Middle school students are actively engaged in learning about Egypt with an art education student teacher.  The students previously had taken a virtual tour of the country.

Teaching and learning

Demonstrate the ability to create an environment for effective teaching and learning.

Critical thinking

Demonstrate the ability to interpret information, think critically, analyze and solve problems, make complex decisions, and evaluate actions .

Communication

Demonstrate effective use of a variety of communication skills and modalities.

Diversity

Demonstrate awareness, understanding, and skills necessary to adapt instructions based on diversity of learners.

Technology

Demonstrate the ability to use technology to promote student learning.

Instruction

Apply curriculum and instruction expertise as related to the student’s specialized professional goals.

OVERVIEW

Teaching and learning

     Creating an environment for effective learning is at the heart of good teaching.  The research tells us that we must motivate 21st century students differently and provide more collaborative, inquiry-based lessons and authentic assessment.  We know that digital natives are biologically different from digital immigrants.   I had an independent study course, EDCI 795 that provided a strong frame of reference for giving students the tools to increase their learning capabilities.  I was concurrently participating in the Professional Development School through Kansas State University (KSU) and the focus of the institute was equity and access for all learners.  I participated on the Humanities
Team and we held group discussions about delivering KSU courses and credit to under served communities with large minority populations.  I wrote individual objectives for meeting our team goals and spent the next year working on those objectives. 

     Learning Technologies, EDCI 718 provided possibilities for using technologies to improve learning and understanding.  The text, Integrating Technology for Meaningful Learning by Grabe and Grabe provided concise terminology; identified key themes and issues; and linked teaching, learning and the role of technology to theory and practice.   The International Society for Technology (ISTE) in Education Foundation Standards were introduced and explored throughout the semester. The class had many collaborative experiences and one was the design and creation of an interdisciplinary lesson plan based on a previously reviewed website.  The lesson plan that my group wrote was titled, Walk Like and Egyptian and examined how the arts, science, agriculture, commerce/trade and society influenced life in ancient Egypt and how those topics compare to life today.   The target audience was a middle school social studies class.  This lesson creates an environment for effective teaching and learning by using technology effectively to motivate and engage the students.  I have included the lesson plan example in this document.  

     Using Project-based learning with technology, EDCI 786, was one of my specialization classes that focused on teaching and learning in a constructivist manner.  We researched Webquests and created our own content specific unit.  I now require my ART 690 students to design and create a Webquest and I’ve included the assignment, rubric and student work sample.    

Critical thinking

    The ISTE standards include creativity and innovation, communication and collaboration, research and information fluency; critical thinking; problem solving and decision making; digital citizenship; and technology operations and concepts.  Within this background I planned my Technology Integrated project for EDCI 890.  The unit I designed was an ongoing unit in ART 376 titled, Public Art in Our Community.   I used the Understanding By Design template to organize the three stages: Desired results, Assessment evidence and Learning activities.  All three stages are addressed in both content and technology domains.  Through out this unit the students are asked to demonstrate the ability to interpret information, think critically, analyze and solve problems, make complex decisions and evaluate actions. This unit culminates with the activities published on the KSU website.

   Art history is an important component in art education but many students struggle with the amount of material and teaching methods used.  Traditionally the course is a large lecture class with daily slide presentations and several comprehensive, multiple-choice exams.  I wanted to explore a different approach to teaching this material so I designed an Art History Webquest.  This assignment requires the students to demonstrate the ability to think critically about their sources; analyze the information they will use; interpret social and political information surrounding images; and decide the format and design of the Webquest.  The ART 690 students participate in my Webquest and subsequently create their own.  I’ve included my Art History Webquest sampler in this document.

  

Communication

   Project-based learning with technology, EDCI 786 introduced me to new technologies and one of them was podcasting because I researched how to produce a podcast as my final project. This collaborative project culminated in a web site for teachers titled, Podcasting In Education.  It was our intention that teachers would learn to make a podcast and use it in their instruction.  We tried to make it user friendly and simple to understand with links to production sites.  I made an art criticism podcast with a grade school student and it’s on the website.  Podcasting adds another dimension to communication skills and addresses another learning style. 

   Blogging is another form or communication that 21st century learners like to use and I learned about this form of communication in EDCI 887 so I designed an Art Education mentor site hoping to start some virtual mentoring through the Kansas Art Education Association (KAEA) website.  KAEA has just updated their website and so the virtual mentoring may become part of that site and I hope to sign up mentors in the future. The URLs for the podcasting site and the blog are included.

Diversity

    Understanding other people and demonstrating an awareness of the potential and skill level of diverse learners is important to me.  I’m aware that student differences are due to a variety of factors.  Student differences can be a catalyst for enlightenment and using these differences in positive ways is vital to the success of all students.  True understanding occurs when students compare their interpretations and share their experiences.  I try to use teaching strategies that encourage active participation of all students.  I think it’s imperative that my curriculum reflects the perspectives of a pluralistic society.   I try to be thoughtful and sensitive when dealing with gender, ethnic and culturally diverse issues.  I have always tried to teach to a variety of learning styles in mind and so my work with the KSU Equity and Access professional development school broadened my scope of knowledge and awareness.  Working with the teachers from southwest Kansas and listening to their students’ specific needs was enlightening and my participation in distance education classes has added new opportunities to help them meet their educational goals.

   Having a personal relationship with diverse learners and cultures solidified the foundation in my belief that differences are a positive influence.   The strongest encounter I have had with a diverse culture was when I was a Fulbright Study Abroad Scholar to Mexico.  I spent 5 weeks living with and researching the Mexican people and their environment.  I lived in four different locations-two small towns and two metropolitan areas.  I studied Mexican society through eight different lenses:  art, architecture, customs, cuisine, commerce, geography, history and the people.  After we had gathered our research we wrote curriculum activities for K-12 students.  After I returned I gave several presentations about my Mexican visit.  Two years later I helped organize and co-sponsor a 10 day trip to Mexico for a group of art and Spanish high school students.   I’ve created a web site to showcase my Fulbright research and it’s included in this document. 

Technology

    The final technology project for EDCI 890 was documented in a video I produced.  It captures the research, design, creation and installation of our public art installation, Upgraded Photosynthesis? This video will become part of the web site, Public Art in Our Community. The work was done with a digital video camera, digital camera and iMovie editing software.  The Digital Video class, EDCI 786, provided the opportunity to explore the basics of digital camera usage; knowledge of non-linear editing software; vital vocabulary terms, and copyright issues.  There are numerous examples on the internet of student made videos that are amazingly authentic and instructive.  In this age of YouTube it is a necessary skill to acquire.  Using video as an assessment is going to become more commonplace, I predict.  I have placed the video of my final technology project in this portfolio.

     This E-Portfolio is a way to demonstrate my ability to use technology.  I think digital portfolios are part of the future of education and job seeking.  I require my art education students to prepare a digital portfolio prior to graduation.  

Instruction

    I learned to create webpages in EDCI 786- Dreamweaver.  I have created several webpages and now I’m exploring iWeb.  In ART 376, my students had to design, research, assemble, develop, and generate a webpage about the public art on the KSU campus.  It was an authentic, inquiry, project-based assignment from beginning to end.  The topics involved include art criticism, aesthetics, art history and studio production, which are the components of Comprehensive Art Education (CAE).  I’ve infused this rich subject matter with technology to form a strong bond between subjects.  Through this particular unit plan I’ve reached one of my Masters’ goals—to design exciting, inquiry-based units of study for art education students through the use of technology.  The website can be accessed from this site as well as the final technology project.