures and cleaning up, is also important for a successful learning environment because predictability with mundane tasks fosters structure, organization, and comfort.