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Good and effective teaching occurs when a teacher knows the content and uses pedagogy. Good teaching reaches every student. This may be done through differentiation. My definition has changed since the first class by adding on these additional concepts to it. I now think about instructional methods depending on the topic and student-centered vs. teacher-centered classrooms along with strategies to reach all students. I am now aware of planning methods such as backward design. Effective teaching prepares students for their future endeavors. According to Fraser (2016) all teachers should “nurture the intellectual, physical, emotional, social and civic potential of each student” (p. 33).

This course has helped me prepare for many of the teacher standards related to licensure. One standard that stood out for me was number 7: Teachers are able to plan different kinds of lessons. I learned how to effectively use backward design to create a lesson plan that would use differentiation for students at different levels. This strategy would enable me to educate all students in the classroom. Through backward design I was also able to use a topic in the content area and fulfill curriculum goals by evaluating how I can meet those goals through figuring out what the desired outcomes would be. From there I designed a way to assess if the outcomes were achieved and then designed the lesson plan from those first two steps.

The most significant thing that I learned from this semester is learner development. In module two we discussed the developmental stages and developmental aspects that affect teaching in our face-to-face discussions. I found Bronfrenbrenner and the bioecological model informative before I started my O&P experience. Knowledge of this model will help me better understand the different factors that affect students and the learning in their schooling. According to Woolfolk (2014) “The social and educational programs, along with policies of governments, affect their lives. These contexts influence the development of behaviors” along with what they think is important and their understanding and awareness of the world (p. 86).

From this class I feel more informed and aware of my online digital identity. In order to prepare my online identity I will continue to write my blog and portfolio of work online, which will hopefully help me in the job market.

References

Fraser, James W. (2016). Teach: A Question of Teaching (2nd ed.). New York:           Routledge.

Woolfolk, A. E. (2014). Educational Psychology: Active Learning Edition (12th ed.).     Boston: Pearson.

I intend to use humanist approach toward motivation for my students. According to Woolfolk (2014) the humanist approach concentrated on “intrinsic sources of motivation as person’s needs for ‘self-actualization” (p. 479). I intend to support students’ internal goals for their art. I would rather have them not compromise their art instead of altering it in order to get a reward. It would be best for students to build confidence in making artwork so they can take risks and think creatively and see the significance of the work being done.

The different assessment techniques I will use are looking at the students’ portfolio work, oral presentations and written assignments. The learner-center method I plan to use in my classroom is Constructivist. I plan on incorporating class discussions on artworks from history as well as contemporary, art critiques and presentations for students to discuss technical aspects to their pieces, what works and what will need improvement. I will have students sit in groups at tables for large workspaces and they can interact with each other to get immediate feedback. I can use Backward Design to effectively design instruction by figuring out what the goals and outcomes of the unit will be, how I can access the work to see if the desired goal was achieved. From all of this I can then build my lesson effectively toward the unit objectives.

In stage one, I incorporated Bloom’s taxonomy by referring to the cognitive domain. The outcome/goal for students is to understand a movement in art by analyzing past works and dissecting the works by their elements. Through this students will be able to create surrealist animals and evaluate theirs as well as their classmates for further comprehension. In stage two, the main assessment I incorporated into my backward design is the portfolio because the unit is a project based learning unit. I also incorporated an art critique for students to verbalize their ideas and understanding. I planned the learning experiences in Stage 3 by taking into account learner diversity by allowing students to work through the steps in the project at their own pace and only have a due date at the end of the unit. I chose the constructivist approach in order for students to develop their art through their experiences and what they learn in class. They will then be able to reflect on the unit through discussion and the art critique.   According to Winters (2011) “art and design education places a good deal of emphasis on students becoming increasingly self-reliant in their learning” (p. 91).

I chose surrealism as a topic to achieve the standards because it has multiple facets, from the start of the movement to creating a surrealist object within a surrealist artwork. I thought this topic would suit student learning to gain knowledge in art history and creating abstraction in elements of their design.

I believe the Backward Design Framework helped me in designing my lesson because I was able to first figure out the goals and outcomes of what my unit would be and how I can evaluate if those goals are met. From the first two steps I was able to dive deep into the lesson plan and have it as a project based unit with a series of steps.

Sources

Winters, T. (2011). Facilitating meta-learning in art and design education. International Journal Of Art & Design Education, 30(1), 90-101. doi:10.1111/j.1476-8070.2011.01685.x

Woolfolk, A. E. (2014). Educational psychology: active learning edition (12^th ed.). Boston: Pearson.

I expect to encounter differences among my future students. I expect to meet those differences with understanding, compassion and to help in any way that I can through teaching for effective learning. According to Woolfolk (2014) the downfall to labeling students can become their fate because they are labeled (p. 130). I think labels can be damaging to students and how they are perceived at times. According to Woolfolk (2014) labels can be a “stigma” that people including the labeled students themselves think is permanent, negatively affecting them (p. 130). I will have high expectations for all of my students in order for them to strive to achieve to the best of their ability. I hope to be encouraging as an art teacher for students to grow in making art.

Students will come from diverse backgrounds whether that is culturally, racially, economically or ability level. I think is important to be understanding of outside factors that affect students’ lives and can have a significant impact into their time in the school day and their education. I will plan to have a cultural competent classroom. From what we discussed in class, a culturally competent classroom entails reaching all students, have diverse education, promote resilience, having culturally relevant pedagogy and implementing multicultural instruction. It is important not to judge students and their backgrounds because we are all individuals. It is my goal to get to know my students so that I can plan lessons and activities that will be engaging and informative for them.

A difference I might encounter as a future art teacher is cultural differences. I plan on having projects that are featuring historical and cultural forms of art from around the world and not just focusing on one culture or only a dominant culture. I think it is important to plan for this because cultures have been appropriating from each other over time, influencing and drawing from each other. Teaching about the history of art can lead to acceptance, tolerance and understanding of other cultures. According to Van Camp (2004) talking about societal issues portrayed in modern art can relate back to “earlier views” from previous “historical periods” (p. 36). I think it is important for students to learn about many different art forms. In a diverse class where students have different cultures they can learn about their own culture as well as others to have a better worldview.

References

Van Camp, J. C. (2004). Visual culture and aesthetics: everything old is new                   again…. or is it?. Arts Education Policy Review, 106(1), 33-37.

Woolfolk, A. E. (2014). Educational psychology: active learning edition (12^th ed.).

Boston: Pearson.

According to Woolfolk (2014) behaviorist perspectives of learning are “explanations of learning that focus on external events as the cause of changes in observable behaviors” (p. 272). In other words something happens to someone, they are affected by it and it alters the way they act. Woolfolk (2014) explains the learning can be “deliberate or unintentional” (p. 272). Woolfolk (2014) states it focuses on “change must be brought about by experience” (p. 272). An example we talked about in class was Pavlov’s experiment with dogs ending up salivating when a bell rang due to classical conditioning. Behavior perspectives focus on conditioning, association, reward and punishment.

According to Woolfolk (2014) cognitive perspectives of learning are “a general approach that view learning as an active mental process of acquiring, remembering and using knowledge” (p. 312).   Woolfolk (2014) furthers cognitive perspectives deal with “mental processes” and “humans are active information processors” (p. 312). An experiment that we talked about in class was with the Bobo doll where children who observed an adult being rough with the doll were more likely to model that behavior.

According to Woolfolk (2014) the main difference between these two perspectives is they disagree on “what is learned” (p. 312). Woolfolk (2014) expands on this with behaviorist perspectives learning can be “passively influenced” by outside experiences where in the cognitive perspectives learning is “active” in what they take in to learn (p. 312).

According to Woolfolk (2014) Bandura saw the limitations of the behaviorist perspectives as underdeveloped and lack of input from social influences (p. 440). Woolfolk (2014) furthers with a limitation of cognitive learning is students can learn better in certain ways than others and what might benefit one student will not help another (p. 144). As a future educator I think it is important to have options for students and alter the way I teach to best benefit all students and see what works best for each student. According to Evans, Cools, and Charlesworth (2010) it is significant for teachers “to consider how they can use styles research in an expansive” not “restrictive” method and put “into account a number of interrelated areas that impact an individual’s access to learning” (p. 468).

From the table on page 468, I lean more towards cognitive views of learning because it was beneficial to me as a student. As an art teacher I will have to teach skills in ways of creating things such as pottery. In ceramics there are series of steps to follow and specific tasks to do within each step, such as making a tumbler. This will be more of students having to observe and mimic steps. I can’t really just engrain things by telling. I will need to show art theories to what is aesthetically pleasing when it comes to form, composition and guide them to industry standards/norms. I want my students to actually comprehend the course material, not to just memorize things and just think about a reward whether that’s a grade or candy given out. Another view of learning, Constructivist is more challenged based which will fit well into an art class because this view challenges thinking to innovation and greater understanding of fundamentals. This is done through peer and teacher art class critiques instead of just receiving a grade.

Sources

Evans, C., Cools, E., & Charlesworth, Z. M. (2010). Learning in higher education –        how cognitive and learning styles matter. Teaching In Higher Education, 15(4),      467-478. doi:10.1080/13562517.2010.493353

Woolfolk, A. E. (2014). Educational Psychology: Active Learning Edition (12^th ed.).     Boston: Pearson.

In class we learned four models of development from Piaget, Vygotsky, Bronfenbrenner and Erikson. According to Woolfolk, (2014) one develops and constructs knowledge through “physical,” “personal,” “social” and “cognitive development” (p. 46). Woolfolk (2014) continues with that these areas of development entail “changes in the body,” alterations in “an individual’s personality,” modifications “in the way an individual relates to others” and “changes in thinking” (p. 46).

From our class, according to Piaget there are four stages of development: sensorimotor stage, preoperational stage, concrete-operational stage and formal-operational stage. For Piaget’s model, the strengths that we learned in class are that the stages of learning are inexact and not concrete, but they are consistent in development. The limitations are that the stages are very broad and not detailed or specific.

According to Woolfolk (2014) Vygotsky’s key factors in cognitive development are language and “interactions with others” and an emphasis on culture (p. 68). The strengths to Vygotsky’s theory according to Woolfolk (2014) are “highlighting the role of culture and social processes” (p.68). According to Woolfolk (2014) the prominent weakness to Vygotsky’s theory is the lack of detail and specifics to the theory; it is generalized notions (p.68).   Vygotsky’s theory impacts my future teaching by the possibility of having students work in groups to communicate as well as having in-class discussions/critiques of artwork. I will also give student art projects possibly just out of their reach using Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development in order to grow and expand their skills for creating different types of art.

Woolfolk (2014) describes the significance of “context,” “the total situation that surrounds and interacts with an individual’s thoughts, feelings, and actions to shape development and learning” that pertains to Bronfenbrenner’s “Bioecological model” (p. 86). The model shows how relationships and areas of someone’s life interact and affect one another. I will think about this model as a teacher because I believe it is important to realize there are many factors in a student’s life that is beyond their control such as family life and poverty.

Poverty negatively affects a student’s development and learning in many ways. According to Votruba-Drzal, Miller & Coley (2016) “Poverty is associated with children’s early skills” in America “poverty-related disparities in cognitive skill emerge in infancy” (p. 4.) Votruba-Drzal et al. (2016) furthers with “poverty affects key proximal contexts and processes experienced by children and families which in turn affect children” (p. 4). An example Votruba-Drzal et al. (2016) writes is less “language stimulation” happens from “parents, books and toys” (p. 4). According to Kulkarni (2012) poverty can limit the attention a parent is able to give their child due to outside factors such as state of mind, unable to afford a residence or healthy foods, and working multiple jobs. This can affect cognitive development in the adolescent because they need the relationship with the parent (Kulkarni 2016).

According to Woolfolk, Erikson’s theory “emphasizes the emergence of the self, the search for identity, the individual’s relationships with others and the role of culture throughout life” (p. 99).  Erikson’s model has multiple steps in development in age groups. This will impact my future teaching. Ideally I would like to teach high school students who will likely be in the stage of Identity vs. Role Confusion. High school is a time where students are figuring out who they are and I think art class is a great way to express themselves through conceptual art and subjects that are important to them as well has creating enigmatic artworks that pertain to their ideas about themselves and the world around them.

References

Kulkarni, Chaya (2012, October 19). Poverty and brain development        [Video            file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6i105vkXVok

Votruba-Drzal, E., Miller, P., & Coley, R. L. (2016). Poverty, urbanicity,        and                 children’s  development of early academic skills. Child Development                           Perspectives, 10(1),  3-9. doi:10.1111/cdep.12152

Woolfolk, A. E. (2014). Educational psychology: active learning edition (12^th ed.).        Boston: Pearson.

The relationship between research and teaching in education is collaboration. Pete (2008) states, “research informs practice and policy in the teaching and learning” (para 4). As we discussed in class, researchers can interview teachers. Teachers can read research and can implement the information into their classes. Teachers can also study their own classrooms and use their findings to improve learning. Pete (2008) wrote, “Research should and does influence teaching (and vice versa)” (para. 1).

I can use information literacy by finding research and examining what is important to help in the classroom. In my future career as an educator I will use research to help improve my teaching and find the best ways for learning. I will use information literacy to best distinguish the way to improve my classroom.

I will be certified in teaching art K-12.   I plan on teaching at the high school level. I think homework can be beneficial, but should be limited. I don’t think assigning daily homework is necessary for art because most classes will be workdays for projects with demonstrations throughout the corresponding units. I rarely ever received homework in my high school art classes and most likely will follow a similar plan.

Homework can be beneficial. Xu (2005) found in a survey that roughly “three quarters of the students agreed or strongly agreed that doing homework helped them” (p. 50). Xu (2005) also found that homework was beneficial as a strengthening tool for what they learned in class, “study skills” and “responsibility” (p. 50).  Shumow, Schmidt, & Kackar (2008) found that “motivational aspects of homework experiences such as interest control, and enjoyment were positively related to self esteem” (p. 20). However, Shumow et al. (2008) found that while students see homework as bad they still learn the material (p. 23).

While homework can be beneficial there are consequences from it as well.   According to Galloway, Conner, & Pope (2013) when students completed their homework they “experienced greater behavioral engagement in school but also more academic stress, physical health problems, and lack of balance in their lives” (p. 490). Ohanian (2007) states that teachers might be assigning too much “when the American Association of Orthopedic Surgeons (AAOS) finds it necessary to issue guidelines on recommended weights of book bags” (p. 41). Galloway et al. (2013) found that “many students in these upper middle class schools describe schoolwork as dominating their day” (p. 491). Galloway, K., & Pope (2007) found that students with more than a few hours of homework each day led them to “drop out of an activity because of the stress” (p. 28). Galloway et al. (2007) stated “when students spend 6 or 7 hours in school and another 3 or more hours on homework, they face a longer workday than most adults” (p. 29). Galloway et. al. (2007) conclude that there needs to be “a more balance workload” (p. 30).

As a future art teacher I want to make sure my students are learning the concepts, content, and skills in the curriculum. I do value the importance of having a well-rounded life. From the research I know homework can be beneficial to supporting the material learned in class, but too much homework can be unfortunate for student health. I plan to keep in mind the best interests of my students when it comes to learning and making sure that when I do assign homework it is beneficial, a small amount and relevant.

                                                            References

Galloway, M., Conner, J., & Pope, D. (2013). Nonacademic effects of homework in              privileged, high-performing high schools. Journal Of Experimental                              Education, 81(4), 490-510. doi:10.1080/00220973.2012.745469

Galloway, M. K., & Pope, D. (2007). Hazardous homework?. Encounter, 20(4), 25               31.

Ohanian, S. (2007). The homework revolution. Encounter, 20(4), 40-43.

Pete. (2008). “Understanding the relationship between research and teaching.”                 Retrieved from http://www.ncte.org/cee/positions/researchandteaching

Shumow, L., Schmidt, J. A., & Kackar, H. (2008). Adolescents’ experience doing                   homework: associations among context, quality of experience, and                           outcomes. School Community Journal, 18(2), 9-27.

Xu, J. (2005). Purposes for doing homework reported by middle and high school               students. Journal Of Educational Research, 99(1), 46-55.                                                 doi:10.3200/JOER.99.1.46-55.

Currently, I am a student at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater pursuing my post baccalaureate degree in Art Education. The age group of students I would prefer to teach is high school. I have a B.A. in Communication Arts: Radio, TV & Film from UW-Madison. My dual degrees will help me teach students not only interested in fine art areas, but media and graphic design as well. I hope to incorporate my field experience from film sets into the classroom with group activities and exercises.

My high school English teacher was my most influential educator. His teaching style was interactive and he conveyed the course content into actual life situations and possibilities. He had students look at novels, films, and articles through multiple perspectives creating possibilities for new ideas. I was inspired by his class to go into the arts. From my English teacher and class I saw the type of teacher I hope to become, a teacher who not only knows the subject, but has a passion for it that can translate into everyday situations.

A good teacher should have many qualities such as listening, professionalism, empathy and patience as we discussed in class; however, I feel the most important ones are clarity, knowledge, passion, and ethics. Woolfolk (2014) states a good teacher has the following “characteristics” when teaching “clarity, warmth, and knowledge” (p.560). According to Woolfolk (2014) “clarity was the most promising” for student learning (560). Woolfolk (2014) elaborates on successful teachers as having “pedagogical content knowledge” and being “reflective” (p. 560). Fraser (2016) expresses pedagogical content with high importance, “knowing a subject is essential, but knowing how to communicate that subject to sometimes fidgety young children or bored adolescents is also essential” (p. 31). Another aspect of a good teacher is ethics.   Fraser (2016) states “teachers need to be deeply ethical professionals who reflect their ethical commitment to their students in the way they do their work” (p. 32). According to Foley (2016) “effective teachers are passionate about educating students,” he continues with the notion that teachers need to regulate their classrooms by being in control of them (para. 1).

In comparing the two video clips, the first video clip from Dead Poets Society seems more effective because the teacher is keeping his students engaged, seems to have knowledge on the subject of poetry, along with excitement. He is interacting with his students while the economics teacher does not show interest and is not engaging his students. He repeatedly asks for anybody to respond while no one answers and appears to be indifferent to it. He keeps on going with the students not paying attention.

In my future role as a teacher I hope to be more like the teacher in the Dead Poets Society clip. My goal is to engage my students in learning with clarity, knowledge, excitement and professionalism.

References

Foley, D. (n.d.). 6 Classroom Management Tips Every Teacher Can Use. Retrieved        from http://www.nea.org/tools/51721.htm

Fraser, James W. (2016). Teach: A Question of Teaching (2^nd ed.). New York:                  Routledge.

Woolfolk, A. E. (2014).  Educational Psychology: Active Learning Edition (12^th ed.).      Boston: Pearson.

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