Week 14

I feel very strongly about the articles and videos we saw this week. When I was in high school a girl in my grade sent naked pictures to her boyfriend. After they broke up the boyfriend emailed the photos to half of the school. I did not know her well but I am sure she suffered some torment. Texting and emailing videos and pictures of any kind started with my generation of kids. We were some of the first to be instant messaging, visiting chat rooms, and texting. People don't like what they can not understand. Teenagers will do anything for attention, especially the attention of the opposite sex. Many teens have low self esteem causing them to act outrageously. I feel bad for the girls who send pictures or videos of an x-rated nature. Young girls and young boys are under a lot of pressure. I feel the punishment placed on Hope Witsell was unfair. The fact that she received punishment from her peers, from her family, and from her school was unnecessary. The fact that the school decided to punish her months after the event occurred. This story isn't about sexting its about teenagers learning to respect their self and one another. The students should be taught about relationships. The girls should learn to be confident enough to say no to a boy making those requests. The boys should be respectful enough to not even ask that kind of thing. Parents and teachers should be able to talk about what makes some people uncomfortable to talk about.

Week 13

Ethical and Legal Use of Technology

I didnt realize watching a movie in your class was copyright infringement. I show videos to my preschool class all the time on rainy days and holidays like the day after Christmas. I understand that downloading music and movies from the internet is illegal. Even though a lot of people do it. But I did not know that showing a VHS that you purchased with your own money was copyright infringement.  I would be curious to find out how often schools get fined for issues with copyrights. Does that mean sharing a video with a friend is copyright misuse. As an art teacher I would have good reason to take photos from the internet of famous artwork. How would the students receive an art history education if I can not legally use pictures from the internet or photocopies from an art book? What about the music I like to play while my students are working? Does that mean a student can not bring in a CD or ipod to share with the class? On one hand, I feel that using media for educational purposes should be excused. However, I would teach my students about copyright laws in art. I feel that limiting students access to video, music, and images effects their creativity and their ability to get inspired during the art making process. Being able to use artwork that I access online to educate my students is limiting my abilities as an educator.

Week 10

The students will research shoes on the internet and post their findings to an online pinboard on Pinterest.com. Each picture they post must have 3 sentences accompanying it. After brainstorming and researching the importance of footwear the students will design their very own shoe using paper, pencils, colored pencils, and markers. They will create 5 different sketches of footwear that do not look like modern shoes. They must think outside the box and create something imagination and original. 

Week 9

Here is my back to school video presentation. I feel this video tutorial would be like a take home sheet for parents. They could look back at it to see what their students will be learning in class. Perhaps the teacher could share a video tutorial of each lesson with students and parents so that the parents feel connected to the classroom. This would also be helpful for the parents who missed back to school night to see what your class is all about. I also used this presentation as a way to advocate for art education. If administrators were to view this presentation they could understand how important the arts are in schools.

Week 8

Here is my presentation for back to school night. I have taken each of the 21st Century Skills and explained how students will use those skills in art class. I really like how you can embed a slide presentation. It looks very professional and allows you to outline things in a visual way. Embedding a slide presentation to a website will allow you to access it from anywhere with use of the internet. That way if you are giving a presentation you do not need to carry around a flash drive or laptop.

Art is in danger of being cut from many school programs. It is important for me to be able to tell parents and administrators what students can learn from an art education. So many life skills can be taught from art. Art requires students to think outside the box and create something new and original. Art inspires creativity and imagination. These abilities are invaluable to society and allow for new inventions and ideas to take form.

Week 7

Here is my podcast about an art assignment using audio recording.


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Week 5

Response to critics and supporters of 21st Century Skills...

I believe it is very important for children to know how to work collaboratively with their peers, think critically, and think creatively. At the same time I want my students to have a complete understanding of the art making process and an art history background to carry with them through life. I feel art lends itself to creativity, critical thinking, and collaboration. Autonomy and independence are other qualities I would like to foster in my students. When they need help I want them to try to figure out a solution on their own or with the help of their classmates. It may sound silly but in my preschool classroom I have my students eat their lunch on their own. If someone needs help removing a lid, opening a bag or putting the straw in a Capri Sun they have to ask each other for help or get a scissor. They need to learn that they cannot rely on grown ups for everything. I praise them for getting their coats on by themselves and I show off their work when they think outside the box. This may be a silly example but I would like my art students to be able to think this way at their own level. I want to encourage group brainstorming, collaborative art projects, and assignments that allow students to think outside the box. For example, having my students redesign something we use every day, like a shoe. They need to use to think critically and creatively to come up with a design. Perhaps their needs to be a balance. Maybe we can combine 21st Century Skills with traditional teaching practices. All that matters is the method that keeps students engaged and performing to the best of their ability.