Alanna Gaylord's Art Education Portfolio

            Through my experiences in the Art Education field, I have been able to begin establishing my beliefs, values, and understandings of who I am as an art educator. My art education classes at the University of Vermont, my observations in art classrooms at the elementary, middle, and high school level, as well as my internships teaching art in environments outside of the public schools, and my student teaching internship at Albert D. Lawton Intermediate School have all enabled me to begin forming my own ideas about art education content and pedagogy. Through these experiences I have learned a great deal about myself as an art educator and what I believe in and value. I have found that one of the most important aspects of teaching is the ability to make connections with students. In this way, I am able to gain an understanding of who my students are as people and what their skills and capabilities are. I also believe that an art curriculum should present age-appropriate, yet challenging art lessons in order for every student, despite ability or skill to stretch and explore beyond their comfort zone. I believe that an art curriculum should also provide a plethora of media, content, and types of instruction in order to present art in new and exciting ways and encourage learning in all types of forms. As an art educator, I will strive to provide an art curriculum that will allow my students to leave my class knowing more about themselves and the world around them

            Connecting with my students, creating healthy relationships, and establishing trust and respect are the most important aspects of my teaching. Getting to know my students and making connections with them not only allows for healthy relationships, trust, and respect, but it also allows me to gauge my students’ abilities, where they are coming from, and what their specific needs are. Being aware of these factors allows me to plan instruction accordingly and prepare lessons that can incorporate and accommodate everyone, regardless of skill or ability. Each student has different skills, abilities, and even home life and it is important for me as an educator to be able to understand my students needs in order for me to plan a well-rounded and all accommodating curriculum.

            I also believe that the ability to plan lessons that are both age-appropriate and challenging is an extremely valuable aspect of teaching. Students need to not only be capable of the art lesson that is expected of them, but they also need to be challenged by it. If a lesson is too complicated, students can be faced with the feeling of defeat and be discouraged to continue in the class, however if a lesson in too simple or easy, students will miss out on the opportunity to stretch and explore and wrap their minds around new concepts and materials. When students are encouraged to stretch and explore, students face a level of challenge in the tasks they are asked to complete, which urges them to experiment, to discover, to play around, and to try alternatives. In this way, students learn that mistakes are opportunities and they can lead to new directions. For these reasons, I strive to form an art curriculum and lessons that are both challenging, yet attainable for all of my students.

            As a teacher, I strive to constantly introduce new projects, media, ideas, and art education approaches to keep things new and exciting for my students. There are endless materials in the art world and it’s important for students to have experiences with as many media as they possibly can in order to experiment, gain new skills, and work towards understanding what art has to offer. In addition, I also believe that its important for students to have experiences with different art disciplines as well. The integration of the four different aspects of Discipline-Based Art Education (DBAE), the Enduring Idea, Studio Thinking and the Eight Habits of Mind, and Teaching for Artistic Behaviors (TAB), covers all the grounds and allow for a diverse and well-rounded approach to art education. For instance by incorporating DBAE into the art curriculum, you have lessons that focus on art production, art history, art criticism, and aesthetics into the art making process. Whereas, the framework of the Enduring Idea can be utilized to provide broad, real-world ideas that help guide students to understanding universal concepts. Studio Thinking and the Eight Habits of Mind, as well as TAB can be incorporated into a curriculum to urge students to have artistic minds, to think like artists, and to freely create art. There are a million ways to present art in interesting and exciting ways, I feel that it is important to always keep my curriculum and lessons different, unique, and inspiring in order for my students to learn all they can.

            My experiences in the Art Education program at the University of Vermont have allowed me to transform into a confident, well prepared art educator. It took a great deal of time and it certainly was not easy, but it has been the most rewarding experience of my life. As an educator I deeply care about my students and their well-being and it will always be important for me to create a respectful and nurturing climate in my classroom. As an artist I believe that it is important to experiment with a wide range of media, ideas, and methods and therefore I will provide those experiences to my students. I love everything about teaching; I love my students, I love the environment, and I love that I can be there for these young people as they grow and develop into the wonderful individuals they are becoming. I look forward to being a part of a profession that allows me to share my passion for art and help students learn about themselves and the world around them through this dynamic discipline.