Over the course of this semester, I have made a lot of mistakes as I have experimented with a new choice-based teaching approach, TAB. For my beginning artists, my style changed from being very much teacher-directed to almost full choice. The pendulum has swung from one side to the other as I endeavor to discover how to help Art I students find their path and learn how to think and behave like an artist. One major change to my practice came as I wondered what would happen in my classes if I didn't assign deadlines. In the past, I had always been very precise about due dates, but worried this approach may not work in a choice based classroom. I questioned how I could have set deadlines if all of my students are working at their own pace? After an experiment with no deadlines in Art I, I can tell you that the trial was an EPIC FAIL! The students took an eternity to complete their first piece and valuable time was lost that could have been used to teach more skills and provide more opportunity for practice. It is now evident that my Art I students (and maybe some of my advanced kids, too) need clear deadlines in order to provide them a multitude of opportunities to grow.
In the midst of my failures, today I had a moment of pure delight as a group of young men and women in my largest (and oftentimes most boisterous) Art I class were truly engaged in their artmaking. Students worked with materials varying from charcoal and chalk pastels to acrylic and watercolor paint to celluclay (which required the students to read the directions on how to use it because I didn't know how!). Students were creating landscapes, still-lifes, portraiture, cityscapes (with linear perspective), car drawings, and even more. The room was abuzz with busy hands learning as they worked. As I stood for a moment observing the controlled chaos, I marvelled at how we had finally arrived. This, This is why I changed to TAB. There are many things that I will do differently in my next Art I class and I most regret how long it took for this group of students to get to this place, but I keep reminding myself that without risk, I will not become the best teacher I can be.
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AuthorMrs. Taborda is the studio art teacher at Oxford High School in Oxford, MA. This blog will document her journey as an educator and share the happenings of the OHS art room. Archives
November 2018
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