Tag Archives: student response

Jul27

The “No-Grade Challenge”

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Sounds interesting, right?  Well, my good friend Ian Sands nominated me earlier this summer to go “no-grades” this year.  And, after much consideration, I have accepted his challenge…well, mostly. There is no way at the high school level, with the GPA reward system we have going in America right now, that I can not grade. My kids need to have some numerical grade…for UIL purposes (pass to play), for college applications, and for the “ever important” class rank–which if you live in the great state of Texas like me, it is important to those kids in the top 10% (or for some colleges like UT–Hook “Em!!–it’s the top 7 or 8%) for automatic admission to state schools.

Anyway, I have accepted his challenge and plan on grading as little as possible this year.  I know I am pushing it, and it my admin gets wiff of it, I may be up sh*ts creek. But, if I am going to start a change and get people talking and thinking about change in the grading arena and the education realm, I need to start somewhere.

Now, don’t confuse what I am doing in so far as grading with what I am doing in terms of assessment.  THEY ARE NOT THE SAME THING!!  And, you better believe that I am going to assess the hell out of my students.  In fact, together we, my students and I, will asses their learning and growth like there is no tomorrow.  It will mostly be informal and occur through dialogue between us–the students and myself.  And, that is what an ideal classroom, at least in my opinion, should be like.  It should be about growth and understanding how to think and move forward in the thinking.  And, in order to do that, things need to be assessed.  Grades have no part in that.

Now comes the part where you say, but how will you do that?   You have to grade.  Why not put numbers to your assessment levels?  Then you can be in compliance and all that jazz.  I answer you with, I’ve done that.  And it works well, but I feel it is truly not a good showing of what a student in my studio has learned or how they have grown artistically–either in skill or thinking or both.  It doesn’t really show growth over time.

Last year I read the book “Hacking Assessment” and I have taken a few things from the book about assessment, like having conferences with the kids and letting them be part of the conversation.  I also went to a fabulous session at NAEA-Chicago with Justin Clumpner who at one point talked about grades and what they mean to each individual student.  I think at one point he even said, I ask the kids what grade they want. Those things really resonate with me right now.  Students need to be involved in their assessment of their learning.  It is a 2-way street.

Now, if you know anything about the program I run, I like to have my kids reflect on their learning and their journey.  We have done that through blogs and, more recently, BlendSpace.  So, it occurred to me, why not combine all these things and thus my answer to the “no-grade challenge” was formed.

I do have to have at least a grade every 3 weeks…one a progress report time and one at report card time.  (Technically I am supposed to have more, but don’t tell my admin, okay?) My plan is to have my students reflect on their learning and art making processes to help them determine their grade for that time frame.  Of course, I have final say if I feel they have either graded too high or way too low.  But, I think this will help shift the focus away from grading and back onto their learning, which is what it’s about….or should be. (Do I say that a lot, because I feel I do.)

Here are some screen shot of the google form they will fill out for this reflection process.

 

Will this work?  I don’t know.  Will it need to be tweaked?  I am sure.  What document is perfect from the get go?  I am confident in what I am about to embark on. I think that it will make a difference; a difference even bigger than when I stopped grading artwork and focused on the processes only.  Keep your eyes out for updates as the year progresses.  And who know, maybe soon you too will also be up for the challenge.

Jun2

Year in Review: Part 2: Things Learned and Things to Learn

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In this part of my reflection on the 2014-15 school year, I decided that I would look back over the changes that took place by bringing TAB/CBE into my classroom.  While I have offered modified choice in my room for a while, this was the first year to fully implement the TAB pedagogy. It has been a huge learning experience, both for my students and for me.

I had heard and read about all the wonderful things that have an open studio could do, but to be honest, I was still skeptical.  Could my student population really do well with such freedom?  The answer is yes.

Let’s start with some positives from this year:

  • P1050661Kids worked through artwork until they were satisfied…at times starting a new piece because it just wasn’t working.  This just amazed me.  I’ve had kids work hard on things before, but never with the fervor I’ve seen this year.  They pushed themselves. And it paid off.
  • Kids learned from other kids on how to do something I didn’t teach them.  They would see something someone else had discovered and asked how to do it.
  • Kids tried new things, even when previously saying they didn’t like such-n-such medium. Some would try out a material, such as clay, just to discover they still didn’t like it.  Others would finally break away from what was known to the, only to find a new love.
  • Clean-up/ownership of materials and tools.  I have to clean a lot less than in previous years.  I am not seeing a mis-use of materials (paper, paint, etc.–except for ez-cut.) Trusting my kids to be responsible with tools and materials was probably my biggest hang-up when moving to full choice. But, I was pleasantly surprised when tools got returned, when I still had erasers at the end of the year, and when the majority of brushes were cleaned.  I think that giving the students trust to maintain the studio was a big factor in this area.
  • I am noticing I use the word kids a lot.  My students are in high school and probably wouldn’t want to be called kids, and they aren’t related to me, but they feel like my kids.  This year I have had the most comfortable relationships with students.  I know more (and some things I would like to forget..can you say tmi?) about my students this year than I ever have before.  I think thP1060155is stems from a combination of reading their blog posts and the type of conversations I was able to have with my students.  Because I wasn’t focused on them creating a certain thing or following a specific rubric, I was able to go deeper with them into their work and their lives.
  • Lots of growth happened this year.  Not every student grew.  Some kids are just there for the credit.  They don’t care one way or another, and no matter what you say/do or don’t say/do isn’t going to change that.  There were classes I took in both HS and at my first college where I felt the same.  It’s normal.  It’s okay.  And I accept that.  But, for the majority of students, they did care.  I saw them push themselves.  Some grew in drawing skills.  Others in painting.  Some grew in meaning put into their artwork.  I had a couple that finally stopped copying things from the interwebs and began making their own.  One student who did the bare minimum for 90% of the year finally came alive at the end once he realized he could things in an anime style if that is what interested him.  He didn’t pass, but he promised me that the flame I saw at the end would be there for the whole time next year.  I have a hundred stories to tell about student growth.  It makes me smile when I think about them.P1040736
  • The art making didn’t always stop with just creating the theme artwork.  Many students just kept going.  They wanted to create this or that, so I let them.  Why stop the creativity?  Why make them sit there and do nothing?
  • My school is a 1:1 macbook, and this year I felt I really had the students using the computers in a positive way.  We weren’t using it just because it was an expectation.  We were using it to communicate and reflect.  The website/blogs created by the students and by myself were a great thing, even if their writing needs some help.

While I did change things during the year to better meet the needs of the students, I still have areas that need addressing over the summer.  And of course, there are areas I feel that if I just changed it up a bit, students would be more successful.

  • Helping the students to understand why we do the blogs.  We started out with artist behaviors.  The students wrote about what they were doing and addressing the behaviors.  I thought P1040846they were moving along and understanding things.  So, we moved to artist statements after winter break. Nope. Most students weren’t there yet.  I then gave them the option to either do an artist statement or pick 2 behaviors like we did previously.  After reading their end of year surveys, I know they didn’t really see the point of them.  A handful of students did (and by handful I mean like 5), but the majority couldn’t see the point of writing in art and thought it was just busy work or for a grade. This is good to know.  I know my student population has an issue with writing, and I am sure that our state testing is partially to blame.  They are not good at writing, sad to say.  But, what I gleam from all this is that I need to help them to see that artists write about what they do.  That reflecting on the actions they are doing can help them grow as an artist.  And, that writing is not just for English and History class.
  • I did well creating demos for the students, but I feel I could do more.  I feel that I left some things up in the air…like color mixing…and some kids never explored that on their own.  Perhaps if I give them a taste of what color mixing could do…it could bring more life to their artwork.
  • The students have the ideas, they just need a bit more help as to what is possible oP1050608ut there–both in image, media, and technique.  How do I get them to see beyond the typical art room materials?  How can I encourage them to try something new?  How can I get them to go deeper and think further beyond the obvious? I need to address my line of questioning, the way images get shown to them for inspiration, and helping them to make more dynamic composition decisions.
  • This is the first year I had all 3 sculpture levels doing ceramics.  It was a lot of trial and error. While the students were happy with how things ran, it could be better.  I haven’t figured this out yet, but I will…even if every year we change some things to make it better.
  • Themes were tricky.  Ones that I thought would be killer…dropped dead.  I like working with the themes and I think, especially for my art 1 kiddos, they worked well.  Feedback said the students liked to have a starting point for their artwork.  Things I have been considering for next year…giving the entire list of themes and having them pick as they please…but then how would our padlet brainstorming work with that method.  Having the students suggest themes and then having a vote.  Something else?P1060109
  • Feedback and critique needs to change…big time.  I give personal feedback as I walk around, but I feel I miss students or I hit them too late in the process and they have yet to fully understand things can still be changed and you can go back to an earlier stage.  I want to do critiques more…especially mid-project. (And definitely mid-project in ceramics.)  I am hoping that this topic will be brought up at the TAB Institute this summer so someone can help me to suss this out.

I have more questions, but this has gone on long enough.  I feel that I will always have questions and that is a good thing.  I can’t become stagnant and complacent in my art studio.  No one will benefit from that. All in all, it was a fabulous year.  I mean, there wasn’t one day this year where I woke up and said I didn’t want to go to work.  That says something…don’t you think?  And I know that things will just get better and better if I keep putting my students first by helping them to think like artists and behave like artists and create like artists.

Big changes are on the horizon at my school.  Our entire admin staff is changing.  We are getting a new principal and moving from 4 assistant principals to an assistant, an associate, and a dean of curriculum. And, they will all be new people.  I’ve had a chance to sit and chat with our new principal.  He is very easy to talk to.  I told him about all the changes that I’ve done this past year.  I talked aboP1050334ut TAB and choice and the pedagogy.  He thought it was wonderful and that it aligned with something that was talked about at some principals/superintendents conference.  That made me happy and feel that I was doing the right thing.  And, surprisingly, when I said my final good-bye to our current principal, he said something I never thought he would.  We didn’t always see eye to eye, and sometimes I thought he just didn’t notice and didn’t understand.  But, he told me to keep doing what I was doing.  To keep my expectations high and keep pushing the students.  He said that that is what they will remember and what they will appreciate.

And to that, I say, they do.  And I will.

Feb16

Picturing Sound

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Sound.  Visualize it in your mind’s eye.  It’s not easy is it?  Well, that’s what my art 1 students were tasked with.  They were asked to take something that is not concrete and turn it into something that is.  And, they did just that.  They picked images that remind you of certain sounds…tires screeching, wind chimes in the wind, the quietness of peace, speakers booming, the vibration of bass, the crack of a baseball bat or thunder.

In this unit I introduced block and collograph printing.  Of course, tons of kids wanted to try block prints. I think they did well for their first try.  It was difficult to get them to understand placement of the print on the paper, but luckily I had a template they could use to help them get it right.

I am so pleased with their solutions.  There is so much thought put into these works.  Check out their artist statements telling of their intent and processes.  This is definitely a theme I will use again.

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Jan7

A Great TASK to Help Start the New Year

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A Great TASK to Help Start the New Year

Today was the start of a new semester at school.  I thought we needed to start off with a great activity–one that would shake off the slumber of winter break and ring in creativity and imagination for a new year.  And what better way to do so than have a day-long TASK party.

What is a TASK party you ask?

You can also find a previous post on TASK here.

I pulled out a bunch of supplies I had in my storage room:  yarn, egg cartons, craft items, fabric, 12″ dowels, wooden hearts and starts, buttons.  I plugged in all the hot glue guns we had.  I grabbed the large rolls of colored paper from the faculty lounge.  And, I started with a container full of tasks.

This party was to last all day.  I have 7 classes.  Once I started the party, I only broke for lunch, which consisted of writing more tasks.  This was the only place the students faltered…well, and when it came to blindly picking a task.  (Many wanted to pick and choose their task.  It was hard to stop them.)

It really was a fun day.  A few kids fought it at first, but ended up having a good time.  I think they need that time to play.  High school kids don’t often get that anymore.  And bonus, no one was on their computer today.  I wish I knew how many tasks were completed today…or at least attempted.   It would be fun to figure it out.  Perhaps next time.

By the end of the day, my feet were killing me and I was tired as all hell.  But, I had a counter full of artifacts.  I had a hopscotch board on my floor, and I had 2 body outlines–one in dry erase marker and one in tape.  (Just an FYI–certain dry erase markers don’t come off the floor so easily.)  I had a roll full of photos of the students making and laughing and creating and smiling.  I had a heart full of memories. And, I think it set the tone that creativity is welcome here–and encouraged.

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Dec20

How Do My Students Feel About Choice?

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If you have read any of my posts, then you know exactly how I feel about Choice in my artroom.  And in case you are new…I love it!!!  Love it, love it, love it.

But all too often we talk about what we as teachers want and how something made us feel or if we made the right decision.  We don’t ask the students, the most important people in our teaching world, what they think.

So, I did just that.  I asked them on their midterm exam what the experience of having choice in their classroom was like.  Here are some responses.

“This effected me a lot because last year we were very limited on the materials we had to use, and we all had to do the same art work in  the same manner everyone was doing it. It was a good idea for you to change it to were we can all do different types of art work but with the same theme, for example we were able to carve, paint, draw, and a lot of types of work. i think that method should stay because you can see what each person likes, and what their good at.”   ~Aharon, art 2 student

“I was really appreciative of the opportunity to get to pick what I wanted to do and how I would do it.  Having little restrictions was really helpful in expanding my creativity and giving me more choices.”    ~Edward, art 2 student

“We had a variety of things to use and how to use them. I personally think that some of the projects shouldn’t have been so optional with such a variety of things. That the assignments shouldn’t have been so open to do what those of such wanted. Some should of been open to pick to choose their material used, but some also should of been told what to use and work with that and grow on that to know how to use it and get used to using it. When starting a project it took me awhile to pick what I wanted to do and what I wanted to use due to all the options we had. I am the type of person that I’m more comfortable to be told what to use and then go from there. So it was a challenge adjusting but I got it done. ”  ~Kalisha, art 1 student

“I liked the new way of teaching/learning you introduced because it gave me a lot of liberties. In my school (in Germany) we have more defaults and the pictures look similar. Here everybody can draw and interpret the theme his/her own way. That way everybody draws something different and unique.”  ~Dania, art 1 foreign exchange student

“I felt like it really effected me because if you wouldn’t have given us the choice to really be creative i wouldn’t really try and make something really boring just something easy. I feel like it honestly did help me because i am actually interested and feel like i could do something with my art one day in the future. I am honestly really happy i stayed in this class and you gave me freedom because without that i probably wouldn’t see how much i enjoy art and really see i can do a good job when i put actual effort into it.”  ~Casey, art 1 student

“I loved that we got to choose what our artwork was this year. It’s given me a lot more freedom and has actually made me care about my artwork because I’m doing what I want to do, instead of something that i have no connection to.”  ~Ryan, Art 2 student

“This was effective to me by, letting me use the things that i needed and allowing me to have the things i need to make my artwork be great, and make it to where i don’t just slap something on a piece of paper and turn it in. I can actually give it character.”  ~Zoe, art 1 student

“I remember last year in ceramics when we had to make a certain piece, but use the method our art teacher wanted us to use. This year, we have theme that our pieces must revolve around, and we may use which ever method of building we like. Personally, I love this new method our teacher has been using for this year. I feel this allows us to continue to use a method we enjoy and focus on improving our skills using that method. Instead of constantly changing which method we have to use and using a method some students might dislike more than others. For example, say we are assigned to make usable containers, one student could use the slab method while another might use coils. There could also be a student who wants to use his or her own method to build a container. They each can find a way they like to sculpt and continue to learn more and more about whatever method they choose. We also have the privilege to try and improve our skill in a method we are not yet comfortable with.”  ~Joseph, intermediate ceramics student

Far and wide, almost all of my students (with the exception of beginning ceramics because I have not moved that class to choice…yet–it is coming next semester) really like having the choice.  They like being able to experiment and try new things and start over with another medium when the first they chose isn’t working.  They like being able to interpret themes as they wish.

I appreciate Kalisha’s perspective as well.  I know for some it is really hard to not be told how to do something, especially when you have been told how to do it for most of your young life.  She is a fabulous artist who spends time thinking about how she will interpret things and trying new mediums.  She works hard and has created some fabulous work.  I think that one day she might change her mind about having such freedom because from my perspective, it is working for her.

For more reading my students’ responses, go here.  I would also like to thank the teachers of Apex High School (for the umpteenth time) for sharing what they have done in their TAB classrooms.  I “stole” their exam questions to use with my students.

 

Aug28

Jumping in Feet First into Tab

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Today I decided my art 2: painting/drawing was just going to jump in, feet first, into TAB.  Let me tell you, it was nerve wracking.  We started off with a Padlet activity.  I introduced our first theme of man/machine and we brain stormed what they thought of when I said the word “man” and when I said the word “machine”.  This was the most talkative the class was all period.  Next I told them of the facebook art teacher group I am part of and how I asked my fellow teachers what artwork and what artists they thought of when I gave the topic of man/machine the list was so varied.  I showed my students examples from the suggestions.  I wanted them to see that there was no wrong answer.  That everyone has different images when told a theme, and that was okay.  In fact, it was encouraged.

The last thing I did today was a few demos on ways of creating value.  Our first unit based on “Man/Machine” is all about b/w drawing media.  I am excited about the artist dictionary they will be creating over the year from their practice of the demos that I do.  I don’t think I made the right choice in how I went about handing things out and the order of that.  I think next time (and I will have a chance to try again in a week or so with art 1), I will do the demo then hand out the practice sheets because even though I told them not to draw what I was drawing, many of them did.  I really want them to practice something and really try the technique out and not just do the short little “thing” I do.

As I mentioned before the loudest they were was during the brainstorming.  It really was a little freaky how quiet a 9th period class was.  I am really hoping they were just overwhelmed because it wasn’t  “normal” art class and they were trying to take it all in.  I really hope they were not bored.  I hope as we go along and this becomes “routine” they act more comfortable in class.  

I look forward to tomorrow.

Jun12

Bringing in Some Art History and the Digital Age

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A fellow art teacher posted this link to our FB art teacher group.  I thought it was awesome.

Basically, this middle school art teacher in Georgia shows a carefully selected group of artworks to her students and has them add text over the images to create memes.  But, she takes it a step further and then has the students research the original context of the artwork and when they post the meme to their edmoto page, they write about the original context in the comment section.  Then students are asked to comment thoughtfully on 3 of their classmates memes.

I think this idea is great.  And, I am going to incorporate it into my art 1 classes.  I think once every other week, the students will pick from the list of artworks and create the meme.  They will then upload it to their blog and add a description of the original context of the artwork.

It is a great way to tie art history with technology.  And, using the meme makes it relevant to the students and their lives.

Thanks to Artful Artsy Amy for sharing her blog.  I hope you don’t mind me borrowing your fabulous idea.  😉

Apr22

The Umlauf Sculpture Garden

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Last week I took my senior (and one junior) sculptors on a field trip.  Field trips at my school don’t happen very often, so when my principal said I could go, I didn’t hesitate in making the plans.  I picked a day in April when I thought it would be a great time to visit an outdoor sculpture museum.  And, man did I pick a good date.  It was sunny and mild.  The flowers were blooming.  The trees were green.  And the air was fresh.  It was a spring day in Austin.  And, it was a great day to visit the Umlauf Sculpture Garden.

I am not sure how many of my students had actually been to a museum before.  Perhaps they had been to the historical museum in their town, but that isn’t really the same.  At first my kids seemed bored.  But as we watched them, I think they were more unsure how to act.  What did they know of a docent and what a museum tour would be like.  I was worried that the trip would be a bust.

But then we moved off the patio and went over to see St. Michael and Lucifer.

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Our guide told the students they could touch the sculptures…and oh man, it was a whole new ball game.  My kids started to liven up.  They impressed me at every turn.  They were so well behaved.  They were genuinely interested.  It was one of the best days of the school year.

Student: “I liked that the Sculptures were surrounded by nature. It was something I haven’t seen before. I also like that they were very realistic and had stories behind them.”

Student: “I liked the way everything was placed in the garden, everything was placed according to the art piece. Like the pope was placed on higher ground overlooking the animals. How the lovers piece was in front of a pond with lots of lilies and it looked beautiful.”

Student: “They all had sentimental value and meaning to Umlauf. I really enjoyed how he made his sculptures with so much detail.”

Student: “I liked the second sculpture of the lovers series. I really liked the one where the man was lifting the woman, because I really liked the way her feet were curved, and to me it was a better pose than the first one we saw.”

Student: “My favorite sculpture was one of the sculptures outside. It was one figure with an arrow or spear, going in to stab to be what looked like the devil. It’s a religious piece and I just really enjoyed it because I grew up around a very religious granny.”

 

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One of my personal favorites by Umlauf.

One of my personal favorites by Umlauf.

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THS Sculpture 2013-2014

 

Mar31

Artistic Process Reflections

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Our current project in Art 2 is an altered book.  This is one of my favorite projects every year because it introduces some techniques and ways of art making that students may not have thought of.  It really makes them think and make connections.  They have to plan around a theme.  They have to be creative and interpret.  This year I have many kids that are super excited about this project, which makes me super excited about this project.

And, because of the nature of this project, I figured it was a great opportunity to try out a new way of grading…grading the process instead of the product.  I blogged about this in previous posts–here and here.  We are on our third week of altered books, so that means we have reflected twice.  I typed in the questions that Apex HS graciously shared into Socrative.  I asked my students to answer 2 of the questions based on what they did that week in their book.

I finally got around to reading them (I was a little busy with the art show).  I have learned a lot about my students and how they think.  I was nervous that they would just bullshit their way through the questions, and surprisingly I only got a few responses like that.  For the most part, students were very honest about their work and how they get their ideas, what they learn, how they collaborate, etc.  I have never asked many of them before to talk about their art or their choices.  I know I should.   Most jumped right in.  I am proud of them.

Student Response: “My mother nature drawing symbolizes my depiction of what she’d look like. I wasn’t able to add a masquerade mask like I wished I could have. No mask seemed to fit with the face so I just scrapped it. Mother nature is meant to be mysterious and beautiful. All in one. ”

Student Response: “Well my theme is emotions. I’m trying my best to focus more on the happier emotions rather than the sad ones. Because I am one of those “Negative Nelly’s” and with this project im hoping it’ll bring out the positive side of me in some way.”

Student Response:  “Yeah, I always seem to ask James because he sort of see’s things more imaginative/abstract. I usually see the obvious, but I guess thats because I’m a serious person.”

Student Response: “I wanted to convey an image of chaos through unity of concepts on some pages and an image of peace through random markings and chaotic techniques. I had few issues and this mirrors me because I am both peaceful and chaotic.”

Student Response: “I’ve been trying to step back and analyze my work every time I try to add something new to it. I have been really thinking about how to layout each scene in my book. It’s been a little difficult to work on the backgrounds of each scene without having any real plan on where I’m going to put everything.”

I look forward to reading the responses in the upcoming weeks.