Are we really halfway done with this month? It is flying by... I feel ill-prepared for this upcoming move. Mainly because I'm still looking for a place to live! I'm purging and donating tons currently. Although, I have slight pangs occasionally over things. Then I remember that things are all replaceable. Sigh. I'm hoping by next weekend I'll have a more optimistic update that I've found a place to live. I have to pause here and reflect back over this semester. I ended up with three A's and a B. That B... I thought at the beginning of the semester there would be no way I'd ever pass Linguistics class. I passed and accomplished an A through a lot of hard work! Intaglio became my nemesis. Not for the art form or process. The class dynamic left a lot to be desired. For a class where attendance was mandatory, as well as being an art class, it didn't matter if students missed three, four or five classes. It didn't matter if students showed up drunk or high to class - or in the case of the monitored lab hours, didn't show up, or slept on the art tables while there. It didn't matter if original ideas or concepts were blatantly copied. It didn't matter if you were capable of working independently or thought outside of the box. It didn't matter if you were courteous and tried to be a team player. It didn't matter if you chose to work quietly and kept to yourself during class periods. The expectation was that you were to be a social and empty-headed sheep who needed your hand held at all times. It is unfortunate and truly disappointing that the tone of the class completely overshadowed learning a new medium. The class became much more about how to survive (or in my case, how to keep my ideas secret and not make eye-contact with some so I wouldn't be drawn into incessant chatter about nothing) and so much less about excelling in creativity. As I learned way back in high school - there are some who really shouldn't ever be teachers, just because they may know how to do something. So my fall schedule was revamped, to accommodate my request to not ever be exposed to that type of situation again. Just like in a work environment, the dynamic and culture of a place (or class) starts at the top. And it either makes or breaks how an employee (or student) is going to succeed. While some see a B as still a success. I don't. Did I do my best? Yes, definitely. I did the best that I could have done in the situation. Was I miserable? Yes. The entire semester I was bitterly disappointed in both art classes. I finally realized that some semesters were going to be better than others and to continue forward. But it also definitely means I don't condone how the class was taught. It's my understanding my issues aren't new issues either. That in itself is MOST disappointing. People have every capability to make changes. They just need to make the conscience effort and choice to change when there are things that go wrong, and not simply write it off as "well, students tend to get really bitter about this and that...". Students tend to get bitter when they aren't listened to and felt they don't matter. And also when there's a definite bias exhibited in the class, and with grades becoming punitive instead of what's fairly earned. To give a student a 2 on Inventiveness, without explanation to back the decision just shows how poor the system (or teacher) is. I have signed up for 19 credits in the fall. It will be my first semester where I'm totally at UA with no classes at Pima. I have one studio art class, and two art lecture classes (one a continuation of Contemporary Art, and the other a Photo class). I also have two Italian classes and a Gen Ed Women's Study class. I will be busy and hopeful for a productive and positive semester in a few months. I decided to take back some energy from this entire Intaglio issue by doing plein air sketching and painting around campus this week. I was really pleased with the kit of stuff I put together to go out in the field and it was wonderful to have no pressure about meeting an assignment or have someone watching over me. I could breathe and create. What I was meant to do! I plan on finding every free venue that I can to visit this summer as well do more plein air sketching and painting. Well...after I finish moving. Speaking of...I'd better get a move on this morning. I have more stuff to do and if you listen closely, you'll hear the sound of a door firmly and completely closing here in a bit. That will be me, once and for all putting this subject to rest. :) New photos in the Gallery, and a couple here with this post.
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