Art is taught at every level of education, from elementary school through college. Although art is often viewed as less important than core subjects such as math, English and science, in reality it is a crucial professional skill. Artistic skills are necessary for presentation, advertisement, product design, and many other real-world occupations. Art teachers help all students gain a basic understanding of visual design and aesthetics, and give young artists the training they need to make a career in the field.
Benefits
For many people, teaching art is a dream come true. Succeeding in the fine art world is extraordinarily difficult, and commercial art is something that many artists find unappealing. An art teaching job allows an artist to focus on fine art while having the economic security that few fine artists can enjoy. Art teachers also get access to art facilities either for free or at reduced cost. The opportunity to teach others about art is another advantage. By sharing her own knowledge, an art teacher can understand the process of making art more deeply while getting the chance to help a student.
Types
In elementary and middle school, art is often taught as part of homeroom. The same teacher who teaches art will have to handle language arts, science, math, and social studies. At this level, art is often integrated with other parts of the lesson. For example, students might sketch pictures of leaves as part of a science class, or make a diorama of a scene from a book as part of language arts. At the high school level, art is usually an elective class. The art teacher gets to work with a variety of media, and teach a little bit of theory, such as perspective, color theory, and composition. Art professor jobs are highly coveted, because they give the professor access to excellent facilities, talented students, and a solid income. The majority of students in college art classes are art majors, so the teacher can work closely with young artists to help them develop their talents and focus on particular skills.
Function
Art instruction serves different roles at different levels. For young students who have not developed sophisticated language skills yet, art is a way to express ideas and explore imagination. Art teachers who work with teenagers use art as more of a creative outlet and a chance for self-expression outside of the core academic subjects. At the college and graduate level, art teachers help amateur artists become professionals. The students usually come in with tremendous interest and some skill, and leave with portfolios and sophisticated artistic skills.
Considerations
Getting a job as an art teacher is much more difficult than it used to be. Schools cut back on art funding all the time, and our culture emphasizes practical skills over creative thinking and intellectual development. If you want to teach art, you should have other skills as well. An elementary teacher, for example, should have a lot of experience in math and language arts, as well as art. Secondary teachers who want to teach art will likely need another area of expertise as well. Many high school teachers are also licensed to teach literature, for example, or math.
Misconceptions
Many people believe that teaching art only requires artistic training, but art teachers usually have to undergo quite a bit of professional training and licensing. To get a job teaching art in a public school, a teacher needs to have a state teaching license and, in many districts, has to know at least one other subject. Getting a job as an art professor is even more demanding. Art professors need to have graduate degrees, and to have some professional recognition in the art world as well. Typically, an artist will have to get a few studio shows under his belt before he will even be considered for a college level art teaching position.
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