Unit 1: Identity

Unit 1: Identity

Erika Rodriguez

Professor Ward

ART 133, T-Th 3-4:50pm

September 5, 2017
Unit 1: Identity

Throughout the first unit of the course, the big idea was identity. According to Sydney R.

Walker (2001), big ideas are what drive an artists artmaking overtime and represent a host of

concepts that form an idea (p. 1-2). It seemed that all authors-Walker, Mary J. Franco, Amber

Ward, Kathleen Unrath, and Michael Parsons all had one thing in common: all students art

should be them discovering their own identity. The authors address their concerns about current

school curriculums and how they teach art in a general manner without taking into consideration

the students own interpretation of it. Franco, Ward, and Unrath (2015) discuss their views on

how artmaking should transform into meaning-making--art that has value to the artist. Meaning-

making is a gateway to identity because it helps students explore their own creativities and find

their own personas. In Artmaking as Meaning-Making (2015), the authors redesigned the art

curriculums, currently established, in order to change the way students are taught art, and other

school subjects such as science and math. They want future students to find themselves through

art, such as Parsons (2004) suggests about using local communities as an influence to schools.

The use of local communities is valuable in todays age because students can relate and interact

with their locals as they obtain their identity.

After reading all three articles, I have found the definition of meaning-making to be an

essential part of the classroom curriculum. I truly do like Parsonss idea of using the local

community as part of a childs education. There are plenty of art to show students, libraries to

educate students, and local heroes to inspire students. A childs identity could easily be found

within their close surroundings, and I plan to use that to an advantage in my teaching career. I

plan to help students find themselves, not only though art, but through other school subjects,

such as Math, English, and History. Meaning-making does not have to be just about art.
Unit 1: Identity

References

Franco, M. J., Ward, A., & Unrath, K. (2015). Artmaking as meaning-making: A new model for

preservice elementary generalists. Art Education, 68(5), 28-33.

Parsons, M. (2004). Art and integrated curriculum. In E. W. Eisner & M. D. Day (Eds.),

Handbook of research and policy in art education (pp. 775-794). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence

Erlbaum Associates.

Walker, S. (2001). Teaching meaning in artmaking. Worchester, MA: Davis.