I have only been teaching art for the past two years, and I feel as though this question is a great opportunity for self reflection. I have had the opportunity to teach in a variety of settings, and have found my current location to be most challenging. It is a challenge to encourage students with very little moral or motivation to learn in school, and an even greater challenge in the art classroom.
There is very minimal appreciation for the arts in my school, and I fear that the students were only familiar with directional craft making in previous years.
As their new teacher, I want to inspire them to create work that is a reflection of their deeper interests. Of course it is easier to direct students to create, I am still experimenting with ways to inspire my students creatively and to guide them.
