As an educator, I’m especially interested in the application of therapeutic techniques in artmaking and the areas in which they can be suitable for the art classroom. There is a narrow field where therapy and teaching appropriately intersect, and it is my goal to uncover that field.
I believe that incorporating therapeutic methodologies into lessons will teach students, especially 9-12 students who are experiencing a difficult emotional and social time, how to cope with the ongoing changes and challenges of life, and hopefully allow them to mature into self-aware and healthy adults.
As a teacher, my job is not only to teach about artmaking but also to act as a role model and guide for my students. This notion of modeling wellness practices extends to other fields as well, such as social practice. As one must be careful to not overstep a professional boundary in both therapeutic and social practice incorporation, the most effective method of incorporating them into lesson plans is to create a secondary goal connected to therapeutic practice or social matters.
I have taken several courses regarding social practice, sustainability, and psychology, as well as having a major in Sociology, and I intend on using this knowledge to not only uplift generations of young artists but generations of socially aware and mentally prepared individuals. In our increasingly complicated, diverse world, even the slightest introduction to these concepts will have a positive impact on students and their ability to interact with the world in a considerate and healthy way.
Good teaching, to me, automatically involves these ideas at least to some degree. Creating an inclusive classroom means incorporating diverse art practices and ideas into both lessons and day-to-day interaction. The classroom itself should be adjustable to students of all abilities, beliefs, and identities, and as the teacher of a heterogeneous group, I too must be able to adjust to each individual student.
If one is only able to teach one specific kind of student, I believe they have failed to be a good teacher, or need to be in a very specialized role rather than a general classroom. I intend to be as flexible as I possibly can in my teaching practice to accommodate every student’s needs and teach them in a way that suits their style of learning.