Entry #7:
Continuing Educational Stepping Stones
March 20th, 2022
#learningsteppingstones
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Sometimes it’s hard for me to focus on the present moment, especially mid-way through a class or semester I try and make time and space to refocus my perspective on how far I’ve come, where I’m going, and where I am presently at in my goals and educational achievements. Honestly, I’ve known that I wanted to be an art teacher since I was young. I remember when I was in 6th grade, I had to take an online quiz that would list possible jobs that suited our interests and personalities. When I was much younger, I wanted to be an Egyptologist, but the “test,” recommended a career in art therapy. I didn’t even know what art therapy was, but spent time researching that field of study. It wasn’t a very scientific test really, many of my classmates got results that they found humorous. But, before that point, I hadn’t even considered that art education would be the path for me. Art teaching became a more interesting focus than art therapy, and it just clicked. Once I knew what I wanted to do, I could see the imaginary pathway lining up in my mind. Teachers helped me figure out what that path might look like if I wanted to pursue art education. I had supportive adults in my life, and it helped me keep forging a path ahead. I think that even when a student might not have the support at home, a teacher can fulfill the role of guiding students when they ask for help or express their frustrations in following their own goals. I had helpful teachers and family, but ultimately the decisions I made for my own path— were mine, and mine alone.
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I think the best way to look at education, is that it’s never over— you just keep learning and moving forward. The path is unending, and that’s a good thing. With time, and trial-and-error, you become more confident of the steps you are taking. Sometimes one path leads into a totally new one. I think the most exciting part of studying how to be an art teacher, is that I get to test out new methods and styles, and it all contributes to the process of learning. Even the techniques that don’t appeal to my educational style, still offer perspective to the things I do like.
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For this piece in my landscape metaphor series, I thought of how “stepping stones” are used physically and metaphorically. They can help you traverse difficult and steep terrain, but also help you learn new skills that might be daunting otherwise. A lot of the teaching methods we focus on in class, especially the student-led ones, have the teacher as a facilitator of learning “stepping stones,” or scaffolding. The stones or pathways don’t guarantee that a student will have an easy time figuring things out, but they do offer assistance when needed, and sometimes knowing that the safety net is there, helps students try something new and difficult.
