A little over a week into my second year with a TAB classroom and the students are chomping at the bit to start creating. We have spent time setting up clear expectations which include collaborating with other artists. We had our first real TASK party, played the fuzzy creature game, and spent time exploring idea generation. Idea generation is something I saw as a weakness for students last year, so I knew I needed to make a change and spend more time developing these skills. One of the activities that students completed was to fill up an "idea sandbox" with ideas. It was pretty great because the next day, I was able to direct students to "Go play in the sandbox,' when they told me they didn't know what to do for the sketchbook cover. I think this will be a valuable resource for students as we move through the year.
I am also excited to be teaching a new class this year, Art Studio. Thanks to TAB, I was able to consolidate my Art II, Art III/IV, and AP students all into a year-long class. I am now able to offer three sections of advanced art so that it is easier for students to fit it into their schedules. This also enables students who have taken Ceramics to continue working in clay since I am the only teacher who does studio art at my school. In this new course, I look forward to building an authentic studio environment where students can share and grow together. I was beyond thrilled when I saw this happening yesterday already when a student shared her experience with different media with a classmate to help her decide what she wanted to do. Students teaching each other is an amazing thing. There are still a lot of unknowns and I have a lot of work to do. It can be overwhelming to decide what's best for the students, what order lessons should take place, how much and when to give them freedom, but I am confident that I am on the right path. I am enjoying the journey.
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As I prepare to begin my second year teaching TAB, I was prompted to look back at an article I wrote this past spring. Since I never shared this on my blog, I figured now was just as good a time as any. This spring marks the close of my first year teaching in a TAB (Teaching for Artistic Behavior) classroom. Looking back at where I started, it is hard to believe how far I’ve come. If you had asked me three years ago, I would have told you there was no way I would teach in a choice-based classroom, yet, here I am doing just that. So how did I make this transition? Well, the answer to that is multifaceted and involves many “aha” moments.
Two summers ago, I went to the AP Summer Institute at St. Johnsbury Academy in Vermont. I was preparing to teach AP Studio Art for the first time and was excited for the prospect of offering this option to my students. I had been wanting to teach AP for a couple of years, so my teaching had already started to change course as I was thinking about how to best prepare students for the independent work they would need to accomplish for their portfolio. While at this conference, I met a teacher who was a choice-based teacher (TAB). I thought she was out of her mind! I remember thinking how it could be possible to let the kids do whatever they wanted. What about teaching technique? How can they make decisions for themselves if they don’t know how to draw, shade, and observe? I always said that students needed to “learn how to walk before they can learn to run.” How could I possibly turn over control to students who had no art experience? Over the next year or so, there were several moments that opened my eyes to the need for a change in my instruction. Last winter, I was taking a class at the Worcester Art Museum where I was able to use the studio and have a mentor on hand when I had questions. There were no assignments, just me and my art with the support of an instructor. At this time, I also had a student teacher in my classroom which allowed me the opportunity to work on my own art more in my classroom. This experience really solidified for me the jarring differences between my expectations for my students and the way that an artist actually works. When I was sick of my painting, I took a break from it and started another one. I worked on multiple pieces at a time and sought feedback from my peers and the instructor when I was stuck. In my classroom, I had conversations with my students about my work. I was struck by the depth of their queries. They were genuinely interested and capable of carrying on an “artist” conversation. I remember wondering about how I could provide my students with a more authentic artist experience in my classroom. Were there ways to allow them the freedom to abandon a piece for a while? How could I empower their voice within their work? How could I support independence and problem-solving? The final nail in the coffin of my old teacher-centered approach was when one of my graduated students (who had been accepted to MassArt, but didn’t attend) came to our Annual Night of the Arts. When I asked her about what she was working on, she said, “Nothing. I need you to give me a project.” Ouch. I had noticed a trend that many of my graduates didn’t continue making art afterwards, but this was such an eye-opener. I realized that I had not been training artists, but rather mini-apprentices who would try to replicate my ideas as best as possible. Those who were adept at rendering and observation tended to do pretty well. Those who didn’t like my projects, didn’t. I remember spending hours trying to come up with engaging projects to fit the needs of my students only to continue to have students (even those with a natural ability) disengaged in the process, only doing the bare minimum for a grade. I realized that there wasn’t a one-size-fits-ALL “project.” I needed to make a change. Enter TAB. Ironically, I don’t actually remember the moment when I discovered TAB or who directed me to the lively TAB Facebook groups. In these groups, I encountered a group of passionate educators who had struggled with the same questions I had been. They directed me to resources and shared their experience. This group of educators was open and willing to share their successes and their failures. I finally found some of the answers I had been looking for. How do I make sure students are not just sitting around wasting time? How do I grade if everyone is doing something different? How do I set up my room to help it become more student-centered? I had so many questions about how to implement this new philosophy and these TAB Facebook groups played an integral role in my decisions moving forward. After a few months learning online, I was fortunate to participate in the TAB Summer Institute at MassArt last year. This intensive week filled my head with so much to think about. I remember thinking that I would leave with all of my answers. I thought that at the end of the week I would have a firm grip on what Teaching for Artistic Behavior really looks like. Instead, I left with more questions and a mind full of ideas. I learned that there isn’t only one way to teach TAB, we can tailor it to fit our needs, just like we do for the kids. The main idea is that you are focusing on the student as the “product” of your classroom instead of the projects. The student is the artist and the classroom is their studio. I learned so much from Diane Jaquith, Kathy Douglas and Ian Sands (my middle/high school group mentor) as well as all of the other teachers in attendance. This week provided me with a strong understanding of TAB and many different tools to use in my planning moving forward. My first year implementing TAB has been one of the most gratifying ever. I have watched students experiment with new materials, learn from one another, engage in authentic “artist conversations,” and more. Students are inquisitive and motivated to work beyond the classroom. I have the highest number that I have ever had of students signed up to continue in art next year. There have been some false starts and I am still trying to find the best way to help students become their own independent artists. It hasn’t always been smooth sailing and I don’t have it all figured out, but I am confident that this new approach is the right direction for me. I will never go back to the old way. Never. If you’d like to learn more about Teaching for Artistic Behavior, here is the link to the TAB webpage. http://teachingforartisticbehavior.org/ As an artist today, there are many skills I need to have beyond making art! I need to be able to take strong photos of my artwork, write artist statements, have a website and online presence, as well as be able to talk about my work and process. These are some of the skills I hope to nurture through the implemention of blogging for my students (and myself). I believe it is particularly important for the students in a TAB classroom to take the time to document their process and growth. Since each student is setting a unique goal for themselves and students are not graded with project-specific rubrics, blogging has become an important assessment tool. A valuable tool for learning 21st century skills, I believe the blog is indispensible. Unfortunately, the students do not all have the same opinion. Many students are having a hard time maintaining their blogs and are resistant to working on them. How can I engage students in this activity in a way that is meaningful and moves beyond a task to complete because the teacher said so? I have tried explaining the benefits of the blog and why we are taking time to do it, yet some still resist. I have been considering what other options I may be able to give students who are struggling with this tool for documentation. Today, I have been investigating options for students to do audio recordings of their voice for their blog posts and artist statements. I have told students that they could do this, but did not provide any information on how to do it. I tried a few different apps, but decided that Vocaroo will be the one I introduce to students. I chose this one because there is an option to automatically generate a QR code that can be put on display next to the student work. You can also download an MP3 file that can be uploaded to the student blogs as a file. As an alternative to the weebly blogs, I began researching padlet. I have been wondering if some students may prefer this application over the weebly blogs, but haven't had the opporunity to really investigate it until now. For the students who struggle with technology and writing, I think that I will create a padlet template that students can copy then personalize. If this will benefit any of my students, then it is time well spent. In this world where technology is ever-changing, it can be a challenge to find the write options for students. Making decisions about what is best for them can be overwhelming. I keep trying to remind myself that my teaching is a work in progress and that I don't have to have it all figured out yet... in fact, I don't think it is even possible to ever have it ALL figured out. I think the trick is being willing to reflect on what is and is not working while remembering my goals for my students and then working to develop the resources they need to be successful. Here's hoping that adding some of these options will engage more students in the authentic process of reflection and documentation as artists. Last week, my Art III/IV/AP class experimented with the postmodern art principle layering. I demonstrated different photo transfer techniques and asked all students to try at least one. I encouraged students to throw caution to the wind and practice the studio habit, stretch and explore. For our two day lab, students experimented with collage, photo transfer, and stenciling techniques. Some students were able to dive right in and were loving the freedom to make without the stress of making something great, while others struggled to loosen the reins and risk failing. Embracing the process of making without worry, to take a leap of faith and enjoy the journey of discovery, can be difficult for students after being told for years to follow the rules, be compliant, and to complete 'x' to get an 'A'. My hope is that my students will become more comfortable with taking these risks as often times we learn more from our failures than our successes. |
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
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