UAY Reflection

My UAY experience was actually pretty good in hindsight. I really value the opportunity that was given to us and I think that if I do continue on the to be a teacher I will be much better prepared because of it.

The most important teaching aspect I believe that I learned was to be flexible and learn to adapt. Without these skills a teacher can really get themselves into some trouble. Our group was a perfect example of this on several occasions. For example, Amanda and I thought for certain that we would have everybody finished with their masks early. Well...we were wrong. Very wrong, and all it took was for lovely little Claire to miss the Jam session. That made our group go from ahead of task to all over the flippin' place. The boys were finishing their mosaics and working on new projects. In the instance of Daniel, several new projects. God he kept us on our toes with new things to do! Meanwhile, Claire was really close to not finishing her project on the last workday available. She barely had her mosaic painted before our cleanup had started. This one variable kinda threw us off schedule, as we had planned to start a journal for everyone. I had the impression that it would be more of a group demo than the individual assignment that it had turned into.

Another way that flexibility mattered with our group was with the wording of our assignment. The word "mask" seemed to be far more loaded than I had anticipated with Sam. Man, he just didn't understand that we weren't making masks to wear. I really bummed him out one day when it finally hit him. I could tell he still had dreams of wearing his warpaint waiter mask, he would hold it up to his face all the time like it was a wearable accessory.

Daniel gave us the need to adapt because he was a productive machine. He didn't want to make a mask, so we changed the lesson a bit to fit his desires, but he was still able to learn the intended assignment. After that he was constantly pushing us to find new things for him to do. If we didn't he would start walking around talking about all sorts of crazy stuff. He was a real pleasure to work with, god, I still laugh thinking about some of the stuff we did. We had fears because he was autistic, but he really did end up becoming the highlight of UAY to me.

My Newest Work and Classroom Management

Well, here is my final piece for ceramics three, it is the front and back of a woman that is a sort of personification of music. Tried doing this using flowing lines to symbolize rhythm and flow. I incorporated the colors in an attempt to make the piece harmonious. Let me know what you think, constructive criticism is very welcome.

OK, now on to classroom management. The problems that I have encountered with classroom management stems from a total lack of motivation in some students. It's what leads me to question my future as a teacher in fact. During my volunteer hours, I spent two whole weeks in the classroom trying to get the best feel possible for teaching. In this time period, I noticed some students, usually one or two per class of about 20 or more students that just wouldn't do anything unless you asked them constantly everyday. This also happened to be true in our UAY class, which is odd seeing as the students chose to be there.(Why you would go to something that you aren't really motivated to do in the first place when no one is forcing you is beyond me!)

Anywho, it seems that other problems like fighting and general disrespect for the classroom (peers, teachers, facilities, and rules) were not a real problem most of the time.

The only way that ever really worked that I noticed as far as motivating students was to be flexible with the lesson plan and bring forth positive reinforcement to the table. Being flexible allows students that might not be particularly interested in the current project to find another outlet that they find satisfying. It is important that the main goal of the assignment is kept in the forefront of the students mind however. The lesson should still be beneficial in the same manner as everyone else. Positive reinforcement is the next factor that worked. While it didn't work all the time, students really do enjoy a thoughtful compliment about their work. At times I find it difficult to praise some peoples efforts though. Must just be me, but it's really hard for me to compliment someone that doesn't do very much. How can you compliment a student that doesn't do anything in order to get them to get started? That is the real trick. When both of these fail, and some days they did, things fell apart in our little group which caused some verbal backlash and written obscenities. Oh well, time and practice will make things better.

UAY is finished and I have bad News

After several weeks of teaching and learning, our mission to teach the young students at UAY is over. The experience was worthwhile for me. I learned different ways to handle students particular intricacies as well as new projects and plans for lessons.

Unfortunately, the most important lesson I will take from this little adventure leads me to question my dedication to teaching at the high school level. Experiences from this class coupled with information gained in others has me wondering if teaching is the best option for me. I continually read about how teaching in high schools is just plain awful. Teacher attrition rates are scary and the reasons why have made me question my motivation. I really don't want to be a babysitter. The idea of little funding and administrators that don't care for the opinion of teachers is disheartening. Bad facilities with busted air conditioning and inconsistent bathroom break opportunities seems like a ridiculous workplace for someone that has worked their way through a degree program at a nice university. It seems as if teachers deserve better conditions and certainly better pay.

Challenging students like the ones we encountered in UAY brought issues to the table that I honestly would turn my back on in a day to day situation. It's one thing to try to push someone once a week, it's entirely different to push them every day of the week. I have patience for certain things, laziness and complacency is not an area that is good for my patience. In the real world, with classrooms filled with 30 or more students, it is very likely that a teacher would have several challenging students every hour that just want to sit and veg out. I don't want to be the teacher that turns my back and says "forget it", but I know it would drive me nuts day after day to beg people to work like I experienced this semester.

The only real passion I have for teaching is brought upon by the prospect of having summers off. I want summers off so I can focus on my art for a couple months every year. Does that mean that I should just go for it and try to become a full time artist? My family thinks I should be a graphic designer. Teachers from my high school saw my work when I volunteered and said that I was stupid for wasting time trying to teach, saying that I should go all the way. It really is what I want to do, but is it the smart thing to do?

I would much rather stay in school, earn my masters, and then enter shows and applications until I could get a job at the college level where students major in art and don't just take your class because its "easy". That was the original plan before Sophia was born. Do I stick with the original plan and focus my time at IOWA in the Studio or in the classroom for a teaching certificate? I'm so confused, my heart says on thing while my head says another.

I feel like I've grown as an artist during my time here and I wish I could devote my time strictly to studio courses. I'm so close to graduating with a BFA but not that close with the TEP certificate. I wish the answers were easier to come by. I really wonder if I'm wasting my time training to be a teacher.