Teacher reprimanded after student sees nude art on museum field trip- Page 2

[lildogs]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 10:20am

Wow--in 5th grade I had already seen plenty of porn--and straight porn at that!

What I don't understand about parents is how quickly they forget being children themselves.

[peach]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 10:30am

This is ridiculous. That poor art teacher.

Geez in 5th grade, we had nude portraits hanging up in the living room (my parents were artists). They always taught us that art is art and should be appreciated.

It was a little awkward when friends came over though...I was "that kid" with the artsy parents...

[Jane2]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 10:30am

I don't know-I don't equate this with porn at all. I think it's the ignorant parents and school administrators who do.

[DG]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 10:32am

If only the 'naughty bits' were covered and they were dipicting scenes of unimaginable violence, THEN everything would have been OK.

[Jane2]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 10:40am

Unfortunately, art in the elementary school is looked upon as a free period for the classroom teacher while her class is in art, and what's expected is a cut and paste Halloween picture to bring home. Most of the teachers and administrators have no appreciation or understanding of the arts.

What's tragic is during my entire tenure as an art teacher, not one teacher who came to pick up her class from me had ever asked "what did my kids do in art today?"

they just don't care.

*I can only speak for my experience in the school system in which I taught.

[colleen_lee]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 10:51am

I have a similiar experience as a music teacher Jane.

I am just their prep period. They're delighted I'm there, but just so they can get rid of the children for 30 minutes, not because they find any value in what I do.

[lildogs]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 10:53am

I wasn't equating art with porn--what I meant was I had seen FAR more explicit images than a statue when I was that age, and I turned out okay.....bad example.

[DG]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 10:55am

"Most of the teachers and administrators have no appreciation or understanding of the arts."

". . . not because they find any value in what I do."

And this despite available evidence from research that arts education is proven to accelerate overall learning comprehension and social skill development. Shameful.

[Jane2]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 11:01am

"I am just their prep period. They're delighted I'm there, but just so they can get rid of the children for 30 minutes, not because they find any value in what I do"

I'm glad someone can relate! How about the way all the teachers turn around to see if you came in on the day they have you and breathe a sigh of relief when they see you showed up. This killed me!

[Jane2]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 11:02am

"And this despite available evidence from research that arts education is proven to accelerate overall learning comprehension and social skill development. Shameful"

Yet art and music are the first things to go when they make budget cuts.

[mominator]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 11:11am

So blood and gore are alright in art but not the human form? What ever happened to "we were created in God's own image"?

Some people.... Sheesh.

[SorryGrateful]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 12:04pm

I think we're all missing the point here. There are innocent, tiny, helpless children being subjected to perversions in the form of sculpted boobs and painted penises.

Won't someone think of the children?

Updated On: 9/28/06 at 12:04 PM

[Rose_MacShane]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 12:10pm

Are you sure your name isn't Helen Lovejoy?

[SweetQintheLights]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 12:26pm

Not to really go off the subject but how about if there was a picture/sculpture of someone holding a gun or something like that?

That would be ok, right?

Sometimes I think there should be many more parenting classes offered than there are.

Stupidity...

*rolls eyes*

[SorryGrateful]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 12:36pm

Rose, this board is supposed to anonymous! Why did you tell everyone who I am? Now, they're going to start PMing me filthy pictures of body parts.

[Color and Light]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 12:36pm

As a self-described art freak and someone with parents who took her to art museums all the time as a child, this is so depressing.

Jane2, if it makes you feel any better, art teachers have tended to be my favorite since I was a wee one. My AP Art teacher back in high school was one of my best friends.

Updated On: 9/28/06 at 12:36 PM

[Rose_MacShane]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 12:44pm

Well, I thought it was common knowledge, SG!

[kelzama]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 4:28pm

Salient facts that are missing:

Exactly what was the nude art that the students happened to pass? There's a big difference between, say Michelangelo's or Rodin's nudes and Ofili or Schiele, or even ancient Kama Sutra images and sculptures. Yes, beautiful or moving perhaps to some, but appropriate for minors to view? Maybe not.

Did the teacher deserve to be fired? Not enough information in the article to pass the judgment. But as a responsible parent, I'd want to know prior to the fieldtrip which galleries the students might pass through. But then again, I know our local Carnegie Museum of Art well enough to not take my children through the modern wing which features the more sexually explicit as well as visually disturbing images.

[Jane2]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 5:11pm

Perhaps the student just happened to see a nude sculpture while the group was walking from one gallery to another. It is not made clear if the teacher was including the piece on her tour, or if someone just caught a glimpse. Perhaps this student strayed from the group. We don't know the specifics, but I'm maintaining that firing is not called for. I really don't believe the art teacher would feature Ofili or Kama Sutra for the group to study. Espcially after 28 years of teaching.

Updated On: 9/28/06 at 05:11 PM

[StageManager2]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 5:38pm

"So blood and gore are alright in art but not the human form?"

This reminds me of my freshman year of high school when I decided to do a painting entitled "The Tragedy of Bonnie and Clyde." You can imagine how bloody and gory the picture turned out to be. No one said anything, though.

Updated On: 9/28/06 at 05:38 PM

[Jane2]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 5:48pm

"Jane2, if it makes you feel any better, art teachers have tended to be my favorite since I was a wee one. My AP Art teacher back in high school was one of my best friends."

Sorry I missed this, color and light (which are the two basic fundamentals in my photography!)

yes, there are many students who do really love and understand art, and I did have my little cadre! But there aren't enough~

[StageManager2]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 5:51pm

Jane2: Would you hate me if I told you I failed art?

[Jane2]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 5:54pm

Of course not! But how can you fail art? If you don't have it, you don't have it. I refused to grade my students, and if I had to give grades, everyone passsed for at least trying. They would only fail if they refused to do any work at all.

[jimnysf]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 6:03pm

there is a Texas prosecutor that ended the career of DeLay!!!!!! And Ann Richards!

But they don't make up for George Bush and the rest of the right wing crazies you have in Texas. California used to be the crazy place but these days, Texas and Florida have us beat.

[StageManager2]

Posted: 9/28/06 at 6:05pm

"Of course not! But how can you fail art? If you don't have it, you don't have it. I refused to grade my students, and if I had to give grades, everyone passsed for at least trying. They would only fail if they refused to do any work at all."

Well, I may have been oversimplifying. In school I used to be known as an "artist" because of my ability to draw. Unfortunately, I was also a perfectionist. If I were not content with something, I would rip it up and start over. My freshman year, I started out fine, but soon I began lagging behind because I wouldn't pass in my work on time; I wasn't satisfied. I failed two quarters that year, so I had to take it again sophomore year.

Updated On: 9/28/06 at 06:05 PM