Matthew Kargol earned his B.A. and M.A. from the University of Northern Iowa, and has an M.F.A. from Clemson University. He has worked as a practicing artist for over 20 years with artworks displayed in public and private collections across the country. He is a public artist/sculptor/graphic designer when he is not teaching or coaching. Currently, Matthew is the high school art teacher at Oskaloosa Senior High School in Oskaloosa, Iowa. The Oskaloosa Senior High School is a 1to1 school with a project-based curriculum; Matt s classes are rooted in authentic instruction and real world experiences. He also works with Fine Arts and Cultural Events of Mahaska County, F.A.C.E. where he is vice-president, to create opportunities for community members in Mahaska County, Iowa, to experience exceptional arts education and make art accessible and exciting. Briefly describe your (the) teaching approach. My approach to teaching art at the high school level is first by developing a strong set of observational skills. We spend a considerable amount of time in beginning classes learning to see and draw, this is key to being able to visualize future projects. I subscribe to a less is more philosophy and don t try to cram too much into a trimester (all my classes are trimester long). We do between 2-5 high-quality projects that build on each other. My goal is to develop excellence in my students, understanding that excellence is a sliding scale depending on each student s abilities. I refer to my students as artists and treat them as such. My second and third level classes transition into student driven projects where they decide within the boundaries of the class where they will concentrate their efforts. This is not a free-for-all as everything must pass through the project interview, and be approved by me. This actually helps the students create higher quality work, and address concepts and issues that students may not have considered. I use a question answer style in this by proposing questions and allowing students to find the answer,
helping minimally in guiding them only when necessary. Often these projects are based on real-world problems, this is called authentic instruction which is one step beyond project based in that students are dealing with actual projects with real clients, rather than hypothetical scenarios. Student s take ownership of their art and their projects and connect with the business owners in ways that validate them as members of the community. As part of my students exposure to being a real artist, we watch weekly videos about contemporary artists working around the world, and students respond in writing with their takeaways from learning about them. What are the benefits and disadvantages to using this method? Advantages: School pride in the work and connections with the community Student engagement and pride in their work Student understanding of my faith in their abilities Courage to seek out solutions and problem solve as the project develops Confidence in tackling new challenges Community pride Real world experiences Creativity is wide open Students develop a broader concept of the art world and making a living as an artist Disadvantages: Not a lecture type of teaching, must be more hands-on and individual/team-based as each group and project has different needs Time management is crucial No predictable outcome Quality control
Some students need more assistance to move through the process Not every project makes it to production for a client; the real world can be tough and bruise egos Walk us through a typical class and how the approach is used. M,Tu,Th,F are workdays (50 min), only in-class projects are to be worked on in class. Monday s introductory and first level students are given sketchbook assignments, usually 2 pages worth that expand their thinking and creative thinking skills. Upper-level students have self-driven sketchbooks due each Friday. Wednesdays are 35 min periods, so it s really too short to get materials out set up work and then have time to clean up so I have inserted art videos on those days. We watch selections from art21, the creators project, or sister Wendy; all can be found online. Students then have till Friday to write their reflection on the artist and their work, work style, or anything else they gained from watching the video. The great thing about project-based lessons is that there is always something to do and it changes depending on the stage of the project that you are at. Here are the stages my students work through: The Introduction and Brainstorming: Usually, we start with the introduction of the project. Sometimes this means having a real client come in to explain what they need, other times I do that. The kids have a chance to ask questions, and then begin brainstorming ideas, and preparing for their project interviews. Often I have them work with their tablemates to blast through common information like measurements, cost analysis, etc I also have them help each other brainstorm by bouncing ideas off each other and expanding and extending those concepts.
The Project Interview: After 1-2 days, students meet with me to go over their ideas. I look for at least 5 concepts, with sketches, and images of similar work that they have researched. I am also looking to see how well they have worked their ideas through, and then ask them questions to move them forward. I also use this time to point out special considerations such as structural issues in their designs, asking them how they plan to make this portion work in the real world. We usually narrow it down to 1-3 concepts that they may combine, or pick one. These are concepts that I am okay with them continuing on with, I do give them my opinion about which one I think is best and why. Sometimes I need to send them back to the drawing board with new considerations. The Proposal: After the project interviews and the final designs are planned out, we meet with the client, real or imagined and present the proposal. Sometimes it s a sketch sometimes it s a model. Depending on the project some ideas move on and others don t, or all students move on with input from the client, it just depends. In graphic design, for example, it is easy to have everyone move on to flesh out their designs completely whereas because sculptures are much more labor and material intensive so it s not feasible to do 20 large scale works. Sometimes ideas can be combined, other times not. The students who s work doesn t move on then become team members in the creation of the final piece assisting the lead who s piece was selected in various aspects that need work. The Work Time: Each day, moving forward, students work on progressing their project. They know the drill. We have timelines and deadlines for steps along the way and try to stick to them. Work is delegated to team members. Individual projects move forward in much the same fashion with deadlines for each step. I have students keep logs, what did I do today, what did I accomplish, what do I need to do tomorrow, and
what do I need to be thinking about in 2-3 days, this goes in their sketchbook as well. In-Process Critiques: In-process critiques happen daily, either from me seeing and addressing the progress or I have them meet with their teams or exchange with another team to receive feedback. This is a quick but very valuable aspect of artistic growth. Sometimes we have sticky note critiques, which are very quick, easy and anonymous. The Reveal/Final Critique: On the day of the deadline, we reveal the work to the client or class members or other community members. This process is a presentation where students present their work to the client and share their thoughts and rationale for the work. The client gives feedback or is satisfied with the result, sometimes this is where the selection of the final work is made (graphic design). If it is an in-class critique, I have students sketch each work in their sketchbook, this forces them to look closely at it. Then, I have the class comment on what they see, what it means to them, and the good the bad and the confusing. Then, the artist gets to talk and respond. And finally the class makes suggestions. I usually then allow students 1 week to make revisions if they wish. Sharing: I don t share every work of art, nor does every student have his or her work displayed. I select the top works for display and the rest are graded and returned to the artist. I am tough on this, but I don t have a lot of room to display work and the opportunities for an exhibition are slim. Some students have told me how proud they were when they finally had their work displayed because it made them feel like a real artist and that they were really good at it. I would love for every student to feel this way, but the students know that if their work is displayed it is one of the
best, so they take a lot of pride in it. If that opportunity was extended (logistically it can t be), it would lose that impact. If we have an exhibition in one of the galleries, I have the students do all the work, so that they learn the process of securing a location, hanging, promoting, and taking down work, as this becomes another valuable project that will serve them later. If someone was interested in incorporating more of this approach, what advice would you give them? Look for opportunities around you, utilize your resources, and connect to your community. Expect excellence; trust your students to be excellent. Keep your standards high, students will rise up. Allow students to have more control over the process and outcomes, it s not predictable. Students need to learn how to revise or re-do when the result isn t what they wanted or isn t at an excellent level that is acceptable. Utilize your experiences as an artist, and all the things you had to learn and do, teach your students those things, if you don t know how to do those things, bring in guest artists to share, watch the artist videos and study their processes. Good teachers anticipate the process, teach your students to do the same. Ask questions of your students; invite them to consider the solutions until they can ask those questions without your prompting. Go For it! Teaching students how to draw or paint is great and necessary, but there comes a time when all artists need to know and do more. The should learn how to connect to their community and seek out opportunities, to confidently plan projects and follow through, and be able to talk about the results with confidence and pride. These are valuable and necessary skills for students no matter what field they pursue later in life.