Alanna Gaylord's Art Education Portfolio

Introduction:

           In this section, I will describe, analyze, and reflect upon the learning environment of the classroom and school where I completed my student teaching. In terms of the school, I will describe the school’s philosophy, climate and culture, demographics, connection to the community, the students, the behavioral management systems (including rules and policies of both the school and the classroom), the standards used, and the technological and human resources available. In terms of the art classroom, I will describe the physical arrangement of the art classroom, different types of instruction and activities, the students’ responses to instruction, and the standards used in the art classroom. I will also analyze how these factors impact learning for all students, including how the factors in the school impact the classroom, how the emotional, social, physical, and intellectual growth and learning of the students are affected by these factors, and how the needs of all students are being met. I will end this section by reflecting upon my own teaching in this environment including how my initial impressions of this learning environment changed over time, what I have learned about creating an equitable and welcoming learning environment for my students, and my strengths and challenges in creating learning opportunities for all students.

 

Description:

           Albert D. Lawton Intermediate School, ADL, is a middle school in Essex Junction, Vermont and a part of the Chittenden Central Supervisory Union. The school consists of students in grades 6th, 7th, and 8th and has approximately 350 students. The majority of the students that attend ADL have all advanced from Thomas Fleming School, which enrolls the district’s fourth and fifth graders. All of the ADL students will attend Essex High School upon completion of the 8th grade. ADL operates on a trimester schedule and they utilize student-led conferences with families and teachers twice a year. There are several school wide initiatives going on including different instruction in the classroom, including literacy across the content areas, standards based planning, assessing and reporting, and technology integration. ADL’s school philosophy focuses on providing an education that allows students to make connections, establishing a sense of community, and most importantly, making sure every learner feels successful. Overall, ADL has a very positive climate and culture. As a whole staff, something that ADL faculty members work on is helping to support and provide for all students as well as cultivate positive rapports and culture.

           In terms of ADL’s demographics, the majority of the school consists of white and middle class students with a small percentage of diversity. In the last couple years, however, the percentage of both cultural and economic diversity has been growing; in fact the percentage of free and reduced lunches has reached 30% in the last couple years. Due to the growing population of Chittenden County, it is believed that lower income families that used to reside in cities like Burlington and Winooski have now spread out farther into communities such as Essex Junction.

           Similar to ADL’s growing cultural and economic diversity, the school also has a diverse group of learners. There are students who are auditory learners who benefit from things being explained out loud; others are visual learners who learn best by looking at graphics, watching a demonstration, or reading; and some are kinesthetic learners who process information best through a hands-on experience. In addition to these types of learners, there are also many ADL students who are on education plans such as 504s, IEPs, and ESTs and in section 3 I will go into depth about some of these learners. Due to the growing population of refugee families, ADL also has a growing number of students who are English-language learners (ELL). These are students who are unable to communicate fluently or learn effectively in English, who often come from non-English-speaking homes and backgrounds, and who typically require specialized or modified instruction in both the English language and in their academic courses. Regardless of a student’s abilities and disabilities ADL strives to ensure that every student learns successfully. 

           ADL makes a huge effort to connect to the community and reaches out in numerous ways. Almost every year ADL hosts an Empty Bowls fundraising night where individuals and families come to the school and pay to eat a meal out of a ceramic bowl that students have created in art class and all profits benefit the Heavenly Food Shelf to help feed the hungry. Last year, everyone in the school went out into the community to help with community service work. Similar to Empty Bowls, the school itself is used to host many outside community functions. Other efforts include ADL’s connection to the Parks and Rec, Parents as Partners, student performances in the community (including senior centers), and this year’s River of Light. In addition to the community outside of ADL, the school also puts in a great effort into creating a community within the school. Each year the school decides on a school wide theme and they take specific days throughout the school year to celebrate this theme. In the past they have had the Year of Wonder, the School Olympics, and a Tour of Essex, each theme helped create a sense of community for students and faculty alike within the ADL population. 

           ADL has a fair and practical set of behavior management systems and policies in place. Every three years, the school, faculty and students alike, agrees on a social contract. This social contract, regardless of the particular phrasing from year to year, always focuses on being a respectful citizen and being responsible for oneself and others. After it has been written, it is the responsibility of all faculty and students to follow it. Of course, not every student follows this all of the time. Sometimes students act up and, depending on the degree of action, an appropriate consequence is implemented to manage the misbehavior. In an extreme case, for instance when students are extremely disrespectful or cause harm to other students, the classroom teacher immediately fills out an office referral form and the student is sent to the office to meet with the assistant principle. In these cases, students’ possible consequences can consist of in-school suspension, out of school suspension, and even (but extremely rarely) expulsion. For minor acts of misbehavior, such as being too rowdy in class or talking out of turn, it is generally dependent on the teacher of that particular classroom to set the limits as to how many chances a student gets before it turns into an extreme case. In the art classroom, students are given three strikes before they are “out.” However, it is very rare that office referrals are filled out in the art classroom. The art room is a place that is a little less structured compared to the rest of the school and it is important for students to be able to look forward to coming to art. So as long as students are respectful, it is generally okay that they are on a bit of the rowdier side.

           The school wide standards used at ADL are numeric based instead of letter grades. This numeric grading system is purely based on practicing and developing skills in order for students to get to the secure level of understanding. A 1 represents the beginning level, a 2 represents the developing level, a 3 represents the secure level, and a 4 represents the expanding level. In this system, a 3 (secure) would be equivalent to an A in a letter grading system. In the art classroom, this numeric grading system is not the only form of assessment, the National Core Arts Standards, which is new to this curriculum, are also used. In years prior, the art curriculum used the Vermont Power Standards. The National Core Arts Standards are designed to create comprehensive expectations for the arts, foster equitable opportunities, ensure a quality education, and stimulate learning that transcends the classroom. When a project is created for the art students, it is often done in a backwards sense: what is first decided are the skills and themes that students should learn; then the medium is chosen; then it is figured out how to make it fun and relate to the world, using overarching themes such as famous artists, cultures, art styles, etc.; then finally the standards are used to create assessments.

           The classrooms at ADL are equipped with a projector, screen, computer, and printer. Some classrooms are equipped with Smart Boards, which is an interactive whiteboard that uses touch detection for user input in the same way as normal PC input devices. In addition, every student has a Chromebook mini that they are responsible for. In terms of human resources, the Chittenden Central Supervisory Union is very supportive of professional development. For instance, teachers are allowed 6 professional credits a year and they can take unlimited Professional Days within reason and at the principal’s discretion.

           Tina Logan is the art teacher at ADL. It is well known throughout the school that Mrs. Logan is one of the nicest teachers at ADL. Her interactions with her students are very positive. Tina is kind, bubbly, open-minded, flexible, and caring. She puts a great deal of attention into developing relationships and having good rapports with her students. For these reasons, Tina’s students respect her and strive to engage and do their work in her class.

ADL’s art classroom is beautifully arranged. It is the epitome of organized chaos. In the front of the classroom there is a wall dedicated to displaying current themes and artwork, which is updated periodically to connect to what students are learning in the classroom. The tables are arranged so that students can always see the instructor, the screen and projector, and the chalkboard where demonstrations sometimes takes place. On every wall throughout the classroom there is inspiring and creative artwork made by past students as well as posters of famous artwork and art terms and definitions. Overall, the classroom is full of color and inspiration. Although some art teachers feel that it is important to have a room that is more of a “blank canvas,” the purpose of this art room is to inspire students with visual stimuli. In addition to all the inspiration on the walls, there is also one wall in the classroom that is completely full of windows and looks out onto a gigantic tree. The windows allow students to look outside for inspiration as well as they provide natural light for the classroom. The classroom is also full of all types of media. There are shelves full of two-dimensional media such as pastels, and markers, crayons, colored pencils and different types of paints, as well as different stations for clay and fabric art. During the second half of the school year when the curriculum in the art room is more choice-based, the classroom arrangement is set up so it can easily be converted into different stations and studio centers. Upon first glance, ADL’s art classroom may not appear to be organized, but with its rich and motivating curriculum, it quickly becomes clear that it has the perfect balance of art, organization, and inspiration.

           The curriculum in this particular art classroom is composed of a variety of instructional strategies. The year is split into two sections, the first being more teacher-directed projects and the second being more choice-based for students. This allows students to get both an experience of working under constrained guidelines with ideas and media chosen for them, as well as getting an experience of having the freedom to create art purely to their own ideas and designs. During the more teacher-directed curriculum, the majority of the lessons and projects are theme based and focus on famous artists, different cultures, and styles of art. When a project is first introduced, the instructor often starts each lesson with a PowerPoint presentation on a theme, which includes many images, new information, and discussion questions for the students throughout the presentation. Demonstrations are also included throughout the projects so students can get a clear idea of what they will be doing and how they will do it. Relevant and fun exercises and games are also incorporated into lessons to allow students to test their new knowledge in a fun way. Before students begin creating their final products, they are first instructed to brainstorm and make several design ideas as well as practice of some form before students move on to creating their final project. Later, at the end of a project, there is normally some type of sharing or celebration of the artwork as well as an assessment, normally a rubric, in order for students to provide their own ideas of their artwork and to test their knowledge. In order to provide students with more variety, projects tend to fluctuate between media, generally going back and forth between two-dimensional art and three-dimensional art. In order to allow students to work together, collaborative aspects are often incorporated into lessons. By introducing projects in a variety of ways with visual presentations and demonstrations, auditory explanations and discussions, and kinesthetic opportunities, all students are able to successfully learn from this curriculum. Because the art curriculum is presented in such a variety of ways and welcomes learning of all kinds, the students respond very well to the instruction. The majority of the students come into art class ready to participate and be engaged. It’s evident that students enjoy what they are learning and doing in the art classroom.

 

Analysis:

           Many factors impact the art classroom and its culture. First off, the nature of ADL’s climate and culture significantly impacts the art classroom in a number of ways. Overall, ADL has a very nurturing and safe school climate and much of this is due to the school’s social contract agreement between the students and staff members. The social contract helps establish rules and expectations and thus sets the tone of the school, which consequently sets the tone of the art classroom. For this reason, when students enter the art classroom they already know the rules and understand what is expected of them. Not only does the students’ knowledge and understanding of these rules and expectations impact the art classroom, but it is also extremely important that students understand the nurturing nature of ADL. Teachers and staff members work hard to make every student feel safe and successful in the learning environment. For this reason, students are able to feel more confident in taking educational and artistic risks, explore content and media, and learn in a safe and positive environment.

           In addition to the school’s climate and culture, another huge factor that significantly impacts the art classroom is the students. Little factors can include what time of day students have art class, for instance, students who have art class in the morning tend to be more low-key and even a little tired, while students who come after lunch or towards the end of the day tend to be much rowdier and require more classroom management strategies to keep them engaged. Other factors include what students are doing in their other classes that day, for instance, on Fridays all students run the mile in gym class, which generally makes art class quieter and less energetic. However, the most significant factor to impact a student’s performance in the art classroom seems to be their home life. From what I have observed, a student’s performance, effort and attitude greatly depend on what kind of relationship they have with and the amount of support they get from their parents. The students who have parents who don’t care as much about their child’s performance in school or who aren’t around very often, tend to put less effort into the class and have less respectful and responsible behaviors. While, on the other hand, students whose parents care a great deal about their child’s presence in school, including their grades and what kind of person their child is becoming, these students tend to perform much better in the classroom. This is of course not the case with all students; students who have parents that care a great deal and give support still misbehave, while other students who don’t have a great home life still make great decisions in the art classroom to be positive community members.

           There is a large range of factors that impact the art classroom and the students. It’s important for teachers to be aware of all of these factors so art class can be planned accordingly. In addition, it is extremely important for the art teacher to know each one of his or her students and a bit about their backgrounds in order to provide for each student in their own individual way. The culture of the art classroom at ADL is welcoming, open-minded, and flexible. This allows for the range of factors that impact the classroom, including each student’s individual needs, to be welcomed and accommodated.

 

Reflection:

           When I first walked through the doors of ADL, I didn’t know what to expect. I had no idea that I was going to learn so much from just one art classroom and its curriculum. On first impression, I found everything to be somewhat disorderly from what I would expect of a middle school art classroom. In art classrooms I have observed in the past, the walls were less busy and more open, the curriculum was less flexible and more rigid, and the classroom management was significantly more strict. But through a semester of observing, interacting, and teaching, I have learned that this is what makes this art classroom and curriculum so wonderfully perfect for the 11-14 year olds that create art there. At first, I found the arrangement and set up the art room to be very packed and even a bit crowded. I later learned that the classroom, with its walls decorated with art and motivation and the shelves furnished with an abundance of media, is intended to inspire students’ learning and ideas. In the beginning, I was also a little surprised by how open-ended the lessons and projects were, but I quickly learned that by being flexible and open about lesson requirements, students are able to be more creative and envision more imaginative ideas. I was also very surprised by some of the more relaxed classroom management strategies that I observed, however as I observed I learned that being more laid back in terms of classroom management allows students to have fun in the art classroom. It’s important to allow students to have some creative freedom, and maybe that means getting a little rowdy every once in a while. Students tend to be more willing to follow the class expectations for behavior when they feel honored and respected. They realize that their teacher is interested in them as a person and allows for flexibility in the classroom. It’s important to have a balance; it’s not worth dwelling on every single move out of line but if an action or attitude goes too far, it’s important to know when to recognize it and take appropriate actions.

           Through my observations, teaching, and relationships, I learned a lot about creating an equitable and welcoming learning environment for all students. The most significant lesson that I’ve learned from my teaching experiences is that all students are different. There is not a single student that has the same home life, problems, skills, learning abilities, and characteristics of another student. Therefore, as a teacher, it is important to get to know each and every student in order to successfully teach all students. Students have different home lives, different learning abilities and disabilities, different skills, and different interests. By simply getting to know my students and their learning needs, I will be sure to teach in as many ways as I can as well as make as many accommodations as I need to in order for all of my students to benefit from my class.

           I am calm, open-minded, and understanding. These are three characteristics that allow me to connect with my students, create healthy relationships, and establish trust and respect. I have found these traits to be valuable because they allow me to get to know my students and develop an understanding of who they are, where they’re coming from and what their individual learning needs are. It is important for me to be able to have an open and understanding persona in order for me to connect with my students and learn how I can create and provide a curriculum and learning environment that allows every student to be successful.