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Ahhhhh, gee thanks, Ryan!

Dear NAEA,

It's funny, prior to beginning work on my Master's; I would glance through your magazine, Art Education, The Journal of the National Art Education Association. The only articles I read were ones which were pertinent to elementary art. Now, I find myself reading and hanging onto every single word. Of course, it helps that, thanks to MU and the incredible art ed graduate program, I am familiar with the research and works of many who are referenced in the articles. After reading the March 2012 edition, however, I began to wonder if you had been reading my mind. I know that NAEA is a huge and diverse organization; yet, it is as though this edition, Business Counts, was written for me alone. I REALLY identified with The Business of Art Education, A Fairytale Adventure. I swear one of the contributors could have been me, our teaching experiences match so closely. "My art education training and beliefs were grounded in teaching art techniques and media through a formalist curriculum...just as the pedagogy of the art teachers who had instructed courses I took in school did." I blogged the exact sentiment a little over a week ago. (Granted I did not use the word pedagogy, but the meaning was exactly the same.)

Next, I was delighted to discover four whole glossy, color pages dedicated to Pepón Osorio. This man is a god, easily my favorite contemporary artist. Just that one article would have been enough to make the entire 55 pages worthwhile!

Last, I received this magazine the day before a group of Engineers came to discuss the importance of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) with all of our students grades 3-6. This was during my Sixth grade class, so I was able to observe the entire presentation. Time limits and the fact that I was supervising 31 students did not permit me to raise any questions about the way that Art MUST fit into this equation, but having read 'A Place for Art and Design in the STEM Conversation' gave me plenty to ponder. I'm still pondering!

In closing,NAEA, if you are reading my mind could you please do so in a less obvious manner? The transparency of your doing so in this edition really freaked me out.

Sincerely, your dedicated - if somewhat paranoid- reader,
Sheryl L. Lamme

VTS II Blog Topic 6

“♪♪♪ Assessment, assessment, as----sess---ment! ♪♪♪”

( sung to the tune of the Girl Scout Camp Announcement Song)

Seeing that assessment is my greatest weakness when it comes to art education, it is only fitting that I share the next line in the song, “A horrible death to die! A horrible death to die!”

 I can recall no part of my teacher prep education (remember, it was a looooong time ago)that applied specifically to the assessment of art. Staff, Leadership, and PLC meetings are filled with the word, and quite frankly, I’m sick-to-death of hearing it! I know feedback is important, and I know that student input into the construction of the assessment is essential, but aside from rubrics, I have a difficult time imagining what the big picture looks like. It was with curiosity and speculative interest that I approached the Beattie Chapters. What a pleasant surprise to find some new assessment strategies that will, as Beattie says “….blend(s) seamlessly with the teaching process for the purpose of learning.”

Assessment Strategy 31, Annotated Artworks (p74) is one that I will definitely use as formatively for both the planning and production process. I will have students place their work atop a piece of paper with a three inch margin and have them identify areas they like, areas they don’t like, and areas where they need help and then exchange this evaluation with a table-mate, or maybe the entire table. As Beattie suggests, perhaps students could revisit this paper to revise / rethink their project.

With the unit theme of ‘Story’I definitely believe that using VTS on the completed Story Tile would be an appropriate summative assessment. Before beginning work on the final project students will be writing a narrative piece addressing the topic of ‘Change’. I have not yet used VTS with student created work. It will be interesting to see how closely responses match the narratives. I am wondering if their skills in the production part of the bas-relief tile will be strong enough and detailed enough to convey their original ideas.

More Random VTS

Kindergarten recently made pinch pots. They have applied a light color glaze, and will be using a darker color to add a pattern or design. I thought it would be helpful for them to see examples of pottery with patterns, so conducted a quick image search. I had planned a didactic experience, but ended up conducting VTS instead. I would never have dreamed the delightful responses I got from this sparse image. At first they inventoried, then identified the patterns. Next they began to speculate the occasion...was it a tea party or was someone getting ready to drink coffee or hot chocolate. My favorite part though, was when one girl observed that these dishes had either been washed, or posed in this position so that someone could take a picture. What did she see to feel that way? 'Well, there's no food on the dishes AND you don't see plates just standing up like that for no reason.' Higher order thinking at it's finest!

VTS II Week 6 Read and Reflect

                            

I read 'Becoming Dialogical: Creating a Place for Dialogue in Art Education', clutching my favorite yellow gel Sharpie highlighter. By the time I was finished reading / highlighting, my entire paper was yellow. I’m pretty certain that Housen and Yenawine would respond to Zander’s ideas with a hearty "AMEN! "Open-ended discovery, teacher as participant / facilitator, dialogue that fosters deeper understanding, students solving the problem, group meaning making, respect for differing points of view, clarification of ideas, conditional language…Mary Jane Zander could well be a pseudonym for Housen and Yenawine! (That was completely tongue in cheek, Zander, should you ever catch wind of my comment. ☺)

It seems to me, the way a person teaches is a reflection of the way that they themselves have been taught. My personal K-12 educational experiences prepared me for the industrial age. As I look around my own building many years later, I see classes where, despite having classroom technologies such as SmartBoards, iPads, and document cameras, students are STILL being prepared for the Industrial age. It’s frightening! I kept wondering why newer teachers weren’t teaching in new ways. Zander says, p. 48, that they are not given instruction or guidelines. Hmmmm, that explains a lot! 

I believe that VTS is the perfect tool for open-ended dialog in the art room.  Art lends itself well to open-endedness. Zander says that this way of thinking might not be possible for every classroom. She goes on to tell how a science is another subject ideal for open-ended dialogue. Being the visual person that I am, I’m wondering exactly how it would this process looks in other subjects and how do we get the rest of those instructors to join us in the Conceptual age?

Oreo Cameo

I have just discovered  Judith Klausner !  Using toothpicks and straight pins as tools, Klausner carves cameos into the cream filling of oreos. My artmaking intro to bas relief must now include oreo carving! OMG, my kids are going to LOVE it!

VTS II Week 5 Read and Reflect

Barron’s – ‘Good Thinking’ Model	VTS
Viewing begins with state of uncertainty- linked to a goal that provides insight	Viewing begins with the suggestion that the image is about something that can be figured out
Viewer searches for possibilities, based upon evidence, relieving the state of uncertainty	Viewers gather visual evidence to support their opinions
Teacher poses the uncertainty	Viewers construct meaning, teacher remains neutral
Viewer responds using ‘Expressive Content’, how the visual form – Elements and Principles contribute to meaning.	Viewers respond with any comments they want – E&P, feelings, personal associations, etcetera.

The title of Leshnoff’s article Art, Ambiguity, and Critical Thinking might well be a definition of VTS. Ambiguity in works of visual art invites students to look closely, and think critically. Images selected for VTS are open to interpretation, participants are comfortable knowing that all responses – objects, details, feelings, and personal associations, are heard and valued equally. They are invited to support their opinions with visual evidence. Opinions are revised and debated as group members consider the contributions and insights of others. The process of group ‘meaning making’ enhances the perception of the individual.

So far the two images that I have VTSed with my group have offered a ‘just right’ amount of ambiguity. In the Garza piece, my Hispanic students were able to deduce more details about the setting, the group activity, and place. Their contributions definitely enhanced the group meaning making process. The Lang piece contained a little something for everyone. Students could relate to the details of the crowd, but was war just beginning, or had it just ended? What was the time period? Why was the person lying in the street – did he fall or was he pushed? One student had just read a book on the Civil War, another related war scene details from a movie they had seen, yet another shared personal knowledge on how a harbor looks. Each student offered a perspective for the group to consider.