ResourcesIf you or someone close to you is looking for resources, you can click here. This list is helpful for guidance in particular areas of focus. Local Resource: Youth OutlookYouth Outlook is the first social service agency in Illinois solely dedicated to the support of LGBTQ+ youth. We work in 6 counties in the Chicago suburbs, offering drop-in centers for youth, parent support, and community education. Drop-in Centers meet weekly and are a social setting for youth to meet other LGBTQ+ young people. We provide a safe and comforting space for them to talk about a variety of important topics . Youth Outlook provides dedicated programming related to safer sex, healthy relationships, and HIV/AIDS prevention and education. Our largest and fastest-growing group is Transcend, a supportive and affirming space for trans and non-binary youth Thrive, a drop-in center for parents and caregivers actively parenting LGBTQ+ teens, provides an informal and confidential space for families and supportive adult allies to share their stories, find commonalities, and get questions answered.. This group meets concurrently with our Transcend Drop-In. Community Education initiatives inform professionals and educators on needs specific to the LGBTQ+ community in addition to current trends in working with LGBTQ+ youth, and creating LGBTQ+ inclusive environments. Why Should We Focus on LGBTQ+ IssuesThe Center for Disease Control reports that LGBTQ+ youth are at an increased risk of abuse and bullying.
Writing Effective Lesson PlansIncluding the work of Lesbian and Gay artists in the art classroom is a vital step for inclusion of LGBTQ+ students in the art classroom. Lauren Lampella (2005) believes that teachers must discuss important aspects of an artist's life when discussing work. You simply cannot only show work of LGBTQ+ artists, you need to disclose that these artists are LGBTQ+. "I wondered how an art teacher could leave out one of the most important aspects of an artist's life when discussing the artist in class...I am convinced that knowing the sexual identity of lesbian and gay artists is paramount to understanding some of their works." (p. 35) Lampella, L. (2005).Writing effective lesson plans while utilizing the work of lesbian and gay artists. In Art Education. pp. 33-39. It's ElementarySchool needs to be a safe place of learning for every child. Respect for all must be taught, and It's Elementary emphasizes this importance. This film shows how various teachers approach LGBTQ+ issues in their classrooms.
Robert Roth, an eighth grade social studies teacher, for example, is seen teaching a lesson about stereotypes. He begins with general stereotypes and transitions the discussion into LGBTQ+ stereotypes. Robert Roth believes that, as a straight male, it is important to discuss. LGBTQ+ issues. We have to educate our students to be sure LGBTQ+ students are included and feel safe.
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Visual CultureArt education, specifically teaching visual culture, is essential to teach to students in a world where visual culture has become more sophisticated. Students need to connect meaning in visual culture, and the art classroom can help students with those connections. Contemporary Art and Multicultural Education"Many teachers shy away from using contemporary art in their teaching because they do not feel confident about their own knowledge and are reluctant to introduce their students to anything they many not have mastered themselves" Multiculturalism should not "simply involve the recuperation of 'lost' traditions in order to prove the richness and diversity of 'America'" (foreword). Multiculturalism instead should focus on current and contemporary subjects. We must teach equally and fairly, and to do this, art educators must include current, contemporary artwork and focus on justice, equality, dignity, and self-determination in lessons. Cahan & Kocur. (1996). Rethinking Contemporary Art and Multicultural Education. Routledge. Teaching about Native American ArtNative American art is frequently displayed and taught in art education curricula, and some lessons taught have been oppressive. Lessons taught about Native American art may have "been inhibited by inaccurate knowledge or unexamined views of Indians" (Eldridge, p. 1). Native Americans have been greatly harmed from stereotypes. There are a plethora of Native American tribes that still exist today, and each tribe is unique. There is a false-narrative being taught on what Native American art looks like and what Native Americans dress like. Not only are there varying tribes, some of what is taught places Native Americans as subjects in history while excluding them as contemporary, living people in our society. Reference Guerrilla GirlsThe Guerilla Girls (1998) describe themselves as a group of feminists who are “women artists and arts professionals who fight discrimination” (p. 7). They are a group who challenge the current canon of fine art through wit and anonymity. The Guerilla Girls use art and write about women artists so that this text can be used as “ammunition for all the women who are-or will become-artists” (p. 9). They are aware of the obstacles women artists often faced throughout history, and see the history of art being “a history of discrimination” (p. 7). The Guerilla Girls are not shy to call out the white-male gaze that has infiltrated not only the fine arts themselves, but the studies of them. The perspective of this text is from a minority standpoint. The Guerilla Girls not only discuss women artists, they also discuss the exclusion of people of color in art and art history. They placed a quote next to an image of the American Expressionist painter, Alma Thomas questioning: “why is The Museum of Modern Art more interested in African art than in art by African-Americans?” (p. 8). The Guerilla Girls disclose the prejudices in the current approach to talking about minorities in the arts. Women were indeed artists and artisans throughout history, yet a large majority of credit and history written about artists is for white males. The goal of the Guerilla Girls is to present on female artists throughout history and the art they made. The Guerilla Girls make their case through each chapter in their book. The structure of these chapters is to tell the stories of women artists and their work through various art periods. The first chapter discusses classical female artists, while the second chapter discusses female artists from the Middle Ages. Each chapter has the theme of discrimination that occurred throughout history itself as well as the art historians whose white-male gaze is clearly apparent. Chapter one illustrates what discrimination women faced in classical Greece and Rome; the true reality of their lives differed greatly from the tales of the goddesses worshipped by Greece and Rome (p 12). Medieval female artists, on the other hand, were largely involved in creating works for the church be they were creating religious objects, illuminated manuscripts, and tapestries (p. 19). These women were highly skilled craftswomen who created masterpieces. The Guerilla Girls lay out the truths and realities women have faced throughout the history of art. They interpret many art historians from classical to modern times as holding repulsive stances about women artists. Even homosexuality between an older mentor and a younger male in the classical world was seen as “the highest form of friendship” (p. 13). Homosexuality between men was considered a stronger bond than one of a heterosexual relationship between a woman and a man. Women lived in a society full of misogyny that was not appreciative of artwork made by women. The Guerilla Girls confront this issue in regards to what society has considered to be the most valuable in the history of art: “So why do art historians care more about architectural ruins, fragments of vases, sculptures of naked bodies, and descriptions of destroyed paintings than they do about tapestries, tunics, togas, and banners? If men had done the sewing, would underwear be hanging in the Louvre?” (p. 13). The Guerilla Girls invoke questions in the reader of why the history of art has been discriminatory towards women. The reader is forced to question the discipline of art history and its role in perpetuating discrimination. The consequences of the history and study of the arts being for the white-male gaze is perpetuated discrimination. There is discrimination in not only that of the time periods women artists lived, yet continue to discriminate women today in how their work is still excluded and dismissed by many art historians. Fortunately, just as the Guerilla Girls point out, in recent decades, many feminist art historians have been making changes in the discipline of art history. Many of these women “have resurrected and revalued hundreds of women artists from the past” (p. 9). The Guerilla Girls’ Bedside Companion to the History of Western Art sheds light on the women in history whom many have been forgotten and were never appreciated. Guerrilla Girls. (1998). The Guerrilla Girl’s Bedside Companion to the History of Western Art. New Feminist Activism for Art TeachersBelow is a guide I wrote to enable art educators to begin using feminist pedagogy in their classrooms. Feminist Participatory PedagogyThis short essay discusses how we live in an oppressive society, that we must be critical of visual culture, and that we must understand the importance of being a connected teacher. White Privilege"I was taught to see racism only in individual acts of meanness, not in invisible systems conferring dominance on my group." Below is a list of Daily Effects of White Privilege "I think whites are carefully taught not to recognize white privilege, as males are taught not to recognize male privilege. So I have begun in an untutored way to ask what it is like to have white privilege. I have come to see white privilege as an invisible package of unearned assets that I can count on cashing in each day, but about which I was “meant” to remain oblivious. White privilege is like an invisible weightless knapsack of special provisions, maps, passports, codebooks, visas, clothes, tools and blank checks." McIntosh, P. (1989). White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack. In Peace and Freedom Magazine. (July/August, 1989), pp. 10-12. A Class DividedA Class Divided is such a fascinating film to watch and reflect upon. To think that third graders who were recently so close to one another, would immediately grow drastically apart within minutes is terrifying. I started thinking about my own family history and our complicated roots in Nazi Germany. Half of my family directly opposed the Nazi party and were Jewish sympathizers (they were caught and were sent off to camps). The other half of my family was forced into the war and became brainwashed. After the war, they were ashamed of what they had done. Places of power can shift at any point of time, and that is what scares me. It repeats throughout history, and this film made me more conscientious of the consequences of privilege and power and how I need to be aware of any changes. I need to be aware not only for myself, but for my students too. Probably the most interesting and most shocking part of this 'experiment' was the radical drop of scores in less-privileged students and the elevated scores in more-privileged students. This is a scary consequence and reaction to how our environment greatly affects whether we succeed in life. Is this where #masculinitysofragile stems from? The idea of losing your privilege and thus, losing your confidence to do well in life? Frontline. (n.d.). A Class Divided. Retrieved May 11, 2017, from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/ Starting SmallStarting Small (1997) is a film that visits several schools across the United States that have implemented creative solutions to battle racism and segregation. These schools are examples of multicultural advocacy in school curriculum. I particularly enjoyed a lesson from Happy Medium School in Seattle, Washington, where students found what color of skin they were through the application of paint. Students were not "white" or "black," rather, students were a wide variety of colors like "mahogany" or "peach." McGovern, M. (Director). (1997). Starting Small: Teaching Children Tolerance [Motion picture on VHS]. USA. Art Educators as Covert Liberators Art education has taken a multitude of forms throughout history via numerous mediums; whether supported by the public or not, art education has been of inestimable worth. Art education has struggled throughout history, and continues to do so. Regardless of numerous hurdles, art education has persevered. Art educators have mostly been unnoticed shadows of progressive achievement throughout history, yet have continued their work regardless of society’s views of them. This paper will explore Paulo Freire, Kerry Freedman, and Mary Belenky as guides for the truths that we must understand that we live in an oppressive society, we must be critical of visual culture, and we must understand the importance of being a connected educator. We must first admit the oppressive society that we exist in and how we contribute to the oppression. Paulo Freire’s (1970) Pedagogy of the Oppressed describes how the banking method is not an effective form of teaching, while problem-posing is more ideal. The problem-posing method can serve to combat oppressive forms within education, yet we must understand that the “oppressed” are not absent from those who oppress them. Freire discloses that the oppressed “are not people living ‘outside’ society….They have always been ‘inside’-inside the structure that made them ‘beings for others’” (p. 74). With the problem-posing method, oppressed students can become liberated. Through simply teaching in a problem-posing manner as Freire suggests, art educators are equipped with the first tool for enacting progressive change within society. Society has also oppressed children, and their inclusion in studying visual arts has frequently been challenged. As Kerry Freedman (2003) points out, visual culture has vastly changed throughout history. Many children enjoy similar forms of visual culture as adults do, so much to the extent their lives are overwhelmed with visual culture. Freedman declares that “with the increasing and broadening influence of visual culture in society, the job of art educators has become vital to students’ lives” (p. 22). There is a need for visual literacy for youth while their views of the world largely consist of visual culture in areas of advertisements, television, videogames, comics, and so forth. With the rapid expanse of the internet, children are bombarded with far more imagery than ever before. Art educators are vital for children to decode the world that surrounds them. Oppression and visual culture are essential topics to study as an art educator, but art educators must connect with their students via connected teaching in order to prompt progression. Mary Belenky (1997) teaches us that “connected teachers welcome diversity of opinion in class discussion” (p. 223). This is important to implement in teaching to create a classroom of cooperated knowledge. With the opportunity to exchange knowledge in the classroom, students can learn the process of solving an equation completely instead of simply learning the answer from their mentor. If an educator simply retorts answers as statements of fact, students become scared to attempt risks because they are not “all knowing” as their mentor is. This is why connected teaching is the third valuable tool; connected teaching allows students the freedom to attempt problems without the fear of failure. Art educators have much to learn from Paulo Freire, Kerry Freedman, and Mary Belenky and through their works, art educators are equipped with tools to understand the oppressive society they exist in, the power of visual culture literacy, and the importance of connected teaching. While much of society may find art education of little importance, art educators have not forsaken their craft. Although our capabilities may be invisible to the world we exist in, that does not stop us from being covert liberators for our students. References Belenky, M. (1997). Women’s ways of knowing. New York: Basic Books. Freedman, K. J. (2003). Teaching visual culture: curriculum, aesthetics, and the social life of art. New York: Teachers College Press. Freire. P. (1970). Pedagogy of the oppressed. New York: Continuum Books. Place-Specific Material Culture StudiesJames W. Bequette (2014) wrote in his article, Culture-Based Arts Education That Teaches Against the Grain: A Model for Place-Specific Material Culture Studies, focusing on making schools "more engaging places for Indigenous youth and spaces for further anti-oppressive education to achieve social change" (p. 215). Teachers need to be culturally competent. The first step is to recognize and unpack Indigenous perspectives. Many historical documents and "facts" were written in a white, western male perspective. There is another side that must be addressed. Reference: Color Lines"Color symbolism permeates contemporary and historical artwork. It also can reinforce centuries of racism. But teaching students about the hidden meaning in color symbolism can enhance multicultural efforts and students' understanding of art." (p.29) Art and symbolism are critical avenues for art educators to be aware of. The racial implications from traditional fairy tales, cartoons, and classical literature can associate "light with goodness and knowledge and darkness with evil and ignorance" (Gude, p. 29). Art teachers must be aware of the implications of symbols and to recognize what might be harmful in the classroom. Gude, O. (2001). Color lies. In Principal leadership. 2(3). pp. 29-35. Freire and Giroux“Freire sees education as an empowering force for people” (Giroux, 1998 p. 43) When I am confronted with the idea of education being a powerful force, my immediate thought goes to my time teaching in China. When I arrived, I met a friend who was in the same international organization as me. He was to be my guide in Beijing before I made my trip to Wuhan. He showed me his campus, Peking University. Peking University is regarded as the “top” University in China, and my friend Jack was a student there. He asked me many questions about America and American views on China. We entered the West gate to his campus so we could go to his university’s library. He turned to me with sorrowful eyes and said “I go to the top university here, but there are books I am not allowed to read.” Those words stung, and I became fully aware of my own privilege in being an American with freedom in my own education. Freire, as Giroux (1998) points out, was a man who enjoyed culture, international in scope. In the NIU eLearning (2016) video, Giroux is being interviewed and talks about his experiences with Freire. Giroux told us that Freire “integrated life into his pedagogy” (2:15). Freire was a man who lived his life, constantly regarding his pedagogy. Every word Giroux spoke of Freire was, to me, incredibly powerful and inspiring. We are always learning from someone else, and in that moment, as I was standing next to Jack, I did the best I could to empathize with his dilemma. This first drawing is my own representation of the West gate to Peking University. Instead of a greeting that states “Peking University,” I changed the sign to say 真相图书馆, meaning Truth Library. The gates are locked as a sign says “access denied” to “中国人,” (Chinese citizens). Many histories are silenced, and the Chinese citizens are silenced from the truth and knowledge they seek. Not only did I find the denial of education appalling, I grew to realize how powerful images of western women were to Chinese consumers. Advertisements in subways, mannequins on display, and television advertisements were filled with blond haired, blue-eyed western women. I asked a student why this was the standard, and she explained to me that this meant these products were “international products; they show us the world uses them.” I saw a completely different picture. I saw many of my students compliment me for being a blond, blue-eyed western woman. What was exceedingly painful, was constantly hearing that they “would never be as pretty as [me].” They did not believe they were attractive because they were Chinese. No matter how hard I tried to tell them that this was not true, they continued to believe that western women were superior in beauty. In going back to Berger in his Ways of Seeing, I always think of my time in China and how Caucasians are represented there. Sturken and Cartwright discuss Berger in their 2009 publication, Practices of Looking. Similar to Giroux’s work, Sturken and Cartwright’s work continued to spur my memories of China and their profound impact on my view of the world, and how I found my place to be a teacher. Sturken and Cartwright state: “Studying visual culture is not only about seeing what is shown. It is also seeing how things are shown and seeing what we are not shown, what we do not see- either because we do not have sight ability, because something is restricted from view, or because we do not have the means for understanding and coming to terms with what is right before our eyes.” (p. 6) I felt alone in seeing an image no one else around me saw when looking into these advertisements. I began to wonder if I was the one that was not seeing the bigger picture. The next two images I created in response to these readings are representations of the some of the advertisements I saw during my time in Wuhan. I would pass advertisements for maternity clinics daily, and the babies used in the advertisements were almost always western babies with blue eyes. They would be repeated images along hallways next to escalators. Why was I the only one questioning them? Why were my students not bothered by Western models selling products to the Chinese people? I was a rarity in Wuhan. This southern city rarely sees westerners, let alone western females (more men than women travel to China). Sometimes, I felt I was “a western goddess.” It was truthfully, very uncomfortable for me. The only concept many citizens in Wuhan had of western women were from what they saw in Hollywood movies. And Hollywood movies almost always sexualize blond females. I was surrounded by images of blond women that were heavily sexualized to sell products to the Chinese people. Ed Check’s (2010) discussion of lower class jobs and how working people get “shit on” (p. 6) made me question more of the consequence of many factories moving from the United States to China. The images he includes of what he calls “industrial wastelands” (p. 4), reminded me of my birthplace, Sterling, Illinois, and how many factories were shut down there, just to be shipped off to China. Our products are now Chinese-made for our benefit. When I saw the other end of this “business exchange” I saw how the Chinese took pride in creating products for America. Their advertisements almost always depicted a very sexualized western woman representing a Chinese product. The message I got from these advertisements was ”she’s beautiful, but she’s beautiful because she wears Chinese products.” These readings made me focus on my own beliefs and how much my experience in China has shaped me. I am particularly fond of Giroux’s work on Freire. I believe that secondary sources are valuable in that someone else is validating a pedagogy and building off of that pedagogy. Giroux’s statement in the video interview about using theory as a resource is incredibly true (NIU eLearning, 8:00). We need to draw from theory as a resource, and not draw from them as a “prescription” (NIU eLearning, 8:00). References Micky Mouse MonopolyMicky Mouse Monopoly is a film that challenges underlying issues in popular films for children. There are consequences to the racial and sexist undertones of some of these films, and Micky Mouse Monopoly explores those issues. Reviving OpheliaReviving Ophelia discusses the developmental issues young girls face, the poisonous culture they live in, and the needs that have or have not been met by American culture. The film, Reviving Ophelia, emphasizes and discusses what needs young girls need. "Girls need an opportunity to grow and develop into human beings." |
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