Art I With Mrs. Travis

David Brooks, author of The Social Animal, once said, “The point of being a teacher is to do more than impart facts, it's to shape the way students perceive the world, to help a student absorb…”. This statement perfectly illustrates why I want to become an educator because it so eloquently explains why quality teachers and a quality education are vital for our youth today. Our world's future depends on how the upcoming generation absorbs and processes information during their critical adolescent years.  Their perception of the world is in direct correlation to what they learn and how it is taught and will be instrumental in their overall view of life in general. I believe an educator must be committed to positively encouraging and nurturing every student, who will inevitably become an active participant of society. My goal as an educator will be to help every student strive for excellence from within, motivate the desire to pursue their own happiness, and to establish fundamental skills that help them cope with the complexities of life. Along with giving students an education that includes fundamental knowledge and skills in Art and Art History, I will strive to introduce innovative concepts, ideas, and strategies that will engage all individuals and ultimately be the foundation that will help each student think more conceptually about the world and their surroundings.

 

My philosophy could be conceptually categorized as part of the Existentialism Philosophy of Education. For me, it is important to instill in my students the idea that the world we live in is where we exist and experience. In order to connect to the multiple intelligences within the classrooms of today, it is important to provide the students with interest based choices and multiple materials. The truth or knowledge taught by existentialists is of personal and subjective choices from the student’s reality. This is why I think I lean towards existentialism the most, because, as I have already mentioned, it is important to help each individual perceive their world in order to understand their place in the society where they exist. If students are given an opportunity to determine “their world”, how they perceive it, and understand their perceptions, they will likely perform at higher levels.  In order for art educators to expect such potential, we must provide our students with choices that tie those concepts in with art education.  Teaching for Artistic Behavior (TABS Choice) is a mode of teaching I would be interested in incorporating into my classroom.  I don’t necessarily want to center the classroom around TABS Choice, but am interested in making it a large component of each lesson and project.  Incorporating TABS Choice will allow me as an educator to provide every student an opportunity to perform at their level, to be comfortable with the projects that are presented, to instill self-motivation in each student, to provide students with options, and to help students’ critical thinking skills for execution of their concepts and ideas.  It is important that I help enhance the students critical thinking skills associated with their interests in order to help guide them in their journey of existence.