Personal Teaching Philosophy

Margaret Derrig

When I tell people that I’m in school to be an art teacher, a common response I get is the

joke that I “must be in it for the money”, which clearly all art teachers are. While having these

conversations about my future profession and why I want to teach, I like to ask people what their

experience was like with art classes. Some people loved art class, even if they don’t consider

themselves to be good at art. For people who didn’t like their art classes, there are two common

reasons I get for why; they didn’t think they were good at it, and/or they didn’t like their teacher

or the class. Hearing this is always hard for me because it contradicts what I believe the purpose

of art classes is.

Art classes are at a disadvantage compared to the core classes that students are required

to take, like math, science, history, and language arts. Students take these classes every year, so

one bad class, or bad teacher, may not impact them as much since they have more opportunities

for positive experiences. But in an elective class like art, where students aren’t always required to

take it, a bad experience can have a greater impact on that student’s attitude toward art as a

whole. I believe that part of this issue comes from a misunderstanding of the purpose of art

classes. In my experience, many people believe that to enjoy art classes you must be “good” at

art, or that the goal is to make “perfect” pieces of art. But “good” is a relative term and I’d argue

that “perfect” art doesn’t exist. This mindset puts the emphasis on the final product, which is not

the mindset I want for my classroom. If your focus is only on the final product, you put yourself

more at risk of feeling disappointed and discouraged if you aren’t satisfied with your art. That’s

why, in my classroom, the emphasis will be on the process and overall experience. By shifting

this focus, I think art will become more enjoyable for more students.
 In my classroom, where you are is only important in the context of where you started. It

isn’t about how good at art my students are by the end of the semester/year. I care more about the

growth and progress they make over the course of the class, which will look different for each

student. One student might improve on their ability to paint with watercolors, while another

might improve on their creative thinking and problem-solving. For some, it could also be as

simple as finding a medium that they enjoy after thinking they hate art. I recognize that different

students will get different things out of my classes, and I want my classes to be whatever the

students need.

Many of my attitude and beliefs align with the Progressivism philosophy. The art

classroom is already very conducive for this mindset, as it is very student-centered with an

emphasis on hands-on learning that is personalized. The flexibility and student-centered aspects

of progressivism are something I want to emphasize in my classroom. My goal is to find a way

to reach each of my students and help them discover something in art that resonates with them.

In order to do this, student interests need to be taken into account while planning lessons and

coming up with projects. I want to emphasize flexibility in my classroom because while it’s

important for students to step out of their comfort zone and to try new things, it’s also important

to remember that some things just won’t work for some students. I think having more flexibility

and personalization will make my class enjoyable for more students.