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So, Your Elementary School Needs to Hire an Art Teacher! |
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Contributed by Marie Meegan
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So, Your Elementary School Needs to Hire an Art Teacher!
13 things to consider
- The candidate must hold a Fine Art or Art Education Degree, preferably at the Master’s level.
- The applicant must have completed Student Teaching under a cooperating practitioner and a state approved supervisor, and be certified to teach art by the state.
- The teacher needs to be a mature person, one who is well organized and capable of creating art lessons from which students learn. He or she must be able to develop and maintain a weekly art program for up to 500 students.
- The art teacher should have a working familiarity with the Massachusetts State Frameworks.
- Strong candidates often have some experience working with children in another setting such as summer art school, or a day care setting, such as the YMCA’s after-school program, or The Boys and Girls Club. Look for one of these.
- The applicant should present a portfolio of classroom management and art ideas during the interview. Pictures are helpful. This is a visual art position.
- The interviewing team should ask if the art teacher is familiar with clay as a medium. Is he or she familiar with printmaking, or graphic art skills?
- The candidate should be open to providing some curriculum connections. Some examples of these are Ancient Chinese art and culture, Early American art and culture, and carrying out some writing during art class.
- Besides being certified to teach art at the level the position requires, the candidate might hold other certifications such as elementary education, special needs or computer science. These would be an advantage to the art program and the school.
- The candidate should be an active member of a professional organization, such as The Massachusetts Art Education Association, or a local group such as The North Shore Art Teachers’ Association.
- Good communication skills are important. Not only will the art teacher be working with many children, but he or she will also be talking and advocating for art with the parents. Sensitive communication with a large professional staff needs to be considered. Finding a tactful way to say, “Please be on time for art (not early) and pick the students up on time because the next class is coming in soon,” can be tricky.
- The new teacher should be willing to take some responsibility for displays. Having a few bulletin boards dedicated to student art makes sense. Submitting work to museums, colleges and state organizations for exhibit purposes builds student self-confidence and is good advocacy for the art program.
- Lastly, being an artist in one’s own right is a great value for teaching art, just as long as “my own art” does not get in the way of passing the knowledge and skills of art along to the students. Teaching is an art of its own.
Teaching art is an amazing amalgam of talents.
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