You will study art education from multiple perspectives, including the content of art and media, art history, art in society, learners as artists, and educators as artists. You will explore what is taught in art curriculums and question who chooses, who is represented, and how learners engage with art. You will consider topics of social justice, art as a social construction of reality, and the need for art education in society and community. Your courses will give you opportunities to analyze the unique needs of the learners—considering experiences, abilities, and universal approaches to learning in the art setting, while considering what is meaningful to your learners along with the pedagogical strategies that support learning in the art setting. You will explore how to integrate curriculum, develop meaningful lessons, and communicate and interact professionally with your art education community. And you will investigate your own values and approaches to art and strategies to remain your own artist in the midst of educating others. Our approach to art education is a hands-on implementation of contemporary theoretical approaches to art education, based in your own ongoing reflection of what you are learning while teaching in a variety of settings.
In order to teach art effectively, you first need to develop a solid base in studio art. Your studies focus on both the meaning and form of art. By actively creating works of your own, you are able to engage fully with aesthetic experience. By working with various media, you expand your ability to invent and experiment. Your program of studies includes an introduction to drawing and 2D and 3D design and color theories. You learn the processes of ceramics, painting, metals, fibers, photography, computer graphics, printmaking, sculpture, and digital media to support your ability to create effective lessons and develop your own knowledge, skills, and abilities while making art.
You also study art history and art from other cultures. By studying the legacy of the past you come to better understand yourself and the work of contemporary artists. You analyze art in historical context, considering how factors such as politics, economics, religion, education, and technology impact the arts. You learn to make informed artistic judgments and to recognize the artistic relationships necessary to produce art. In addition, you learn about the cultural and artistic influences of historically underrepresented and disenfranchised groups.
In order to develop and refine your teaching ability, you take courses in psychology and art education, integrated with the liberal arts curriculum. You learn to analyze the general and specific needs of particular age groups, and to relate these needs to artistic forms, manipulation of materials, and behavioral characteristics. Your art education fieldwork includes classroom observations and practice.
The culmination of the art education major lies in successful completion of two nine-week student teaching experiences in PreK-12th grade art education. These experiences are required by the State of Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction for licensure. Upon graduation, you can be licensed as a PK-12 art educator (550). Graduates are confident and highly qualified art educators who can flexibly and creatively meet the needs of all of their students after completing this comprehensive art education program.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Art Courses | ||
| A-121 | Analytic Drawing | 3 |
| A-122 | Expressive Drawing | 3 |
| A-134 | 2-D Design | 3 |
| A-147 | Grant Writing for Artists & Educators | 1 |
| A-189S | Form and Space | 4 |
| A-193C | Art in the Professions | 2 |
| A-221 | Beginning Figure Drawing | 3 |
| A-234 | 3-D Design | 3 |
| A-262 | Graphic Design & Illustration | 3 |
| A-491 | Senior Art Seminar | 1 |
| A Elective | Art (A) Electives, 300 or 400 level | 18 |
| Art Education Courses | ||
| AE-222 | Principles of Art Education | 3 |
| AE-386 | Media & Methods in Art Therapy | 3 |
| AE-387 | Adaptive Field Experience | 1 |
| AE-392 | Art in Early Childhood & Elementary Sch | 4 |
| AE-393 | Art in the Secondary School | 4 |
| AE-480L & AE-480S | Direct Observ & Teaching Art/Elem Sch and Direct Obs & Teaching Art/Secondary Sch | 12 |
| Art History Courses | ||
| AHS-210 | Ancient to Byzantine Art | 2 |
| AHS-252 | Medieval to Modern Art | 4 |
| AHS-409 | Modern & Contemporary Art | 3 |
| AHS Elective | Art History (AHS) Elective | 3 |
| Additional Courses | ||
| ED-116 | Relational Competence Workshop | 3 |
| HS-312 | Lives of First People | 2 |
| PSY-110 | Life Span Development | 4 |
| DA/TA/MU Elective | Dance (DA), Theater Arts (TA) or Music (MU) Elective | 2 |
| Assessments | ||
| A-100 | Community Art/Design Midsemester (Take in semesters 1 - 7) 1 | 0 |
| A-399 | Formal Introduction to Advanced Work | 0 |
| AE-130 | Aesthetic Engagement Ext Assessmnt Lev 1 | 0 |
| AE-230 | Aesthetic Engagement Ext Assessmnt Lev 2 | 0 |
| AE-330 | Aesthetic Engagement Ext Assessmnt Lev 3 | 0 |
| AE-395 | Ext Assessmnt Aesthetic Engagement Lev 4 | 0 |
| AE-400 | Ext Assessmnt Aesthetic Engagement Lev 5 | 0 |
| AE-450 | Ext Assessmnt Aesthetic Engagement Lev 6 | 0 |
| AE-482 | Ext Assessmnt Effective Citizenship Lev4 | 0 |
| ED-220 | Interview Assessment | 0 |
| ED-475 | Student Teaching Seminar | 0 |
| PST 329 | Praxis II Prep | |
| PST 406 | Praxis II | |
| Total Credits | 94 | |
Take this mid-semester assessment in each semester
3 credits must be at 400 level
This major does not require a minor and follows the general education requirements for mega majors-not science related.