Week 1 Blog: Introduction

  My name is J. Lawrence Carter and I live in Sallisaw, Oklahoma. I am a writer, published poet, and artist. I achieved my undergraduate degree from Southeastern Oklahoma State University in Fine Art - Studio Art in 2018 where I was classically trained in life drawing, 2D and 3D design, painting, ceramics, and printmaking as well as some digital graphic design. I would love to have the opportunity to teach art in public education but have not found many opportunities to do so. In the fall of 2024 I embarked on this journey to earning a Masters in Education from my alma mater to prepare myself for a broader role in public education after graduation. Most of my instructional experience has been in corporate quarters educating employees in subjects such as food safety, Medicare and HIPAA, and credit card fraud prevention. My current position paying the bills while I am working on my masters is in a group home for adult individuals with disabilities which utilizes a kaleidoscope of my prior knowledge and experience helping our clients live fulfilling lives while preparing nutritious meals and educating them on skills and coping mechanisms outlined in their plans.

2.3 of the ISTE the Citizen would be the closest standard I would apply to art instruction. Art instruction develops students into Global Citizens who can then take what they learn in class and relate it to what has come before while producing original works of their own. Teaching visual arts to students although it can rely on technology, is very much an analog subject considering much of the media used to create visual art is taught by hand and by doing. Technology can play a supporting role, but teaching the basics it would be premature to start off on a device until the students learn the basics. It is very much learning to walk before you run. Oklahoma defines Fine Arts as “Dance, Drama/Theatre, Media Arts, Music, and Visual Arts.” The processes involved are Creative, Production, Cultural and Historical, Aesthetic Response and Critique Methodologies. K.VA.CP.1.1 of the creative process instructs taking about personal artwork using introductory art vocabulary (E.G., shape, color, draw, paint, collage, primary, secondary, texture, etc.), including describing creative choices (e.g., color or shape choices). This is applied to the Kindergarten level of instruction. But this can be applied to any introductory structures for teaching art. A student can come to learn art at any age and may not have the proper vocabulary, so for any introductory instruction it is always best to begin at the beginning. But from these first steps students can begin to learn how the manipulation of the media (pencil, chalk, oil pastel, etc.) works in translating what we see into a viewable image. Once students become proficient in those media then the same methods can be translated to technology based digital art once the introductory foundation has been laid.

Technology can be used to help the students engage with the lessons by giving them the opportunity to see the works of art created by the Masters of the Renaissance, or illustrate the historical environment in which those works we often reference to provide context that may have influenced their creation. More advanced students may choose to go into digital media where their canvas and paint may be a tablet and stylus. Some artists may choose to combine analog and digital techniques in the creation of their work.