Commonalities in the daily routine of the elementary art educator

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to find commonalities in the daily routine of K-5 elementary art educators. Data was collected via a questionnaire administered to a random selection of Wisconsin K-5 elementary art educators during the 1999-2000 academic school year who attended the Wisconsin Alliance for Arts Education Summit conference in Madison, WI. Art education has been shown to enhance academic achievement, develop cognitive skills, build strong self-concepts, and build an appreciation and awareness of cultures. Although art education has shown it’s ability to develop the entire child, it is still not basic to education. By not being a basic in the educational development of children, art is finding it’s way into being a possible area to cut. Because of this, art educators are asked to teach at multiple schools, teach from a cart, see 600 or more students in a week, and not have the necessary equipment or materials to teach art effectively. This study will look at the schedules of many elementary art educators and find the commonalities between them. The researcher plans to use the findings from this study to show how elementary art educators are subject to demanding daily routines through which the quality of art education given to students is being effected. Results of this study will be used to help others understand the daily routine of the elementary art educator and promote a better working environment for the future.