Teaching Philosophy
an educator's teaching philosophy is the most intimate part of them, it is what drives them, what motivates them to educate students. My classroom prioritizes three main motivations, respect, play and growth. My desire is to foster each in all of my students and have them leaving my classroom with an understanding of how those aspects affect art and life.
Respect
A main prospect of my philosophy is the baseline of human life, respect. I wish to resist expecting students to act like adults while treating them like children. Being student-aged is difficult and as a display of understanding of your past as well as your students I treat my students with a mutual respect. Though I may not be able to stop everything that makes student life difficult, I can do my best to respect them and how they have come into life. Every student's context is different and it’s important to acknowledge that everyone grows up in a different way and at a different point in time. Students should be treated like people who want to learn whether they seem like they are or not. I will not only respect my students, but I will also teach them to respect each other. My best grade school memories are from my fellow art students. I wish to return the favor and foster a mutual feeling of respect and create a sense of community in my classroom.
Play
Another vital element in the art classroom is play. Students should be able to experiment, a natural human propensity. In turn, art should be a subject that students look forward to. There is often more opportunity for play in an art classroom and so it is my duty to create and foster that sense of playfulness and joy that I always left my classes feeling. Play is a very intimate and profound experience of childhood and students deserve to be able to engage in play in both their personal lives and at school. Playing is directly associated with having fun in a way that is expressive. Play is also an important part of learning, If students are able to have positive associations with learning, it encourages them to participate further and makes them excited about school. And so, in addition to fun, I want students to do so in a carefree manner. This will result in an inviting environment, in which students will be allowed to participate in fun lessons that they can relate to. Lessons that are within the context of their lives allows for free, expressive artistic choices and a cultivation of a genuine sense of beauty and wonder in life. I wish to encourage this n my students in order to make them excited about art and excited about life.
Growth
Through playing in art, we can often discover quite a bit about ourselves and about life. It’s important for students to be given the opportunity to socially and emotionally grow through their practice. I will encourage my students to engage in moral citizenship and character development. Growth can look different in different students in different classrooms. I encourage growth by having students reflect on their artistic, social, and life skills over time. Art can become instrumental for young people trying to navigate the nuances of their own identity. Youth is scary and students should understand that they do not have to go at it alone. In my classroom, lessons allow room for play and experimentation but they also motivate students to consider making meaning. Making artwork with meaning allows students to better understand themselves and therefore develop a more distinct moral consciousness.
