Art Educators as Education Leaders (Part 2)
By Andrew Watson
Well here I am at the end of my term. It has been an honor, but I didn’t even get to half of what I wanted to talk about! So, let me leave you with a few quick lessons that I have learned since entering art education leadership.
1. To give voice, listen- I have always focused on helping students find their voice. In reality, kids have voice. It may need polish and we can introduce them to new ways to express it, but it is already formed. So, as teachers we need to listen and give our students opportunities to be heard, not try to mold them.
2. Raising the bar sparks hope- I have spent most of my career working in low income schools. The most effective teachers in these schools didn’t make excuses for their students. They acknowledged the hardships that their students faced. Made sure the students knew they were cared for and supported. But most importantly, they consistently expected those students to perform at a high level. If you set the bar high, most students will aim for it. Even if they don’t quite make it, they will do far better than if they were aiming low.
3. Process over product- I have heard this phrase my whole career. While I agree, it has always been unclear to me which process is being referred to. I think most of us mean the process of using art mediums or techniques, which isn’t wrong but may be short sighted. As art teachers our job isn’t primarily to prepare our students to be professional artist or designers. Our job is to nurture the artistic nature of our students. To cultivate creative approaches and expression. To challenge the problem-solving skills of young thinkers. So, to me the process is the creative process, the design thinking process, or the many other metacognitive processes that help our students become more self-aware and engaged in the world. To me, why we make art is more important than how we make art.
-AW