This study investigates Girl Scout founder Juliette Gordon Low’s role as an art educator. The study is framed around the years of Low’s life, 1860-1927, concentrating on the years 1912-1927, when Low’s role as an art educator was most pronounced. An examination is made into Low’s early artistic influences and training, and artworks made by Low are discussed. An overview of the Girl Scout organization is presented, and Low’s working relationship with Boy Scout founder Sir Robert Baden-Powell is analyzed. Evidence of art education in the early Girl Scout movement is examined, including handbooks, artist merit badges, nature study and observational drawing, and the personal recollections of an early Girl Scout. Low’s art education contributions beyond the scope of Girl Scouts are also investigated, including her role as a charter member of the Savannah Art Club. The study concludes by suggesting a historical reframing of Low as an art educator is needed. / text

The following paper is an opportunity for me to introduce Pavel Petrovich Chistyakov and his pedagogical ideas to English-speaking educators. His life's accomplishments seem even more remarkable when considering the fact that he was born into a family of serfs and later became a professor at the Russian Academy of Fine Arts. Among his students were well-known Russian artists such as Valentin Serov, Mikhail Vrubel, Vasily Surikov, Victor Vasnetcov, and Vasily Polenov. In this paper, I present you with a brief analytical summary of his methodology on teaching drawing and painting, his pedagogical approaches, as well as his ideas on the development of art education in the public school setting. Chistyakov's pedagogical system still seems relevant today and, with slight adjustments, can be adapted to various teaching situations depending on the educational environment and students' abilities.

This thesis uses autoethnographic research of the Mexican American art community in Austin, Texas to demonstrate how edgewalkers, people to move between multiple cultural worlds yet retain their own identity, become informal art educators through the process of transculturation. The work describes this cyclical and on-going process that includes curiosity, knowledge gathering, and awareness of self and others and the summation of these elements, which leads to transculturation. For this research, four informal art educators practicing in Austin were interviewed. Each of the collaborators practices art in different media including visual art, curating of exhibitions, performance, and graphic design. The descriptions and analysis of the researcher’s experiences along with those of the informal art educators reveal a third landscape, or an alternative space and identity, where multiple cultural worlds overlap into bicultural, bilingual and/or biconceptual environments. This thesis demonstrates how informal art education, made possible through transcultural experiences, is an effective tool in art education and culturally responsive instruction. / text

There are no guidelines in South Carolina for developing workshops that reflect the needs of art educators, and there are no tools to evaluate and support their professional development. The problem is a lack of informative, substantive, and academically oriented art inservices that are standards-based and focused on the enhancement of pedagogy, teaching strategies, and content. The purpose of this case study was to explore participants' perceptions of an art professional development workshop as an approach to examining art standards, instructional strategies, and policy changes. Dewey's experiential theory served as the conceptual framework. A purposeful sample of 10 art educators who attended a district-sponsored professional development workshop participated in this study. After the workshop, data about educators' perceptions of the inservice were collected through a beta test and a focus group with 2 participants, 1 open-ended questionnaire with 8 participants, and a workshop observation with 20 participants. Data were analyzed using comparative analysis to identify patterns in the data. Member checking and triangulation were used to verify the data and control bias. Five themes emerged from the data: adult-centered hands-on learning, professional development experiences, grants, collaboration and networking, and best practices. This study contributes to social change by showing the importance of on-going adult-centered, research-based, hands-on professional development for educators addressing visual art standards, practice, instructional strategies, policy changes, and the facilitation of student-centered activities.

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This educational study on building art education relationships between art educators and local community art agencies was conducted in early February of 2009. Data was collected by means of an art teacher survey, mailed to the homes of metro Atlanta art educators and by conducting face-to-face interviews with professionals working in the education departments of high profile metro Atlanta art agencies. The data analysis provides insight into the goals of local K-12 art educators, and they are compared to the goals of community art agencies. The findings of this study reveal that art teachers and art agencies share many common goals and face similar challenges. And together, through networking and close communication, they may better serve the needs of students K-12 as they become lifetime participants and supports of the visual arts.

This educational study on building art education relationships between art educators and local community art agencies was conducted in early February of 2009. Data was collected by means of an art teacher survey, mailed to the homes of metro Atlanta art educators and by conducting face-to-face interviews with professionals working in the education departments of high profile metro Atlanta art agencies. The data analysis provides insight into the goals of local K-12 art educators, and they are compared to the goals of community art agencies. The findings of this study reveal that art teachers and art agencies share many common goals and face similar challenges. And together, through networking and close communication, they may better serve the needs of students K-12 as they become lifetime participants and supports of the visual arts.

Through the use of a feminist methodology, this qualitative case study examines the influence a high school art teacher, Pauline Gawlik, had on the career path of a group of her students, a high percentage of whom are Mexican American and/or of low socioeconomic status. Interviews of the teacher and seven of her former students revealed five themes related to the teacher's practice that affected her students' choice to become art teachers themselves: a positive classroom climate, confidence and focus, mutual respect and admiration, care, and mentoring. The results of this study hold implications for the current teacher shortage and the recruitment of Mexican American students into careers in art education.