Evolution of an Art Appreciation Teaching Philosophy From the Point-of-View of a Teaching Artist During the 2014 Fall Semester, I accomplished one of the goals on my “Bucket List” by teaching Art Appreciation. For many years this has been the one course that I felt I was born to teach. Art Appreciation is an Arts and Humanities elective available at every North Carolina Community College and university. It’s often described as a boring student experience sitting in a dark classroom, frantically taking notes while looking at images of art. At most learners are expected to write a paper, take periodic multiplechoice tests and maybe participate in a few studio explorations. Almost always, this course is delivered via a teacher-centered educational model. Many who teach this course have lost their passion for the content because of having to accommodate the large number of enrolled students. Well, I happen to love art and I love fostering an appreciation of art in others. I asked myself the same essential questions, I ask learners, “What Do I Want To Make Today?” and “What If?” Consequently, as I prepare to teach Art Appreciation in the 2015 Fall Semester, I’ve given myself the task of redesigning the Scope and Sequence to accommodate the needs of the learners at Chowan University. My observations from the 50 learners at Chowan enrolled in my section of Art Appreciation between August and December 2014 are as follows: • Average students. • Possess a strong desire to succeed. • 50+% first in their family to attend college. • 50+% insecure about ability to succeed in college. • Average to below average reading skills. • Below average college note-taking skills. • Below average STEM to STEAM critical thinking skills. • 50+% very creative with a cultural preference to bold colors and designs. My curriculum design problem is how do I create an inclusive learner-centered environment that teaches the foundations of art appreciation by applying creative thinking and problem solving skills to college success. Art has the ability to heal the bruises we suffer in life. Art can transform us. Every connection presented in art appreciation has the potential to accomplish the same in the life of an individual learner. The evolution of my teaching methods will be published here as I design a plan of action to enable successful cross-curriculum learning experiences using art elements and design principles. Teaching Artist: I am a teaching artist. I make art and encourage others to discover their own creative hands. The Association of Teaching Artists describes “A teaching artist is a practicing professional artist with the complementary skills and sensibilities of an educator, who engages people in learning experiences in, 2015 Teaching Philosophy Carola Jones Page 1 through, and about the arts.” (Eric Booth) I’m engaged in making and selling art as a studio artist, which provides more financial security and income than adjunct teaching. I think my unique status and real world experiences are assets in a small visual arts university department. I belong to two worlds, art making and art education. I've been making art and fine crafts all my life as taught to me by my parents, grandparents and great-grand parents. It was my passion as a child and what I pursued in college. I never lost my passion for handmade. My teaching philosophy is "those who learn teach." which was taught to me by my grandmother and reinforced by my teacher mother. Teaching school was our family business, and my parents, aunts, uncles and grandparents were teachers. At an early age, I witnessed how education can transform a life. I believe it is more important than ever to be creative with our hands, to teach handmade traditions and to integrate technology into the learning process. Creative thinking and problem solving have the power to foster deeply personal connections with humanity. The "art of teaching" is changing as we move from teacher-centered to learner-centered classroom instruction. To be an effective teacher, I must be prepared to change, adapt and develop my teaching strategies to empower learners to discover their own greatness. My goal as a teaching artist is to be an inclusive facilitator, fluent in the universal language of creativity, excited to guide learning voyages of discovery. I want my classroom to be like my art studio, filled with joy, hope and creative exploration! References Daniels, Harvey and Steven Zemelman. Subjects Matter: Every Teacher's Guide to Content-Area Reading. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 2004. Daniels, Harvey and Nancy Steineke. Texts and Lessons for Content Area Reading. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 2011. Grove, Tom, Howard Glasser with Melissa Lynn Block. The Inner Wealth Initiative: The Nurtured Heart Approach for Educators. Nashville, TN: Vaughan Printing, 2007. Hooks, Bell. Teaching to Transgress: Education as the Practice of Freedom. New York, NY: Routledge, 1994. Koppelman, Kent L. and R. Lee Goodhart. Understanding Human Differences: Multicultural Education for a Diverse America. 3rd. Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson, 2011. Morrison, Gary R. and Deborah L. Lowther. Integrating Computer Technology into the Classroom: Skills for the 21st Century. Boston: Pearson, 2010. Wong, Harry K. and Rosemary T. Wong. The First Days of School: How To Be An Effective Teacher. Mountain Veiw, CA: Wong Publications, Inc., 2009. 2015 Teaching Philosophy Carola Jones Page 2