Why did you decide to become an art educator? Revisited

Last week I asked K. Rob why she had decided to become an art teacher, this question I found to be very interesting and has since been nagging me. I want to know more, and in an attempt to remedy this I began asking my own art teachers.

T. Pag

First is T Pag. T has been teaching at My High School for five years, since graduating from Concordia University (of Minnesota). T began teaching my senior year and we became well acquainted, as I was a senior and one of the more advanced students working in metals. When I asked T why she had decided to go into art she, like K, said that she was inspired by a former teacher and had a love of art that she could not see going through life without. I have noticed that over the years T's teaching techniques and perspectives have changed slightly. When she began teaching she was very timid and was more of an active observer rather than a teacher, obviously she had to deal out assignments and introduce new methods but over all she took that year to learn about the school and the students, both personally and on an academic level. Today T has very much come into her own as a teacher and I feel she has made tremendous strides in making the classrooms her own.

T Berg

Second is T Berg. T has also been teaching at Marshfield High School for five years, since graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Stout. Coincidentally T is also a former student of K Rob. T Berg, like T Pag began teaching my senior year, but unlike T Pag I did not spend a lot of time in his class. Actually I did not spend any time in his classes, because I focused solely on metals. However we did converse frequently about different techniques in metal and the importance of art history. When I asked T why he decided to become a teacher, I was taken back by his answer, "I want to be a good person." This answer perplexed me as I think T is awesome. He went on to tell me that he wants to be an artist but he feels that being solely an artist can sometimes be very selfish and he wants to atone for that by sharing his knowledge and skills with young people (who he thinks are awesome). From his first year T has had an unobtainable energy, that I have never seen in any other teacher, and has a powerful and positive presence in the classroom. As I sat in on his AP Art History course, I noticed this energy and presence is even stronger today than it was five years ago. When I asked T what his secret was to being a great teacher he said that he's not only a teacher but an artist. He continues to make time to create and grow as an artist and that time allows him to reflect on his practices as a teacher, and connect to what the kids need and what they want. I really enjoy T as both a teacher and a person because of his ability to be honest especially when you need it.


These interviews have really helped me not only to really find out why I decided to go into art education but also to reflect on what kind of teacher I want to be.