Week 4: Is your school preparing students to help create an equitable future?

 This week on Dangerously Irrelevant, Mcleod brings up a stellar point about equity and that educators do more than teach their content to students. "Who cares if my students know how to make their subjects and verbs agree if they use language to promulgate hate? ( 2021, Mcleod) Most of my students will not go on to be Artists or even Art Educators. So, a large chunk of what occurs in my class goes beyond my content area and takes them into preparing them to be good human beings. When my students are preparing for a new piece of original artwork, they have to decide whether to make a Personal, Political, or Social piece?  A statement will be made with their work, and they must decide and work through the process to make sure that it is appropriate for all audiences, makes the statement they want without explanation with words, and the right materials. Much like they will have to work through problems when they get an assignment from their boss when they have a job in the real world. I have to hold my biases in check during this process, foster what they want to express, and help them grow to work as a team. It is not up for debate if I agree with what they want to create; their work is their work to create. I am just there to help foster growth and teach them technique. 

http://dangerouslyirrelevant.org/

Comments

  1. Barbara AndersenJanuary 27, 2021 at 2:56 PM

    I love this and so agree. Many of our students will not specialize in the fields we teach but will need all of the other skills we teach them in order to be successful in life. what a great quote ""Who cares if my students know how to make their subjects and verbs agree if they use language to promulgate hate?'- that really resonates with me because I do teach a language and also teach cultural awareness and respect for ALL humans.
    Thanks for sharing!
    -Barbara

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tara ThompsonJanuary 27, 2021 at 4:58 PM

      Hi Barbara,
      I feel it is so important for those of us that teach a non core subject to show students how important our classes are. So often we get called "Enrichment Classes", when really we have just as much to teach students as other subjects, just in a different manner.

      Delete
  2. Dr. ThomasFebruary 2, 2021 at 10:38 AM

    Great posts. I wish my daughter's art teachers took this approach.

    ReplyDelete

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