Pursuing a concentration in Art Education can help turn your passion for visual artmaking into a career to work with children and youth. Art Education at Southern provides pathways to become an art teacher in public schools by meeting the requirements to apply for the teaching certificate, ART PK-12 (042) from the Connecticut State Department of Education. As an art educator, you will be able to inspire others and help them explore the world through art.
We have an undergraduate pathway for those of you who are already in your undergraduate studies and majoring in art and design, the BS Art Education.
We also have a graduate program, the Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) in Art Education, which provides a pathway for achieving a teaching certificate while also earning a master’s degree for those who have already earned a bachelor's degree in art and design.
Our art education program is led and guided by a social justice framework. We are interested in the social dynamics of the school culture and the communities in which our PK-12 students are learning and growing, as well as considering our own identities as teachers. We design curriculum to cultivate creative classroom communities and pedagogical practices that engage learners in artmaking.
In our Art Education program, we explore how the social and political environment impacts the way we teach and create art, especially in today's world of multi-dimensional media and visual culture. We also incorporate historical art practices and contemporary art into our teaching methods to expand our students’ vision of what counts as art, who counts as artists, and what counts as knowledge.
Program Features
Art teachers contribute to the creative lives of students in preschool through high school.
The B.S. in Art Education program at Southern fulfills the state requirements to earn Connecticut certification as a PreK-12 art teacher. In our community of innovation and reflection, your coursework and student teaching experiences will:
- Expand and strengthen your studio skills to translate into curriculum with your future students
- Cultivate racial literacy and critical perspectives on urban and multicultural education
- Develop your capacity to meet the special needs and rights of all PreK-12 students through the study of abilities/disabilities, multilingual learning, and human development
- Investigate the role of digital culture in art teaching
- See the multi-faceted role of art education in community settings
- Teach art within cultural, historical, and socio-political contexts for a more socially just future
Student Learning Outcomes in the BS Art Education Program
- Study, analyze and develop curriculum for PK12 Art Education classrooms at appropriate developmental levels which includes student engagement in a wide range of art media and content; differentiated practices for diverse learning needs, formative and summative assessments; meeting national core art standards and culturally responsive pedagogies, and lead PK12 art students to employ artmaking as means of social emotional learning and development.
- Cultivate studio skills in a wide range of visual art disciplines to bring art studio expertise and investigation to PK12 students.
- Participate in field experiences in Connecticut Public Schools PK12 art classrooms to gain hands-on experiences teaching PK12 students, perspectives on daily school life of teachers, practice within profession settings and reflect on the mentorship from in-service art teachers.
- Connect art curriculum to communities of practice with intentional engagement with families, parents, guardians and community leaders.
- Engage in experiences to directly connect to art history, contemporary art, community arts and cultural institutions to integrate these perspectives and resources with PK12 art classroom practice.
- Achieve eligibility to apply for teacher certification from the Connecticut State Department of Education for ART PK12 TEACHING (042) to then seek employment in Connecticut Public Schools.
Careers
Whether you are looking to positively impact the next generation of artists or design the curriculum behind it, a degree in art education is certainly a career path filled with rewarding opportunities. Art educators help students of all ages appreciate and create visual art in classrooms and community centers. You’ll be well-equipped to do everything from planning high school classes to developing community art programs, even developing effective and educational visits to fine arts museums.
Typical Job Titles
- Art Teacher
- Community Arts Organizer
- After-School Program Coordinator
Other Information
Pre-Art Education to Art Education Candidate for Teaching Certificate
The Art Education program at Southern is regulated and guided by the Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE), like all teacher certification programs. The CSDE requires that when students declare a major in Art and Design with a concentration in “Art Education,” they are designated the status of "Pre-Art Education" until they complete some requirements and apply to the College of Education to move forward and gain acceptance in the Art Education Program.
Requirements to Move From Pre-Art Education to Art Education Concentration
Undergraduate students complete several requirements before they can be considered for acceptance by the College of Education into the Art Education teacher certification program:
- Maintain a GPA of 2.7 or higher
- Demonstrate the professional dispositions of a pre-service teacher and conduct yourself accordingly in all coursework and
- Enroll in EDU 200: Teachers, Schools, and Society
- Enroll in ART 270: Introduction to Art Education (offered Fall semester only). Earn a grade of B or higher.
- Apply to the College of Education during the semester when the student is enrolled in those two courses. The application process includes
- Essay
- Praxis Core Basic Skills Exam scores or SAT / ACT qualifying scores within the past 6 years
- Art portfolio