I decided to write my latest blog post on a recent article I read online from The Wall Street Journal, Why Tough Teachers Get Good Results by Joanne Lipman. In the article, Lipman speaks of her high school orchestra director. This man, whose tactics, I admit were crude, and who by today's standards would be labeled a bully and fired, taught her more than just how to play in tune. Through high expectations, a demand for quality and excellence, always, and seemingly impossible standards, he created more than just beautiful music. He created classes of high-achieving, independent and contributing members of society. Throughout her years with this man, she learned far more valuable lessons that would impact her life far beyond the classroom.
This article got me thinking about what it is that my students will remember after my time with them. What are the important lessons they should be learning? How will they remember me? What do I want them to remember about their experience? It is true that composition and perspective are important tools in the artist arsenal, but I am also a realist and understand that not all of my students are going to go to art school, major in an art career or have their works in the Louvre.
Perseverance through a problem, courage to try new, exciting things and pride in their work are just a few of the important lessons I want my kids to take away from our art room. I want them to remember how I made them try, try, and re-try again to find a solution rather than me handing it to them. I want them remember my nagging at them to check the rubric and refer to their notes in order to produce quality. I want them to remember the time when their idea was different but they did it anyway and turned out brilliant! I want them to remember how not every idea panned out, some were just plain bad, but it was worth the chance to see. I want them to remember that high standards and striving for excellence gets you much more than just a good grade. I want them to look back on their time with me and see more than just projects and rubrics, I want them to see themselves growing as students and people. I want them to carry these subtle, yet most important lessons with each step far beyond our classroom door.
This article got me thinking about what it is that my students will remember after my time with them. What are the important lessons they should be learning? How will they remember me? What do I want them to remember about their experience? It is true that composition and perspective are important tools in the artist arsenal, but I am also a realist and understand that not all of my students are going to go to art school, major in an art career or have their works in the Louvre.
Perseverance through a problem, courage to try new, exciting things and pride in their work are just a few of the important lessons I want my kids to take away from our art room. I want them to remember how I made them try, try, and re-try again to find a solution rather than me handing it to them. I want them remember my nagging at them to check the rubric and refer to their notes in order to produce quality. I want them to remember the time when their idea was different but they did it anyway and turned out brilliant! I want them to remember how not every idea panned out, some were just plain bad, but it was worth the chance to see. I want them to remember that high standards and striving for excellence gets you much more than just a good grade. I want them to look back on their time with me and see more than just projects and rubrics, I want them to see themselves growing as students and people. I want them to carry these subtle, yet most important lessons with each step far beyond our classroom door.