My Beliefs About Education and Teaching
Coming in to my student teaching experience I was full of enthusiasm. I remember telling my cooperating teacher on the first day I met him, “Teaching art is going to be easy, changing the world is going to be the challenge.” On day one I wanted to save the world, by day five I just wanted to take role and keep my students on task. I see now that I was trying to run before I even took my first steps as a teacher. I still believe that I can make a positive impact on the world but I have learned that before you can become an inspirational teacher you first have to become an effective classroom manager.
I am a firm believer in leading students by your own good example. The more you teach and develop yourself, the more you can show your students. Actions speak louder than words.When you are describing the next art assignment to students you can describe it 100 different ways, but it isn’t until you hang an example that the students say, “Aha!” The same is true of people. It is easy to tell students to be prompt, prepared, and polite but students will learn more about those things by observing them in the character of their teacher.
A good teacher invests in students individually, that way he will be able to watch their progress and growth throughout the year. The key to successful teaching is to assess along the way, not simply at the beginning and the end of the lesson.
The secret to success is preparation. It is important to view your lesson plan from several different angles. If your original lesson fails and goes in a direction you hadn't intended, you have to be prepared to move the class in a new direction that still promotes learning. It is also very important to embrace the natural differences of each learner. Every learner is different and if you are not prepared to tackle those differences, precious learning opportunities can slip away. Your lesson is what you make it-if you prepare for success you will achieve it.
A good art teacher should have extensive knowledge of many mediums so they can adequately answer almost any question, while at the same time possess the patience to sit back and allow students to make discoveries for themselves. The main objective of an art room is not to create artwork that is ready to hang in a museum, but instead to focus on the lessons learned through the process of creating art. Art should be empowering; rather than force answers, give students a solid foundation and then room to move.
The inspiring thing about being an art teacher is I get to change student’s perspective on the world. As a teacher it is my goal to mold thoughtful, creative, and happy minds. Art is the tool I will use to do so.
I am a firm believer in leading students by your own good example. The more you teach and develop yourself, the more you can show your students. Actions speak louder than words.When you are describing the next art assignment to students you can describe it 100 different ways, but it isn’t until you hang an example that the students say, “Aha!” The same is true of people. It is easy to tell students to be prompt, prepared, and polite but students will learn more about those things by observing them in the character of their teacher.
A good teacher invests in students individually, that way he will be able to watch their progress and growth throughout the year. The key to successful teaching is to assess along the way, not simply at the beginning and the end of the lesson.
The secret to success is preparation. It is important to view your lesson plan from several different angles. If your original lesson fails and goes in a direction you hadn't intended, you have to be prepared to move the class in a new direction that still promotes learning. It is also very important to embrace the natural differences of each learner. Every learner is different and if you are not prepared to tackle those differences, precious learning opportunities can slip away. Your lesson is what you make it-if you prepare for success you will achieve it.
A good art teacher should have extensive knowledge of many mediums so they can adequately answer almost any question, while at the same time possess the patience to sit back and allow students to make discoveries for themselves. The main objective of an art room is not to create artwork that is ready to hang in a museum, but instead to focus on the lessons learned through the process of creating art. Art should be empowering; rather than force answers, give students a solid foundation and then room to move.
The inspiring thing about being an art teacher is I get to change student’s perspective on the world. As a teacher it is my goal to mold thoughtful, creative, and happy minds. Art is the tool I will use to do so.