Faculty Professional Development Activities
Show examines the complexities |
Full-time and part-time faculty in the Art Department are dedicated
teachers who work hard to perfect their craft. In the past five
years, full-time Art faculty have revised the content, syllabi,
and catalog descriptions of several Art Education, Art History,
and Art Studio courses. They also have created entirely new classes
in all three areas of our program (see Section I). These changes
were in response to recent developments in our
disciplines as well as in university education in general, as ideas
about the most effective ways to teach have changed in recent years.
The members of the faculty regularly attend workshops about teaching
and learning at various professional conferences, including the
College Art Association, National Association of Schools of Art
and Design, National Art Education Conference, National Council
for the Accreditation of Teacher Education, Southern Graphics Council,
Sacramento Consortium of Art and Design Educators, and
California Art Education Association, among others. Many of the
Art faculty have taken advantage of campus resources to improve
or enhance their teaching effectiveness. Following is a summary
of some of their activities:
- Participation in “Writing Across the Curriculum”
workshops
- Participation in workshops and events sponsored by the Center
for Teaching and Learning. In October 1999, Elaine O’Brien
made a presentation titled “Schooling the Imagination: Rethinking
Creativity in Academe” (one of our lecturers, Brenda Louie,
also was a panelist at this event). In 2003-2004, Rachel Clarke
and Sarah Flohr were selected to attend the Teaching Using Technology
(TUT) Summer Institute, also sponsored by CTL.
- Participation in workshops sponsored by the Learning Skills
Center (in particular, Dan Frye, currently serving as Art faculty
advisor for EO665 students)
- Participation in the CSUS Peer Training Program
- Participation in workshops on Community Service Learning
sponsored by the Office of Community Collaboration at CSUS (several
faculty, including Ricardo Favela, Dan Frye, Elaine O’Brien,
and Catherine Turrill)
- Exploration of new technologies in support of teaching through
consultation with Instructional Design and Information Technology
Consultants at University Media Services, University Computing and
Communication Services (to develop digital images for use in classroom
instruction), and other campus offices. In Studio Art, both Roger
Vail and John Driesbach have experimented with new computer-based
techniques for application in their studios and classrooms. In Art
Education, Anna Wagner-Ott has attended a workshop on the Dreamweaver
program.
- Use of University grants to develop, revise, or enhance courses. As Director of the Barrio Arts Program, Ricardo Favela applies annually for IRA funding in support of his course, ART 148. In 1999, Elaine O’Brien received a Community Service Learning Award in support of the implementation of service learning components in three of her courses (ART 7, 110, and 111). In 2001, Dan Frye received an identical CSL Award to support his work in ART 133. The College of Arts and Letters also awarded him both funding and assigned time in support of the development of a new course on art of the African Diaspora. Also in 2001, Anna Wagner-Ott and Elaine O’Brien were the recipients of a CSUS Pedagogy Enhancement Award in support of a collaborative museum education project, “Mapping Identities,” that involved both CSUS and local high school students. In 2003, the College of Arts and Letters gave Pat Chirapravati funding and assigned time in support of her work on two new courses in Asian art, ART 117A and 117B (including the expansion of slide resources). Both Pat Chirapravati and Sarah Flohr received grants from the Global Education Office in support of the “internationalization” of their teaching at CSUS.
DUO SHARES ART OF TEACHING ART
Article Appearing in Fall 2002 l Capital University Journal
Retired Sac State professors Don and Barbara Herberholz have dedicated their careers–and a good portion of their lives–to teaching teachers about teaching art.
In addition to creating art, instructing art classes and producing art docent programs for local school districts, the husband and wife team have numerous books, articles, films and programs to their credit.
Their popular textbook, Artwork for Elementary Teachers , is now in its ninth edition. More than 500,000 copies have been sold throughout the United States, Canada and Europe. The book has been in print longer than any book of its kind.
The Herberholzes have always encouraged a hands-on approach to art instruction and consider art a tool that helps students think.
“There is a huge emphasis in elementary school programming on developing the left brain with reading, writing and arithmetic,” Barbara says. “Through art, students are able to develop their right hemisphere, where they can perceive things and think in a spatial mode.”
“When children make art they engage their reasoning skills,” Don says. “They use critical thinking and they learn to visualize.”
Since his retirement as chair of Sac State's art department in 1991, Don has continued to improve Artwork for Elementary Teachers and has exhibited his artwork in many galleries throughout California. Barbara created an art docent program for the San Juan Unified School District in 1982 that still keeps her busy today.
Art and Poetry Meet in Calaveras Hall
http://www.csus.edu/bulletin/042301bulletin.pdf
Although English professor Noie Koehler and art professor Tom Montieth are from different academic worlds, they have something in common this semester – the Words and Image Exhibition. The professors have teamed up to celebrate their students' work. Last semester, Koehler's English class wrote poems inspired by the works of Montieth's art class, and the pairings are on display in the English Writing Center of Calaveras Hall until May 18.
“We want students to see the relationship between poetry and painting,” says Elaine O'Brien, who coordinated the exhibit. “Both are forms of imagination.
