COMICSPACE!!!
Get on it! [link]

MYSPACE!
You know you have one, so drop by and befriend me --> [link]

COMMISSIONS/ART FOR SALE!!!!!
Same things you see here, but you can BUY it....and help me get Photoshop.--.> [link]

Salutations all-

As this semester of school reaches completion, I have the opportunity to reflect upon what I have learned and observed throughout the duration of this academic year. My philosophy on education had undergone a complex maturation that has effectively transformed my views on teaching and implication of pedagogy in the classroom. In this time, two common questions wrapped in the same theme kept reasserting themselves in my mind as I sat and learned with my peers:

- How dedicated are these individuals to the craft of teaching?
- How dedicated are these individuals to the craft of art?

As I casually observed and remarked several times with my fellow art ed majors, there were a few individuals who I felt did not have the same desire or dedication to the craft that is teaching. Beyond the major items such as academic work, there were many small things that bugged me about these individuals. For instance, being punctual apparently did not apply to these students. They would arrive late, leave early and not even offer to help clean up after class. This may seem like a minor issue, but in the long run this kind of behavior will influence your teaching and effectiveness as a teacher. Administration certainly frowns down down on being tardy frequently and ducking out early. Students will take advantage of your own inability to maintain schedule and reliability. It makes you seem unprofessional and that you couldn't give a shit about what's happening in your classroom.

But something else that entered my mind as the year progressed is something that was brought upon a few times but I never thought about until recently: how dedicated are these individuals to the creation of their own art? Is it something that they do only when school is in session? Is it something that is done when they have free time? Or is it something done as a means to earn a piece of paper in order to earn capital? Looking at myself as an example, art IS my life. I love creating art in all mediums and styles; my appetite to create can never be satisfied. However, I do not feel that the majority of my classmates, even those whom I have grown close to, share my same sense of dedication to expanding their own visual language. This issue bothers me the most, as the expectations of art teachers is different versus a science teacher. You do not expect the science teacher to be a scientist working for NASA, however the art teacher better damn sure be able to talk the talk and walk the walk. Being legitimate in the eyes of your students is a HUGE factor that makes for easier classroom management and implication, and your fellow educators will also respect you for having both a strong pedagogical practice and keeping your own artistic muscles in shape.

Dedication to both improving yourself as a person through your educational practices and your visual language should be two goals that you should always be striving for.

Thanks for reading my musings, any feedback is much appreciated.


Nick

Clubs that I am part of but kinda-not-really active in-