PDF File - Art Educators of Minnesota

Building STEAM through 

Innovation, Creativity and Collaborations 

IN SIDE: 

aem fall conference 2012 

by Jeff Pridie 

2 

From the President 

4 

AEM Treasury Report 

AEM STEAM KEYNOTE SPEAKER 

Dr. Georgette Yakman 

Over 300 of you showed up on November 9 and 10 full 

of energy, excitement and ready to learn and be engaged. 

Right from the beginning I was encouraged to see notebooks 

and Ipads out, teachers taking notes as Dr. Georgette 

Yakman opened the possibilities of what a STEAM classroom 

might look like. How the idea of separate silo content 

areas no longer meets the needs of today’s students. 

Integration of all content in the classroom to qualify and 

quantify learning and understanding is essential. How 

through this integration the possibilities of innovation and 

creativity can be fostered and developed. I could see some 

in the audience worried, concerned at this new thinking, 

what would it mean for the arts, where would the arts stand 

in the schools, how would other content areas feel about 

collaboration with the arts. So the dialogue began among 

the membership in the conference hall, in the hallways, in 

the lounges and during lunch. I am sure the dialogue on 

this topic continues even now. 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

12 

14 

17 

18 

AEM President’s Message 

News from the Perpich Center 

Online Resources 

AEM 2012 Fall Conference 

Ogilvie Art Trio Travel to NYC 

Editor’s Corner 

4 Tips for Cooperating Teachers 

2012 AEM Fall Pix 

iPads in the Art Room 

NAEA Research Delegation in India 

continued on next page>>> 

21 

Warming Up for Middle School Art 

22 

AEM Council Roster 

24 

Teacher Evaluation Process 

Art Educators of Minnesota 

Mission Statement 

Promote and advocate quality art education 

for all learners through networking, sharing 

and collaborating with local, state and 

national resources and provide information 

and professional growth opportunities for 

all art educators of Minnesota. 

www.aem-mn.org 

Winter 2013 AEM Art Exchange 1

January 1 – December 17, 2012 

AEM TREASURY REPORT 

By Rick Mittelstadt – Finance Committee Chair 

Revenue 

Membership Dues (Includes NAEA dues) .......................................................................$46,484.00 

Fall Conference Participant Fees through Registration ...................................................$13,054.00 

Other Fall Conference Revenue ........................................................................................$7,992.00 

Other Revenue including Grants, Misc. Income, and Newspaper Ads..............................$2,126.85 

TOTAL INCOME .............................................................................................................$69,656.85 

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

Executive Board Services Expenses 

NAEA Conference-President.............................................................................................$1,579.18 

NAEA Conference-Delegate (President Elect) .....................................................................$655.77 

NAEA Western Regional Conference Rep. .......................................................................$1,649.40 

Leadership Training Workshops........................................................................................$2,617.22 

Secretary ....................................................................................................................................$.00 

Executive Board Meetings.................................................................................................$2,064.51 

Elections .....................................................................................................................................$.00 

Historian .....................................................................................................................................$.00 

Document Printing ..................................................................................................................$99.55 

Other Expenses..........................................................................................................................$.00 

TOTAL EXECUTIVE BOARD SERVICES EXPENSES....................................................$8,665.63 

Professional Development Expenses 

2012 Fall Conference (Includes $325.00 Refunds) .........................................................$31,207.78 

2013 Fall Conference ................................................................................................................$.00 

Retired Members ........................................................................................................................$.00 


TOTAL PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT EXPENSES ..............................................$31,207.78 

Communication Expenses 

Newsletter (Includes Graphic Designer $1050.00)............................................................$7,770.27 

Website (Includes Website Manager $.00)...........................................................................$240.00 


TOTAL COMMUNICATION EXPENSES..........................................................................$8,010.27 

Advocacy & Public Relations Expenses 

Youth Art Month.................................................................................................................$1,242.42 

Spotlight Awards.........................................................................................................................$.00 

Scholastic Art Awards (Includes $1000 for 2013 Sponsorship).........................................$1,200.00 

Education Minnesota State Fair Booth .......................................................................................$.00 


TOTAL ADVOCACY & PUBLIC RELATIONS EXPENSES.............................................$2,442.42 

Membership Services Expenses 

Membership (Includes AEM dues that are returned).......................................................$25,480.00 

AEM Recognition Awards.......................................................................................................$82.04 

Retired Members ........................................................................................................................$.00 

Conference Scholarships (@$200 each – maximum 5) .......................................................$600.00 


TOTAL MEMBERSHIP SERVICES EXPENSES............................................................$26,162.04 

Finance Services Expenses 

Treasurer ..............................................................................................................................$248.01 

Grant and fundraising .................................................................................................................$.00 

Legal and Tax Reports .........................................................................................................$210.00 

Accounting Services ...................................................................................................................$.00 

Liability Insurance.................................................................................................................$539.00 

Other Expenses....................................................................................................................$105.95 

TOTAL FINANCE SERVICES EXPENSES ......................................................................$1,102.95 

TOTAL 2012 EXPENSES ...............................................................................................$77,591.10 

TOTAL 2012 REVENUE .................................................................................................$69,656.85 

Money Transferred from Checking into Money Market........................................................$.00 

Money Transferred from Money Market into Checking.............................................$10,000.00 

Janus Mercury and Money Market Value as of 12/1/2012 ...........................................$8,803.36 

Janus Research Fund Value as of 12/1/2012 ................................................................$4.783.52 

Fidelity High Income [Bonds] starting at $35,000.00 as of 12/1/2012.......................$44,117.94 

Columbia Balanced Z [US Stocks] starting at $15,000.00 as of 12/1/2012...............$13,294.33 

Brokerage Money as of 12/1/2012..................................................................................$1,463.91 

Paypal Account Balance as of 12/17/2012 .........................................................................$92.12 

Checking Account Balance as of 12/17/2012..............................................................$13,941.23 

TOTAL MONATARY ASSETS as of 12/17/2012................................. $86.496.41 

Happy New Year Art Educators!!! So glad 

the world didn’t end after all. We have a lot to do 

this year! 

First of all, I want to thank Jeff Pridie for 

his amazing leadership in his term as President. I 

failed to do this at the conference, which I hugely 

regret – but Jeff has been an incredible visionary 

and an inspiring, calm force for positive change in 

the organization. I am thrilled that he has taken 

a leadership position at Perpich – where his skills 

and vast store of knowledge remain a positive 

force for all of us in art education. We wish him 

well as his adventures continue! 

I also want to reintroduce myself to you as 

President. I am so honored and humbled to begin 

my term as your leader. It is my sincere wish that 

together we can take art education further, make our 

profession stronger, and support each other as we 

move forward into the new year. 

I am currently in my 5th year as a full-time 

drama specialist at an arts magnet elementary school 

in the ISD 279 (Osseo) district. Previously, I taught 

art and theater at an arts high school in Rochester 

(including AP Art History), and before that I taught 

junior high art in North Mankato. Some people may 

be a bit skeptical that a drama teacher is leading 

AEM, but I want to reassure you that art and theater 

are perpetually linked in my brain and my heart, and 

that manifests itself in my art, my teaching, and my 

personal beliefs. I am always an art educator, no matter 

what flavor of art I am teaching. 

Secondly, I would like to thank everyone who 

attended, planned, and supported our Fall Conference 

this year. It was a fabulous event, and I was thrilled 

by the energy of our members as we came together 

to learn, share, and support each other! Thank you 

for your patience as we adapted to a new venue. 

We really appreciate those of you who replied to the 

survey email we sent out. Your feedback is critical 

to making the conference into the most productive 

event possible. We are excitedly planning for Art+ 

Environment in Duluth on November 8-9, 2013! The 

presenter application form is on the website – so 

get those ideas in please! We need YOU to make the 

organization strong! 

AEM President’s Message 

by Kris Holsen 

On that note, I wanted to let you know what 

my priorities as President are right now. Got concerns 

or ideas to add to this list Please email me at kris. 

holsen@me.com. 

• To build and fine-tune our new structure! 

We are working hard on ways to streamline 

communication within and between committees. 

The Council is standardizing procedures 

and policies about our structure to make us 

more efficient at what we do for YOU/US the 

art educators of Minnesota. This also and most 

importantly includes finding ways we can 

involve more members to share the work of the 

organization. Committee chairs are developing 

task lists, and we are working on easier ways of 

communicating AEM’s needs to our members so 

we can all pitch in more easily. 

• To improve our fall conferences to meet our 

members’ needs in a cost-effective way. We are 

balancing the high costs of conference venues 

against the limited resources of art teachers 

and trying to find solutions that will continue to 

bring us quality professional development while 

keeping the organization fiscally responsible. 

• I also want to improve record–keeping for our 

committees, for example, building a database of 

conference planning knowledge, so that as we 

involve more and different individuals, we don’t 

end up reinventing the wheel. 

• Big picture items – we need to move forward 

with the data from the Perpich study. We need 

to stay alert to education matters in the legislature 

and proactively involve ourselves to put art 

at the heart of education. 

This is an ambitious list! But one we can all 

work on together. I look forward to 2013 with the 

promise of giving my best effort and the anticipation 

of working with the best art educators anywhere to 

advance art education. 

Because art is fundamental! It’s FUN and it’s 

MENTAL! (duh!) ;) Happy New Year!!! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4 


AEM Art Exchange 



News from the 

Perpich Center 

Jeremy Holien 

State Visual and Media Arts 

Education Coordinator 

Perpich Center for Arts Education 

Online Resources for Teaching Art History Resources: 

Late Antiquity & the Byzantine 

Compiled by Kevan Nitzberg 

The Byzantine 

Byzantium – Fordham University 

http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/byzantium/ 

Course introduction with links to music files and other information. Some links 

are inactive. 

As I enter my fourth year of work as the State 

Visual and Media Arts Education Coordinator at the 

Perpich Center for Arts Education, I am impressed 

by the widespread quality arts education offerings 

to Minnesota students. You should all be recognized 

for your contributions toward advancing arts 

education across our state. There has been a great 

deal of work accomplished in Minnesota, but we 

know there is so much work yet to be done. I wish 

to outline a couple opportunities and resources 

that we are currently offering at the Perpich Center 

that may assist you in your continued professional 

or curricular progress: 

The Return of ACE~Media Arts in 2013: 

The Adult Courses in Education (ACE)~Media Arts 

program will be starting soon! Applications will 

be available in January, selection of school 

teams will occur in February, and we will start 

with workshops with the grant selected schools 

by April. The ACE Media Arts grant provides professional 

development in media arts education 

for K-12 educators. During the two-year program, 

school teams from across the state attend workshops 

at the Perpich Center for Arts Education and 

receive on-site consulting from experienced media 

arts educators. Participating schools also receive 

a grant to cover expenses associated with the 

program. ACE Media Arts goals are to advance the 

teaching of media arts in Minnesota public schools 

(grades K-12) and to sustain media arts education 

as a part of the overall community of learning 

throughout the state. 

Applications for this grant will be made available 

in early January at this link: http://tinyurl. 

com/ag26axn and at this link: http://www.pcae.k12. 

mn.us/pdr/pdr_news.html 

Minnesota Arts Education Survey Update: 

As you may know, the Perpich Center for Arts Education 

helped schools with data collection and 

analysis regarding current levels of arts education 

in K-12 schools across Minnesota. Generally 

speaking, the results show that Minnesota 

has continued to be a leader in arts education, 

but at the same time one can learn more about the 

gaps and challenges that do occur across the arts 

education disciplines. This data creates a baseline 

for tracking and measuring progress. You can 

find all of the downloadable survey results at this 

link: http://www.pcae.k12.mn.us/survey/legacy.html 

For details on the key findings of the survey 

please click on this link: http://www.pcae.k12. 

mn.us/survey/MN_report_2012_full_single.pdf 

For details regarding the state recommendations in 

response to the survey results click on this link: 

http://www.pcae.k12.mn.us/survey/MN_report_2012_ 

rec_only.pdf 

The complete survey results, including the raw 

data for your particular schools and districts, 

will be made available in early 2013. Please be 

watching for the availability of this rich data 

which could potentially help shape the development 

of district initiatives in the arts. 

Visual & Media Arts Education Consulting: 

Several schools, districts and colleges continue 

to request professional and technical assistance 

with professional and curriculum development, 

arts PLCs, assessment, arts integration, standards 

implementation and technology integration within 

the arts among other topics. We have developed 

some great tools to assist your school or personal 

development in these areas. Most of these curriculum 

and professional development resources can be 

found at this link: https://sites.google.com/a/ 

pcae.k12.mn.us/minnesota-visual-and-media-artseducation/ 

or by typing in this shortened URL: 

http://goo.gl/G2cm1 

Please let me know if there are any district or 

school based consulting needs in the areas of visual 

or media arts education. I am available for 

professional or curriculum development in each 

of these areas. Contact me at my new phone number 

763-279-4185 or via email at jeremy.holien@pcae. 

k12.mn.us 

Thanks for your dedication in providing a dynamic 

art education to students across this state! 

This is the second Art History resource installment that is being presented in the 

Art Exchange. The first provided online resources for art history resources of the 

Ancient World and was included in the Spring 2012 issue. Once again, these 

online resources are only meant to be used as supplementary resources. 

Late Antiquity 

Art History Resources on the Web – Early Christian Art 

http://arthistoryresources.net/ARTHearlychristian. 

html#EarlyChristian 

Resources include: 

• Early Christian Architecture 

• Early Christian Art 

• Roman Christian Catacombs 

Art and Society in Late Antiquity, 

By Peter R. L. Brown 

http://learn.columbia.edu/ma/pdf/ma_pdf_brown_01.pdf 

Jewish Art in Late Antiquity and Early Byzantium 

http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/jewa/ 

hd_jewa.htm 

Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History – Metropolitan 

Museum of Art 

Art of Late Antiquity Podcast 

http://vimeo.com/27913155 

An introduction of the period. 

Late Antiquity and Early Christian Art 

http://employees.oneonta.edu/farberas/arth/arth109/arth109_sl16.html 

Clickable images and captions describing each work. 

Quizlet 

http://quizlet.com/subject/chapter-11-art-history-late-antiquity/ 

Online flash cards referencing the art of Late 

Antiquity 

A Visual Tour Through Late Antiquity 

http://www.nipissingu.ca/department/history/muhlberger/4505/show.htm 

Text and links to images in a compilation by Steve Muhlberger, 

Nipissing University with an emphasis on Gaul and 

the time of Gregory. 

12 Byzantine Rules by Lars Brownworth 

http://12byzantinerulers.com/ 

The history of the Byzantine Empire related through audio 

and video files. 

Who Were the Byzantines 

http://news.softpedia.com/news/Who- 

Were-the-Byzantines-80461.shtml 

Article published in Softpedia. 

Hagia Sophia 

http://www.hagiasophia.com/ 

Site featuring numerous links to a wide variety of topics 

concerning Hagia Sophia 

Byzantine Empire – The History Channel 

http://www.history.com/topics/byzantine-empire 

Text, pictures and videos featured at this site. 

Byzantine Art – The Metropolitan 

Museum of Art 

Text and images of the period. 

Byzantine Art and Paintings in Italy during the 

1200s and 1300s – National Gallery of Art 

http://www.nga.gov/collection/gallery/gg1/gg1-main1.html 

Text and clickable images. 

Byzantine Art – Smarthistory / Khan 

Academy 

Byzantine Art and Architecture – Infoplease 

http://www.infoplease.com/encyclopedia/entertainment/byzantine-art-architecture.html 

http://smarthistory.khanacademy.org/byzantinejustinian.html 

Images, text and video resources. 

Artcyclopedia – Byzantine Art 

http://www.artcyclopedia.com/history/byzantine.html 

Information on artists and artworks of the time. 

6 





AEM 2012 Fall Conference 

By Erin Rolf 

Two years into my career as an art educator, the theme of 

sustainability in my field resonated deeply with me. How do you 

make your program important and not another unnecessary 

program that disappears with budget cuts Art is my passion; my 

love and I enjoy having the opportunity to share it with young 

people everyday. 

In Georgette Yakman’s opening presentation she talked 

about the idea of STEAM. Meaning, art educators need to make 

sure we are integrating the arts into the STEM program. Not 

only because it is vital to our existence as art educators, but also 

because it makes sense. Art touches everything, is everywhere; it 

can and should be incorporated into every subject as part of the 

curriculum. Not only does this enhance our students understanding, 

it secures art educator positions as a critical part in education. 

The idea of STEAM has already been implemented into the 

Korean education, which I believe is exciting and shows positive 

reinforcement to the arts. 

I also attended a session where Jessica Balsley, the founder 

of "The Art of Education," spoke about making yourself accountable 

with assessment. At first it sounds daunting, like extra 

work and just plain confusing for an art class. But, Jessica looks 

at this idea from a different perspective, using assessment as a 

tool for self-preservation. Her plan encourages you to be proactive, 

highlighting your dedication to arts and the significance of 

art programming by putting yourself in the spotlight. Assessments 

are a useful tool in collecting data about your students 

understanding and reflecting on effectiveness of your teaching. 

I would like to leave you with a great cross-disciplinary 

project I learned during one of the many break off sessions. Jill 

Weese with the Minnesota Center for Book Arts taught how 

to create a Dos a Dos book or a two in one book. This book 

functioned from both sides. On one side the book opens to 

beautiful crisp clean pages. I imagined this space being used to 

journal or sketching ideas during a hike through the woods. You 

could collect different leaves and plants to identify then later in 

the classroom, perhaps during science. The other side opened 

to a piece of paper folded in a fan fashion, making it possible to 

create a scene of the area, that included a foreground, middle 

ground and background. This book is amazing and could be 

used in countless classes. 

This was another successful conference with many great 

presenters and ideas. As an educator and artist I am never done 

learning. I appreciate the opportunities these conferences provide 

for collaboration and networking with other colleagues. I when 

back to my classroom the following week feeling revitalized with 

an expanded knowledge in my abilities. 

Reflections on Building STEAM 

By Jessica Kemnitz 

Having spent 4 years teaching overseas in South Korea, 

and then attending a technology conference last year, I was 

very excited to attend my first Art Education specific conference 

in 5 years! I hadn’t realized how much I missed the 

camaraderie of fellow Art Teachers until I showed up Friday 

morning, and saw all the excitement of hundreds of Art 

Teachers gathering to grow deeper in their knowledge. 

Georgette’s keynote address regarding the ‘A’ in the 

STEAM Framework was fascinating and reinforced the idea 

that Art is an integral part of all classes. We, as Art Teachers, 

know that already and have been speaking about this for 

years but to hear how it is being recognized in areas that traditionally 

are considered ‘left-brained’ was reassuring to me! 

I hope to teach in a department that will soon be recognized 

nation (and world) wide as valuable to all students. It was 

also fascinating to hear of Georgette’s personal experiences, 

and Korea’s recent initiative with integrating STEAM into 

their national curriculum (and left me wondering why I left 

South Korea at all!). I am looking forward to seeing how this 

change to a nation known for their Mathematical and Science 

skills will affect curriculum and standards across the world. 

After the keynote, I enjoyed listening to several workshop 

sessions, but found the iPadArtEd session the most 

useful for me. As mentioned above, I attended the TIES technology 

conference last year, and have been very interested in 

using iPads in my own classroom. While many people at my 

school think of me as the ‘technology person,’ I find myself 

often feeling behind the curve when compared to the students. 

Listening to Locke Chapman walk through her experience 

with integrating iPads into her art room has inspired me 

to look at resources and find support for purchasing iPads for 

my own classroom. Learning about her resources, recommendations, 

and experiences has given me a place to begin my 

research and hope that perhaps I too can develop a curriculum 

integrating new technologies into my Art classes. I even 

signed up for my own Twitter account! 

I look forward to using STEAM principles, as well integrating 

iPads and other technology into my classrooms. 

Jessica is an 8th year teacher at Spectrum High School 

in Elk River. She holds a Bachelor’s in Art Education, and 

a Master’s in Integrating Technology into the Classroom 

(which seems quite out of date after only 3 years!). She currently 

teaches Computers, Digital Photography, Graphic 

Design, and Yearbook. 

ogilvie art trio travel to 

by Lee Ann Falen 

Ogilvie student Heather Krahmer, her Mom, Julie, and Ogilvie Art Teacher Lee Ann Falen had an amazing time on their trip to New York 

City from July 20th – 22nd! Heather, who will be a junior at OHS this fall (2012), was awarded the trip as a prize for having her mixed 

media drawing titled “Trees of Doom” chosen as Best of Show at the St. Paul Capitol Art Show this past March. This show is held during 

March to celebrate Youth Art Month. Only one student from the entire state is selected, so it was a huge honor for Heather’s artwork to 

be chosen. Heather is the daughter of Ogilvie residents Blayne and Julie Krahmer. After arriving at New Jersey’s Newark Airport Friday 

night, there was an awards presentation and dinner at the hotel. The next day and a half were packed with sightseeing and art-themed 

excursions in New York City. Some of the highlights included: 

• a walking tour of Central Park where we came upon 5000+ 

participants in a 5K mini-marathon. Encompassing over 840 

acres (½ a mile wide and 2 ½ miles long), Central Park is 

HUGE! We saw the Dakota apartment building where John 

Lennon lived (and unfortunately died in 1980) and the 2½ acre 

Strawberry Fields memorial dedicated to him. 

• touring the Metropolitan Museum of Art, which has over 2 

million pieces of artwork! It was quite surreal to see so many 

iconic and well-known pieces of art in person. Chuck Close’s 

photorealistic paintings of human faces were especially memorable. 

• seeing the view from the “Top of the Rock”, which refers to 

looking out from floors 65 -67 of the Rockefeller Center. 

• experiencing the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA). Vincent 

Van Gogh’s “Starry Night”was a huge crowd favorite. 

• enjoying a 10-course Italian meal at the wonderful Tony’s 

di Napoli restaurant. From the mozzarella appetizers to the 

ravioli and the eggplant parmesan to the tiramisu dessert, we 

thought the food would never stop being served! 

• viewing the unbelievable Lion King musical. The costumes, 

choreography, set, singing, acting and the sound were absolutely 

dazzling! 

new york city 

• walking tour of Times Square, which was very crowded, as 

bright as day even at night and full of interesting people. 

• taking the Staten Island Ferry to see magnificent views of the 

Statue of Liberty. Our tour guide told us that the metal in Lady 

Liberty is only as thin as two pennies stacked together! It was 

originally a brownish color, but has gradually taken on the 

greenish patina that we know today. 

• walking tour of the financial district to see the Bull Statue, 

Trinity Church, Wall Street, Federal Hall and the New York 

Stock Exchange. There is an impressive statue of George Washington 

in front of Federal Hall where he took the oath as the 

first President of our country. We also saw numerous Occupation 

Wall Street protestors camped out on the sidewalk. They 

were laying in sleeping bags and had plenty of rations, giving 

the impression they were committed to their mission for the 

long haul. 

• visiting the serene and beautiful World Trade Center Memorial. 

The size and scale of the void now left behind where the 

Twin Towers once stood was overwhelming. Right below the 

names carved into metal, there was a 30-foot waterfall which 

then flowed down into a seemingly endless abyss in the center. 

The inherent symbolism in planning the memorial was poignant 

and thought-provoking. 

A huge “Thank You!” to the Sargent Art company for sponsoring this all-expense paid trip. Thanks also to the Art Educators of Minnesota 

for organizing the Capitol Art Show! We are very grateful to have taken part in this unforgettable experience. 

(1) Ogilvie junior Heather Krahmer and her mom, Julie, in front of the Bethesda Fountain in Central Park. 

(2) Julie and Heather Krahmer at the World Trade Center Memorial. 

(3) Ogilvie Art Teacher Lee Ann Falen with Chuck Close’s painting, “Mark”, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. 

8 





Editor’sCorner 

with Kevan Nitzberg 

Do We Have the Courage to Stop This 

By Nicholas D. Kristof Published: December 15, 2012 

By the time that you have received this 

issue of the Art Exchange, the holiday season 

will have begun to recede into memory, our 

Minnesota winter will be in full swing, and the 2012- 

2013 school year will be more than halfway done. 

What will persist, however, will be the thoughts of the 

devastation resulting from the horrific events of Friday, 

December 14th, when the mass shooting at Sandy 

Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut 

took place. For many people, the tragedy that took 

place on that day will never be reconcilable, nor will 

the pain ever diminish. 

For those of us who are teachers and members 

of families with young children, the events of that day 

ring an especially deep chord. The questions that come 

to mind regarding the why and how of what happened 

The tragedy that took place 

on that day will never be 

reconcilable, nor will the 

pain ever diminish 

come spilling out with no immediate answers but also 

the hope that solutions will be found, policies will be 

created, and schools (and other public places), will 

once again be made safe and protected from such 

senseless violence. 

Unfortunately this particular tragedy is the latest 

in a string of such events (although none perhaps as 

devastating given the 20 elementary school children 

whose lives were lost that day in addition to the 7 

adults who lives were also so abruptly ended). Aurora, 

Colorado, the Sikh Temple in Wisconsin, Virginia Tech, 

the school shootings in Red Lake and Rocori, and the 

five people murdered at Accent Signage in Mpls., are 

just part of a growing list of mass killings that have 

taken place since the initial horror that took place at 

Columbine High School. 

Numerous attempts to effect government policy 

on both the obtaining of weapons as well as the 

limitation of the types guns available for purchase 

have gone by the wayside and, in fact, at the time 

of this writing, have drawn less public support as 

the years have gone by. America has had a love affair 

with guns and the capacity to bear arms for as 

long as anyone can remember and as it is part of our 

Constitution (written to a large degree as a result of 

the desire to protect our freedom from England and 

other foreign powers when we were able to achieve 

our independence). However, it appears that members 

of our communities have begun turning those very 

same arms on ourselves, even our children, and yet 

we still are unable to effectively regulate the purchase 

or ownership of guns in our country. 

If we are going to be able to insure that our 

students can safely attend our schools and realize a 

fulfilling and productive life, we as teachers need to 

be able to work together to help bring about effective 

changes in the policies and laws that govern us and 

the culture that we identify with. In that light, the 

following article appeared as an Op-Ed piece in the 

New York Times Sunday Review on December, 15th, 

2012. I strongly recommend that you read it, come 

together as a force for productive change and contact 

your legislators to begin to create substantive change 

in how we treat guns in our country. 

The fundamental reason kids are dying 

in massacres like this one is not that we 

have lunatics or criminals — all countries 

have them — but that we suffer from a 

political failure to regulate guns. 

Children ages 5 to 14 in America are 13 

times as likely to be murdered with guns as 

children in other industrialized countries, 

according to David Hemenway, a public 

health specialist at Harvard who has written 

an excellent book on gun violence. 

So let’s treat firearms rationally as the 

center of a public health crisis that claims 

one life every 20 minutes. The United States 

realistically isn’t going to ban guns, but we 

can take steps to reduce the carnage. 

American schoolchildren are protected 

by building codes that govern stairways 

and windows. School buses must meet 

safety standards, and the bus drivers have 

to pass tests. Cafeteria food is regulated for 

safety. The only things we seem lax about 

are the things most likely to kill. 

The Occupational Safety and Health 

Administration has five pages of regulations 

about ladders, while federal authorities 

shrug at serious curbs on firearms. Ladders 

kill around 300 Americans a year, and 

guns 30,000. 

We even regulate toy guns, by requiring 

orange tips — but lawmakers don’t 

have the gumption to stand up to National 

Rifle Association extremists and regulate 

real guns as carefully as we do toys. What 

do we make of the contrast between heroic 

teachers who stand up to a gunman and 

craven, feckless politicians who won’t stand 

up to the N.R.A. 

As one of my Facebook followers 

wrote after I posted about the shooting, “It 

is more difficult to adopt a pet than it is to 

buy a gun.” 

Look, I grew up on an Oregon farm where 

guns were a part of life; and my dad gave 

me a .22 rifle for my 12th birthday. I understand: 

shooting is fun! But so is driving, 

and we accept that we must wear seat belts, 

use headlights at night, and fill out forms 

to buy a car. Why can’t we be equally adult 

about regulating guns 

And don’t say that it won’t make a 

difference because crazies will always be 

able to get a gun. We’re not going to eliminate 

gun deaths, any more than we have 

eliminated auto accidents. But if we could 

reduce gun deaths by one-third, that would 

be 10,000 lives saved annually. 

Likewise, don’t bother with the argument 

that if more people carried guns, they 

would deter shooters or interrupt them. 

Mass shooters typically kill themselves 

or are promptly caught, so it’s hard to 

see what deterrence would be added by 

having more people pack heat. There have 

been few if any cases in the United States 

in which an ordinary citizen with a gun 

stopped a mass shooting. 

The tragedy isn’t one school shooting, 

it’s the unceasing toll across our country. 

More Americans die in gun homicides and 

suicides in six months than have died in the 

last 25 years in every terrorist attack and 

the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq combined. 

So what can we do A starting point would 

be to limit gun purchases to one a month, 

to curb gun traffickers. Likewise, we should 

restrict the sale of high-capacity magazines 

so that a shooter can’t kill as many people 

without reloading. 

We should impose a universal background 

check for gun buyers, even with 

private sales. Let’s make serial numbers 

more difficult to erase, and back California 

in its effort to require that new handguns 

imprint a microstamp on each shell so that 

it can be traced back to a particular gun. 

“We’ve endured too many of these tragedies 

in the past few years,” President 

Obama noted in a tearful statement on television. 

He’s right, but the solution isn’t just 

to mourn the victims — it’s to change our 

policies. Let’s see leadership on this issue, 

not just moving speeches. 

Other countries offer a road map. 

In Australia in 1996, a mass killing of 35 

people galvanized the nation’s conservative 

prime minister to ban certain rapid-fire 

long guns. The “national firearms agreement,” 

as it was known, led to the buyback 

of 650,000 guns and to tighter rules for 

licensing and safe storage of those remaining 

in public hands. 

The law did not end gun ownership 

in Australia. It reduced the number of 

firearms in private hands by one-fifth, and 

they were the kinds most likely to be used 

in mass shootings. 

In the 18 years before the law, Australia 

suffered 13 mass shootings — but not one 

in the 14 years after the law took full effect. 

The murder rate with firearms has dropped 

by more than 40 percent, according to data 

compiled by the Harvard Injury Control 

Research Center, and the suicide rate with 

firearms has dropped by more than half. 

Or we can look north to Canada. It now 

requires a 28-day waiting period to buy a 

handgun, and it imposes a clever safeguard: 

gun buyers should have the support 

of two people vouching for them. 

For that matter, we can look for inspiration 

at our own history on auto safety. As 

with guns, some auto deaths are caused by 

people who break laws or behave irresponsibly. 

But we don’t shrug and say, “Cars 

don’t kill people, drunks do.” 

Instead, we have required seat belts, 

air bags, child seats and crash safety standards. 

We have introduced limited licenses 

for young drivers and tried to curb the use 

of mobile phones while driving. All this has 

reduced America’s traffic fatality rate per 

mile driven by nearly 90 percent since the 

1950s. 

Some of you are alive today because 

of those auto safety regulations. And if we 

don’t treat guns in the same serious way, 

some of you and some of your children will 

die because of our failure. 

I invite you to comment on this column 

on my blog, On the Ground(1). Please also 

join me on Facebook(2) and Google+(3), 

watch my YouTube videos(4) and follow 

me on Twitter(5). 

(1) http://kristof.blogs.nytimes.com/ 

(2) https://www.facebook.com/kristof 

(3) https://plus.google.com/+NicholasKristof/postshl=en 

(4) http://www.youtube.com/nicholaskristof 

(5) http://twitter.com/nickkristof 

10 





NAEA Research Delegation 

By Jo-Anne Kirkman 

to India 

AEM ADVOCACY Committee: 

For You/With You 

"This is indeed India; the land of dreams and 

romance, of fabulous wealth and fabulous 

poverty, of splendor and rags, of palaces and 

hovels, of famine and pestilence, of genii and 

giants and Aladdin lamps, of tigers and elephants, 

the cobra and the jungle, the country 

of a thousand nations and a hundred tongues, 

of a thousand religions and two million gods, 

cradle of the human race, birthplace of human 

speech, mother of history, grandmother of 

legend, great-grandmother of tradition, whose 

yesterdays bear date with the mouldering 

antiquities of the rest of the nations.“ 

Mark Twain, Following the Equator, 1897 

Always, since I was a child, I’ve 

wanted to travel to India. The 

dream began when I read Rudyard Kipling’s 

magical Just So Stories and The Jungle Book. 

Later, learning about the Indus Valley, the 

arts of the Mughal Empire and reading 

about great authors’ travels to India (Mark 

Twain), it became a destination not to be 

missed in my lifetime. When NAEA President, 

Bob Sabol, announced that the NAEA 

would travel to India in 2012, I was thrilled 

and committed to be a part of the delegation. 

The NAEA delegation consisted of 16 

educators from 11 states, Canada and South 

Africa who traveled to the other side of the 

world (8,000 miles over Pakistan, Afghanistan 

and Russia) to Delhi, India. Once there, 

we toured the “Golden Triangle”- Delhi, 

Aigra and Jaipur. In a week’s time, we immersed 

ourselves in the rich history and 

traditions of northern India while learning 

about art education. 

My school district supported my travel 

by allowing time away from the classroom 

and in exchange, I planned a year-long art 

curriculum, based on traditional Indian art 

forms, that I called, “Magic Carpet Ride”. 

My students are as excited as I to delve 

into the new territory of the arts of India. 

With my preparation, I learned there is little 

written for art students about the Persian, 

Mughal, and Muslim influences of northern 

India. During the summer, I researched 

and set up a plan for the academic year and 

posted a Facebook page called, “Teaching 

Content in Art”, which is a collection of 

resources, thoughts and ideas I compiled as I 

prepared for my own magic carpet ride. 

The adventure to India was not all work 

and no play! We stayed at beautiful lodgings 

including the Rasa resort in Jaipur. Imagine 

riding a camel cart up a mountainside in the 

moonlight, through a fortress gate buit in 

1077 while escorted with traditional musicians 

announcing our arrival! We stayed 

in silk tents and were lulled to sleep by the 

echoing growls of tigers living in a sanctuary 

near us. In the morning, peacocks would 

watch as I quietly drank morning coffee in 

the garden before the day officially began. It 

was magical! And, life changing- namaste! 

I’ve included pictures and a more comprehensive 

slide show will be posted on the 

AEM and NAEA websites! 

From Bob Sabol, NAEA President and 

delegation leader: 

The principal goal of the program is to 

learn about art education and pre-service 

teacher preparation in other countries. We 

traveled to India to conduct research about 

the Indian education system, art education 

models, school facilities, curriculum, instruction, 

assessment, and about models for 

pre-service preparation of art educators and 

community arts education programming. 

We talked with many administrators, 

teachers, and students about art education 

and issues of concern for art educators in 

India. It was surprising to learn that many of 

the same topics we discuss as art educators 

in America are being discussed in India as 

well. Things like curriculum content, availability 

of instructional supplies and materials, 

assessment of learning, and professional 

development were recurring topics in discussions 

with our Indian counterparts. There 

also are marked differences we discovered 

as well, including that India has a national 

curriculum that is followed in all educational 

facilities. This curriculum uses arts 

integration to introduce the content of art at 

the elementary level. Later, at the secondary 

level, art is treated as a distinct discipline 

of its own. It was of interest to learn that 

formal pre-service art education programs 

do not exist in India. Art educators enter the 

teaching profession as artists first and then 

acquire pedagogical knowledge and skills 

after beginning their teaching. 

We were struck with the welcoming 

warmth and professionalism of everyone 

we encountered in each of the schools we 

visited. Our common interests in promoting 

quality art education in each of our countries 

provided a common basis and language for 

hours of meaningful discussions. 

Another significant goal of the mission 

is to teach educators in India about the educational 

systems and models currently being 

used to deliver art education in American 

schools. We found equal interest among our 

Indian art education colleagues in learning 

about our American system for providing art 

education in our schools, communities, and 

art museums. 

They expressed interest in our national 

visual arts standards, curriculum content, 

assessment systems, and instructional resources 

used on our programs. 

Of particular interest was how we as art 

educators manage to find time to create our 

own artwork in addition to managing our 

teaching responsibilities. 

In fully understanding the Indian art 

education system and curriculum content, 

it was of equal importance that the delegation 

be immersed in the more than 10,000 

year old history of India, which included 

the ancient Indus valley civilizations and 

conquests by the Mughals, Muslims, and the 

British, and with the rich and varied artistic 

culture of India. 

We traveled through congested city 

streets to visit a number of artists who 

painted classical Indian miniature paintings, 

wove exquisite rugs, crafted rich hand-made 

papers, printed elegant textiles, produced 

amazing pottery, and created stunning 

jewelry. We enjoyed exotic foods, whose 

names we usually could not pronounce, 

and watched and participated in delightful 

dance and puppetry performances. 

In addition to riding in our tour bus, we 

rode rickshaws, camel carts, and elephants 

to some of the historic venues. We visited 

a number of monuments, including the 

Taj Mahal and the Agra Fort, Delhi’s Red 

Fort, Humayun’s Tomb, and the five-story 

victory tower of Qutb Minar built in 1199, 

Jaipur’s City Palace and Amber Fort, and 

the Jantar Mantar Observatory. Many other 

sites proved helpful for fully understanding 

the cultural heritage of the people of India, 

the art educators teaching in their schools, 

and the culturally rich and varied student 

populations in the schools we visited. 

It is of increasing importance for all art 

educators to learn about how art is taught 

in other nations and to study the issues and 

problems for art education on a global scale. 

Through learning about the educational systems 

developed in other countries, American 

educators develop a broader understanding 

of the similarities and differences in our 

goals and ultimate objective we hope to 

accomplish in our art programs. 

The AEM Advocacy Committee continues its mission to connect art educators and promote art education across 

the state. To meet these goals, new ideas were implemented at the AEM fall conference: 

First, we feel it is important to get to know each other and connect as a community of like-minded 

thinkers. As much fun as it is to meet new people at our conferences, sometimes we need to “connect the face 

with the name”. With so many interesting conversations and new, important connections, we wanted to help to 

keep the momentum and connections strong. Therefore, we photographed as many members as possible and 

have posted them on the AEM website with member’s schools. It was a fun project with a huge learning curve! 

We didn’t get everyone’s photo, as hard as we tried. Sometimes our picture taking got in the way of registration. 

Sometimes we just connected the wrong name with the photo (sorry!) Overall, we had fun, great laughs and 

conversations! And, we believe we are heading in the right direction, creating a more connected community. 

Thank you, Scott Hanson, for helping lead this project! 

Second, we feel it is important to promote our art programs. Therefore, we began a student show at the 

conference with an award provided by Sakura. It was a simple idea to have teachers bring one piece of student 

work to the conference to be displayed. We weren’t sure how many entries to expect, and we were happy that 

the initial show filled the registration hallway at the conference! Teachers were asked to be the judges of the 

show- to pick one piece of art as “Best in Show”. Teachers admired the work on display, discussed their programs 

and shared ideas. Thank you to all teachers who participated! Congratulations to art teacher, Amanda Schultz! 

Thank you Scott Hanson, Michael Kantor for helping to lead this project! 

Third, we feel it is important to promote art educators as artists. Now in its fourth year, the TADA 

show exhibited the fantastic, creative, skillful talents of our members. TADA (Teach Art, Do Art) is an electronic 

exhibition presented at the conference social hour on Friday evening. Thank you to members who inspired us by 

participating and sharing! Thank you to Fatih Benzer and UMD students for organizing this project! 

Fourth, we listened to members’ ideas. During our lunch session, AEM members shared ideas of promoting 

AEM throughout the year. The constant topic of conversation was to have more mini- workshops across the state. 

An idea that we are seriously contemplating is a summer retreat on the north shore for art making. 

Thanks to all members for discussing and sharing ideas! 

Fifth, we provided information about Youth 

Art Month. Our YAM chair, Michael Kantor answered 

questions and promoted this national event. 

Lastly, we asked members to join us, Shout outs to 

members who stepped up: Lockie Chapman, Diane 

Piette, Amy Lenberg, Laura Youngbird, Glenna Olsen, 

Stephanie Gulifer. If we missed you at the conference 

and you would like to join us, please contact me. We 

welcome all and you can help when and however 

you can from organizing events to just sharing ideas 

by email. Every little bit makes us a vibrant council! 

Jo-Anne Kirkman, Advocacy Committee Chair 

jkirkman@orono.k12.mn.us 

12 





Tips for Cooperating Teachers 

2012 aem fall pix 

by David Kesler 

As a recent art education graduate who has just finished two student teaching experiences, both of 

which I thoroughly enjoyed, I can attest to the commitment of my cooperating teachers who gladly 

handed over their classrooms in order to help forge me into a competent professional educator. I 

can only thank all those teachers who are willing to give up control of their rooms to help foster 

the growth of future instructors. However, just as it can be stressful for student teachers to know 

what to expect from their mentors, cooperating teachers may not know what their new trainee 

expects. For this reason I am writing a list of four tips that I hope cooperating teachers will find 

helpful when taking on a new student teacher. 

Tip 1: Invite your Student Teacher to Lead Lessons Early 

I was lucky enough to be placed in classrooms in which I was able to quickly 

integrate myself, but assimilating into a classroom for the first time is a daunting 

experience. Expect your student teacher to arrive slightly anxious. Try not to 

expect immediate and self-initiated involvement. Even after an initial week or 

two during which your student teacher can operate in an assistant role and get 

to know the students and yourself, they may still be apprehensive about bringing 

up the subject of taking on greater responsibility. It can be quite intimidating for 

a beginner to have that conversation with someone with years of experience. Invite 

your student teacher to teach lessons, especially near the beginning of their 

experience. If you are covering the same material during multiple class periods, 

ask your student teacher to observe you teaching the material first and then 

have them take over the lesson next class period. This allows student teachers 

an opportunity to familiarize themselves with your students as well as your 

teaching and classroom management styles. This early involvement will help 

build confidence, rapport and experience, making the transition to fully student 

teacher-led lessons much smoother. 

Tip 2: Relate Your Own Early Experiences 

Relate your own personal stories regarding your teaching experiences over 

the course of career, both good and bad. It’s great to hear strategies that have 

worked in the past in a difficult situation and also comforting to realize that 

even the most experienced teacher was at one point a novice. Sometimes a story 

about a similar problem can really shed light onto the behavior of a particularly 

exasperating student. Show your student teacher how you let your own personality 

show through in your instruction and help your student teacher reveal their 

own personality and really be comfortable with themselves in front of the class 

Tip 3: Criticize 

Offer criticism even when not asked to. Tell your student teacher exactly what 

they’re doing wrong. This isn’t an invitation to be overly harsh or demeaning, but 

constructive criticism, and a lot of it, is a good thing. At my elementary school 

placement I was having a good deal of difficulty with our first and second grade 

classes. By the end of the day the situation would have me feeling frustrated and 

stressed. My cooperating teacher ended up giving me a laundry list of notes and 

suggestions on how I could improve my instruction for the younger elementary 

grades. As I began to implement his suggestions I could feel each day’s instruction 

getting better and better until I found myself enjoying teaching first and 

second grade. Demonstrate a willingness to approach your student teacher with 

meaningful critiques. Do not worry about offending them. As student teachers, 

we look to our cooperating teachers for guidance and as highlighted in the previous 

tip, we may not always vocalize, or sometimes even realize, what is needed 

to improve our performance. 

Tip 4: Get to Know Your Protégé’s University and 

State Requirements (To an Extent) 

Try and familiarize yourself with your student teacher’s university and/or state 

requirements. Some student teachers (as was true in my case), may have 

considerable assignments to complete for each. Trying to complete two large 

projects while simultaneously taking on classroom responsibilities can be quite 

overwhelming. A little support from the cooperating teacher can make a big 

difference in terms of the fulfillment of a student teacher’s university and state 

requirements. Don’t go overboard, though. You don’t need to memorize your 

protégé’s student teaching handbook or babysit them through tasks that are really 

their responsibility anyway. It also isn’t your duty to make sure your student 

teacher is doing the work. Taking an hour or two after school near the beginning 

of their experience to let them explain their requirements and then helping 

them come up with a viable plan and time table to complete them, would be 

immensely helpful. 

14 


AEM Art Exchange

2012 aem fall conference pix

more conference pix 

ipads in the art room 

yes, please! 

by julie deters 

There are over 700,000 apps in the iTunes 

App Store (250.000 native to iPad). If you desire 

to feel overwhelmed, begin there. Instead, 

I have found it most helpful to pay attention 

to MacWorld Magazine and my Colleagues 

for advice on the best of the best. Here is a 

list of some that I have found helpful as an 

Art Educator: 

Watch + Read: 

COOL HUNTING 

Flipboard 

TED 

STEAM it up! Adding Art to Science, Technology, 

Engineering and Math may be news 

to others but Adding Science, Technology, 

Engineering and Math to Art is not news 

to Art Teachers in the State of Minnesota. 

This truth was the theme of the 2012 AEM 

Conference. Technology in the art room can 

be a valuable tool that many of our students 

find motivating. Clearly, technology can also 

provide time saving strategies for teachers. 

There are two pieces of technology that I 

am quite attached to in my classroom: the 

pug mill and the iPad. I feel very sorry for 

those who lack one or both of them. Those 

of you reconstituting clay, schlepping it onto 

a plaster table and wedging it to perfection, 

really ought to be given the gift of a pug 

mill. Those who don't have an iPad, well, if 

you don't yet have an iOX device, just believe 

me when I say it is as helpful as a pug 

mill. Truly, both are incredible time-savers 

and can enrich your teaching experience 

and the students' learning experience. Ok, 

maybe the pug mill doesn't enrich your 

students' learning experience. 

Let's just focus on the iPad. My New iPad 

is primarily used for recording students' 

artwork and process. I file these pictures and 

videos in the iPads Album for purposes of 

assessment and communication with parents. 

We all know the process is the most 

important part of the experience in Art. 

Documenting and easily filing that process is 

valuable beyond belief. Parents love to get a 

glimpse of their child in school. Often times, 

I will send a student's picture to their parents 

directly after taking the picture. If you 

want extra support from parents, I highly 

recommend this idea. When they see their 

child in the relaxed, right brain mode, they 

melt all over the floor. 

Wifi is extremely helpful and in many cases 

required to get the full experience of all that 

the iPad has to offer. The Apple TV is not required 

to help your iPad communicate with 

your desktop computer. By using an app 

(and desktop software) called Doceri, you 

can remotely access your desktop computer. 

Perhaps you want to access your Infinite 

Campus while walking around the room, 

adding grades without sitting at your desk. 

With wifi and Doceri, you are all set. Just 

turn your computer monitor off while you 

do it. Another use is to control your Prezi 

while you lecture. 

Turning the view around requires another 

bit of software for your desktop computer 

called Reflector (previously called Reflections). 

With Reflector, you can reflect what 

is on your iPad onto your desktop. Of course 

if your desktop is connected to a projector, 

the image on your iPad is projected. Sound 

will also come through your speakers. 

View + Research: 

Art Authority 

MoMa 

Louvre 

ArtnMusic 

Pinterest 

A few Teach Tools: 

Doceri 

Reflector 

Educreations 

Notebook 

Notability 

Reflect this app on the board 

+ pass the iPad around: 

Artree 

My favorite Photo Editing App: 

Snapseed 

Art Making: 

Sketchbook 

Accudraw 

Art Studio 

ArtRage 

Indeed there are many more wonderful apps. I 

had to be disciplined by limiting my list. These 

are a great handful of apps to get your rolling. 

Please take my advice though and back up 

data onto your desktop computer often. Data 

(images, notes, etc) stored within apps can disappear. 

Believe me, I know firsthand. It is painful 

the first time and even more painful the second. 

If you have some must-have apps, I would love 

to hear about them. Feel free to send an email 

to jdeters@cloquet.k12.mn.us 



warming up for middle school art 

Class-In-A-Sketchbook | Debra Hannu | Visual / Media Arts, Ordean-East Middle School, Duluth 

Over the past few years of teaching, I have 

noticed that students are increasingly squirrelly when 

they hit the Art room. Maybe it’s the increased focus 

on Reading and Math, or the fact that there are fewer 

and fewer other choices for kids in school. I don’t 

know. Getting into that Art Room is like a breath of 

fresh air for them – GREAT until the social aspect 

starts to overtake class! Focusing on that right brain 

has become more and more of a challenge, especially 

when teens really want (and need) social time with 

their BFFs. 

We all know that highly motivated art students 

will ‘get into the groove’ of art thinking and truly be 

tuned in to their art problems to solve in class. For 

others, teaching seems like a mere annoyance to their 

social time! The problem-solving can become very 

disconnected, a mere dalliance with a pencil as the 

student is REALLY focused on what their neighbor 

is telling them at that moment, not on their work. 

You know as well as I that if students don’t feel that 

sense of ‘investment’ in their work that they do not 

value it. We can tell them all we want, but if they 

don’t internalize that value, it isn’t going to stick. 

It’s heartbreaking to see sketchbooks hitting the 

recycling bin, or students only tenuously connected 

with their work. Yet a completely silent art room is 

not realistic either. 

After a particularly chatty group, a whole slew 

of tossed sketchbooks, and visiting with some colleagues 

with great ideas, I set out to experiment on 

a few goals in my art classroom: 

1. Would developing a beginning-of-class routine to 

get students quiet, calm, and focused on their ‘art’ 

brain at the beginning of class help to set the tone 

for being invested in one’s work 

2. Would that impact students’ sense of pride in their 

process, as well as in their finished work Would 

they value a ‘take-away’ product that is a record 

of their entire course, in addition to their artwork 

I have long introduced each course with the 

creation of some sort of sketchbook through a quick 

book arts unit. That tome has taken many forms over 

the years; some more creative, some more functional. 

With a new building this fall and uncertain funds, I 

chose to the take the conservative round. I mapped out 

all of my lesson rubrics, with vocabulary words below. 

I included a sheet of Elements of Design terms and 

a sheet of Principles, as well as a pre- and post-test 

embracing the whole stack. Also in the book: blank 

pages, and enough quarter-page boxes for each day 

of class with a few extra. In my district, the Print Shop 

will print items for “student use” for free, so I had them 

print the ‘books’ on 11x17 paper, fold it, and staple. 

(This also build in, ahem, some free drawing paper…a 

bonus to my almost budget!) 

The very first day of class, after the obligatory 

policies and procedures, students worked on the 

book’s cover page – the pre-test. It featured a space 

for their name, the date, ‘Artists you have heard of”, 

“What is Art” “Draw your best proportional figure” 

(we focus on the figure in Art 7; this will be different 

for Art 6), and “draw six favorite things”. Over the 

next four days, we paste-papered large sheets of #110 

cardstock, using a variety of colors and tools, and used 

our ‘bone folders’ to make what are basically large 

pocket folders. After about 45 minutes of my time 

spent with my drill (five holes at the center of each 

stapled packet; drill them en masse on a phone book), 

my sketchbook innards were ready for the sketchbook 

paste paper folders! (I will do a different cover surface 

medium with each grade level, so no one makes the 

same exact process twice.) A day, plus a little extra 

time, on stitching the printed innards into the covers, 

and voila! Each student had a sketchbook/portfolio, 

with personalized cover and common ‘innards’. Now 

– how to use this tool for my objectives above 

Each day, I set the tone in my classroom with a 

“starter” or a “warm-up” -- kind of an “appetizer” 

for the class. I have found that this quickly becomes 

a routine, and it calms students as they get into the 

room and ready for art thinking. Students enter the 

room, grab the little pile of sketchbooks for their tables, 

open to the next open box/quarter page, put today’s 

date on it – and they’re ready to go. Sometimes, I will 

use the ‘blinds’ feature on my Smart Board to cover 

the day’s starter; at other times students will just begin 

when the enter the room. When the bell rings, I reveal 

the starter or set the timer. Our warm-ups are five 

minutes of SILENT time, processing the art problem. 

Examples “Draw a scene upside down; don’t look 

at it right-side-up until time is up”. Or, showing an 

image from the art world with some sort of action: 

“Draw what happened just before, or just after, this 

scene.” Or, “Create a new uniform (including helmets, 

shoes, safety gear, etc.) for one of the following teams: 

Minnesota Underwater Basket Weaving Team, the 

U.S. Hamburger Stacking Team, the Canadian Walleye 

Kissing Team” – you get the picture. Sometimes, the 

warm-ups are written responses to an art image or 

idea, such as a YouTube flash mob or a Yarn Bombing 

incident followed with “Is this Art Is this Graffiti 

What do you think and why” No matter the starter, 

students are asked to draw (or write) for the entire 

silent time, until the timer goes off. 

My intention with this activity was not only to 

calm them down, but get them into the right brains 

before class. And give me time to take attendance!! 

If a student is absent, I will circle through the room 

and mark the date and “Absent” in their book, on the 

appropriate box. 

When time is up, the group is usually excited 

to share for a moment or two. Then we’re ready to 

begin class. 

I have noticed, and pointed out to students, how 

much their ‘starters’ evolve over a period of time. 

They tend to begin the class with somewhat tentative 

marks, based on line and with a lot of negative 

space. But over a few weeks, their timed responses 

get darker, include more values, are fuller, and feel 

more spontaneous. Students are always free to go 

back in and ‘tweak’ their starter activities; a great 

thing when there’s a few minutes of ‘down time’ 

in a class. They seem almost ‘hungry’ for that daily 

exercise in creative thinking. 

Aside from that daily starter, I lead students 

through a rubric printed in their sketchbook for 

each lesson. We look at the objectives and goals, 

and we do the vocabulary together. On the day their 

assignment is due, I walk from table to table and 

photograph their work. Each student has a little name 

tag (which they keep in the pocket of their portfolio) 

that they put out next to their work, so their name 

is in the photo. Shooting that picture is a sure-fire 

way to elicit firm due-dates! If a student does not 

have their assignment, I take a picture of only the 

name tag. Those photos are then glued to the back 

of each rubric, right in the sketchbook. 

Rough draft work is done on the blank pages, 

throughout the course. Larger 2D work is kept in 

table folders, with a photograph on the back of the 

rubric page. 

My first experiment with working this way was 

this fall’s first quarter. By the end of the course, each 

student had a portfolio/sketchbook that they made, 

which contained their pre- and post-test, their collection 

of warm-ups, their rough drafts, their scored 

rubrics, and a photograph of each completed art piece. 

So, how did this experiment go 

Did this use of a sketchbook “develop a routine 

to get students quiet, calm, and focused on their ‘art’ 

brain at the beginning of class – to set the tone” I 

would say ‘yes’. Though I have to say sometimes kids 

are so excited about what they did for their warm-up, 

that need to share makes me have to get everyone’s 

attention back again. They are buzzing social, but it 

is totally on-topic! 

Did the students value their work in progress, 

as well as their finished work, to acknowledge their 

learning I have to confess that in addition to passing 

the sketchbooks back I also sent messages to the parents 

to let them know that the portfolios were being 

returned to the students. Hopefully, these portfolios 

were teaching tools for them as well! And yes, I did 

see a marked difference in valuing work, at least by the 

measure of whether kids chose to keep it or not. Out 

of 160 students, only 3 did not take their portfolios. 

The post-test information was equally informative 

to my classroom instruction. How did the ‘preclass’ 

comments and ideas differ from the ‘post-class’ 

ones It was a good reminder to me that the students 

value and like what they feel they are “good at”; a 

testament to providing quality instruction. There was 

also a solid message of the need for a wide range of 

mediums, ideas, and concepts; the “something for 

everyone” idea. 

I have been so delighted by the results of this 

experiment that, while I’m sure it will continue to 

evolve, the creation and use of a portfolio/sketchbook 

in class will probably be part of my courses for the 

future. 

A huge ‘thank you’ to my colleagues Chrissy 

Valento, Ann Phillippi, and Andrew Nagahashi for this 

collection of ideas!!! 

20 





AEM Council Roster 

Due to the structural transition that is taking 

place in the AEM Council, the Council Roster 

has been significantly altered. Represented 

here are the members of the newly organized 

Executive Board that is made up of the 

President, the President Elect and the 

Chairs of the 6 Committees. 

President 

Kris Holsen 

240 18th Ave. S. 

South St. Paul, MN 55075 

763-360-6113 

kris.holsen@me.com 

Birch Grove Elementary School for the Arts 

holsenk@district279.org 

President Elect 

OPEN 

Finance Committee 

Rick Mittelstadt 

6500 Casey Pkwy. 

Prior Lake, MN 55372 

651-639-6106 ext. 2378 

651-423-7511 (fax) 

mittelrl@gmail.com 

Member Services Committee 

OPEN 

Advocacy / PR Committee 

Jo-Anne Kirkman 

Orono School District 

jkirkman@orono.k12.mn.us 

Council Services Committee 

Debra Hannu 

822 9th St. 

Duluth, MN 55805 

218-724-2973 

finnbee@charter.net 

Communications Committee 

Kris Holsen 

240 18th Ave. S. 

South St. Paul, MN. 55075 

763-360-6113 

kris.holsen@me.com 

Birch Grove Elementary School for the Arts 

holsenk@district279.org 

Kevan Nitzberg 

Anoka High School 

3939 7th Ave. N. 

Anoka, MN 55303 

763-506-6431 

knitzberg333@embarqmail.com 

Professional Development 

Committee 

Jeremy Holien 

Visual & Media Arts Education Coordinator 

Professional Development and Research 

Perpich Center for Arts Education 

6125 Olson Memorial Hwy. 

Golden Valley, MN 55422 

763-591-4776 

Jeremy.holien@pcae.k12.mn.us 

Dr. Alison Aune 

University of Minnesota–Duluth 

218-726-6216 

aaune@d.umn.edu 


Art Exchange Newsletter Advertisement Rates 

2012-2013 

SIZE FALL WINTER SPRING 3 ISSUE RATE 

2.25 X 3.O SINGLE COLUMN $60 $60 $60 $165 

4.50 X 3.0 DOUBLE CLOUMN $85 $85 $85 $240 

4.0 X 5.0 QUARTER PAGE $110 $110 $110 $305 

4.0 X 10.0 HALF PAGE $165 $165 $165 $480 

8.0 X 5.0 HALF PAGE $165 $165 $165 $480 

8.0 X 10.0 FULL PAGE $225 $225 $225 $660 

Check below above for issues you wish to advertise in. 

Refer to chart above and write in below the size and cost for each issue: 

Fall: ____/_____ Winter: ___/____ Spring: ___/____ All: ___/____ 

Submit all artwork and ad copy to: Kevan Nitzberg, Art Exchange Editor 

knitzberg333@embarqmail.com 

Online link to commercial vendor site on AEM web site (http://www.aem-mn.org) 

Annual Fee: $200 (check box) 

URL Address: ________________________________________________ 

*********************************************************** 

Make Checks Payable to AEM Total Amount Submitted: $ ________ 

Company Name: ___________________________________ 

Contact Person: _________________________ email: _______________________ 

Street Address: __________________________________________ 

City, State, Zip Code: __________________________________________________ 

Submit payment to: 

Richard Mittelstadt 

AEM Finance Committee Chair 

6500 Casey Pkwy 

Prior Lake, MN. 55372 

651-639-6106 ext. 2378 

mittelrl@gmail.com 

Please Note Submission Deadlines: 

Fall Issue: July 15 th 

Winter Issue: December 15 th 

Spring Issue: March 15 th 

----------- 

Vendor Link: annual fee applied to 

date 

link is activated 

22 





Developing a Framework for 

the Implementation of the 

Teacher Evaluation Process 

Utilizing Teacher Input 

By Kevan Nitzberg 

I recently was involved in a collaborative initiative that was run 

by the non-profit organization, VIVA Teachers (Voices Ideas Vision 

Action: http://vivateachers.org/who), that worked in conjunction 

with Education Minnesota to provide teacher-based recommendations 

for what ought to be considered in the development of the 

teacher evaluation structure that is now in state statute and will be 

implemented by 2014. 

The group of teachers from across the state and also across 

curriculum area and grade level who worked on this effort were 

invited to present their findings at the State Capitol. Present at this 

meeting were: 

• Governor Dayton’s Chief of Staff, Tina Smith 

• Commissioner of Education, Brenda Cassellius 

• MDE’s Chief of Staff, Charlene Briner 

• Evaluation Specialist, Greg Keith 

• Education Evaluation Specialist, Tyler Livingston 

• Assistant Education Commissioner, Rose Hermondson 

• EdMN President, Tom Dooher 

In the afternoon, a second presentation was given to the MDE 

Teacher Evaluation Work Study Group at the MDE building. 

The recommendations that were presented during this meeting 

have been included in this issue of the Art Exchange. I hope that you 

find this to be informative. There seemed to be positive reception 

to the recommendations that were made. The Minnesota teachers 

who contributed to the idea generation and language in these recommendations, 

as well as the other partners whose help VIVA was 

able to employ in this effort are listed below: 

Teachers: 

Annette Walen – Instructional Coach, Osseo School District 

Elizabeth Parr-Smestad – K-6 Physical Ed. teacher, Wellstone Elementary, St. Paul 

Catherine Chilton-Werner – Secondary Spanish & English Language Teacher, 

Lake Park Audubon H.S., Lake Park 

Diedra Carlson – Montessori teacher at Crossroads Elementary, St. Paul 

Jim Barnhill – Special Education Teacher, Mpls. Public Schools 

Joyce Baumann – Kindergarten Teacher, Cold Spring Elementary School, Rocori 

Luke Stordahl – English teacher, Litchfield H.S., Litchfield 

Lynn Mueller – K-12 Visual Arts Specialist, Rosemount-Eagan-Apple Valley 

Kevan Nitzberg – High School Art teacher, Anoka H.S., Anoka-Hennepin 

Pam Winkler – Primary Years Programme teacher, IB World School, White Bear Lake 

Partners: 

Education Commissioner Brenda Cassellius 

Education Minnesota President Tom Dooher 

The Bush Foundation 

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation 

Recommendations for the 

State of Minnesota Teacher 

Evaluation System 

Recommendation 1: 

Adopt a Flexible Evaluation Model Reflecting the Diverse Student 

Populations and Numerous Variables of Educational Settings across 

Minnesota 

Statement of the Problem: 

Through VIVA, Minnesota teachers voiced their concern about the 

need for a flexible evaluation model. It cannot be “one-size fits all” because 

there is no typical classroom. Differences in teacher assignments 

and classroom populations must be considered when designing and 

implementing the evaluation model. All teachers should be evaluated 

with a fair and flexible tool that recognizes these vast differences and 

the specific competencies needed to be a successful educator across 

all possible teaching assignments. There are numerous variables and 

unknowns when implementing an evaluation model of this scope. 

There must be flexibility within the model to reflect variables and the 

model itself must be revisable. For this reason, it will be important 

that the model be open to ongoing evaluation, revision and include 

an avenue for appeals. 

Proposed Solutions: 

1. Use a proven tool for evaluating best practices by grade level, content 

area, or position. There are many options for measurement that have 

already been vetted by professional organizations. Some of these are: 

The National Association for Sports and Physical Education (NASPE), 

American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages, Modern 

Language Association, National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, 

and American School Counselors Association. 

2. Develop a list of variables that affect student, school, and teacher 

interactions, then adjust the data collection accordingly. We know 

that variables such as school location, class size, income level, student 

mobility, English proficiency, and Special Education needs all impact 

student performance so a corresponding formula should be applied 

to teacher evaluation for these mitigating variables that are present in 

classrooms around the state but outside the control of a teacher. (See 

Appendix 1 Classroom/School/District Variable Information) 

3. Allow for ongoing analysis of the effectiveness of the state evaluation 

model and make revisions as needed with input from teachers 

across the state. 

Why We Believe This Will Work 

We believe that all students in Minnesota schools should be achieving at 

the highest levels. Teacher evaluation must be based on best practices to 

maximize student achievement. Teacher competencies will be optimal 

only when data obtained through the use of flexible evaluation models 

is synthesized and used to guide teacher development. An evaluation 

model that allows for inclusion of variables will provide a more accurate 

view of the teacher’s performance, growth, and increases in student 

achievement. In addition, the evaluation model must be evaluated, 

necessary revisions must be made, and teachers must be involved in 

examining the effectiveness of the new evaluation model. 


Use a Standardized Rubric for Observation, Which Can Be Implemented 

Objectively by Any Trained Observer 

Statement of the Problem: Because teaching is as much art as it is 

science, subjectivity becomes an issue as individuals try to assess an 

educator’s abilities during observations. Because there are multiple 

ways to approach instruction and because observers may have a bias 

toward their own methods, it is important to develop an observation 

tool that allows educators flexibility in how they apply current research 

to their instructional methods but retains essential inter-rater reliability. 


4. Use a rubric that outlines key effective instructional components, 

such as Charlotte Danielson’s Framework for Teaching, those outlined 

in the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards or from 

another research-based plan. 

5. Analyze all components of the rubric for legitimacy and fairness so 

they clearly apply to what is being observed and allow enough flexibility 

for variation in instructional method. 


Well-constructed, standardized rubrics will provide a fair and flexible 

tool that can be used throughout the state as instructional coaches 

observe and collaborate with educators. It is the teacher’s pedagogy 

that is examined and discussed in the post-observation but the goal 

is ultimately to improve student achievement through improved 

instruction. In addition, the rubric will be used to direct discussion 

for targeted professional development goals and provide increased 

inter-rater consistency. 


Focus Observations and Evaluations on Professional Growth and Self- 

Reflection 


An educator evaluation model that only includes assessment from an 

outside observer deprives teachers of the opportunity to reflect on 

their own professional practice to build on and improve it. Growth for 

students and teachers drives the profession, but teachers seldom get 

the opportunity to determine how they pursue that growth. Teachers 

already self-evaluate and make efforts to improve their instructional 

practice, leading to improved student achievement. This self-evaluation 

often is informal so the evidence of the process and the impact on 

student learning are not always documented. Therefore, observers may 

be unaware of the teacher’s instructional adjustments and the positive 

impact these have on student learning. 


6. For each evaluation cycle the teacher, in collaboration with the educator 

coach and or a professional learning community, will write a personal 

professional growth plan aimed at improving strategies used to advance 

student achievement. 

7. As part of the evaluation cycle the teacher will provide evidence of 

progress toward these goals. Evidence of progress needs to be included 

as part of the summative evaluation. 

8. In order to reach successful completion of these professional goals, 

the educator must have the opportunity and funding to pursue professional 

development related to the growth plan. 


In the book How Teachers Learn, Steve Chappuis, Jan Chappuis and Rick 

Stiggins state, “The learning-team model helps teachers make changes 

in practice that lead to improved student achievement.... Just as learning 

improves for students when they have the structured opportunity 

to reflect on what they know and don’t know in relation to the targets 

of instruction, adult learning also benefits from intentional reflection 

on classroom practice. Collaborative learning teams can transform the 

nature of adult interaction and learning in schools by engaging teachers 

in the same process of continual learning and improvement that we 

ask our students to strive for in their work.” Educators have repeatedly 

asserted the importance of having opportunities to have a voice in their 

own professional development and growth. Employing a strength-based 

model that focuses on growth and success for teachers rather than a 

punitive model will benefit all students. 


Use the Teacher Evaluation as a Springboard to Professional Development 

that Leads to Continuous Improvement of Practice. 


The many teacher voices on VIVA from across the state expressed the 

need for an evaluative system that validates accomplishments and drives 

the professional growth of an educator to increase student achievement. 

Teaching is a challenging profession and teachers want to be supported 

in their work with students. Teachers believe the primary goal of any 

evaluative plan must be the validation of educators’ competencies in 

order to give Minnesota’s children the best teachers in the nation and 

help all students achieve at the highest levels. 

Teachers also spoke of the inequities that exist in schools and districts 

throughout the state regarding evaluation processes and subsequent 

staff development opportunities. Teachers want professional development 

opportunities that meet their needs and result in greater student 

success. These professional development opportunities must be funded 

by the state. The Teacher Evaluation Legislation requires that teachers 

24 





“participate in professional learning communities” and formulate an 

“individual growth and development plan” and study, develop and 

improve “effective teaching practices.” Formal teacher professional 

development is a necessary and vital part of the plan. The state has reduced 

its support drastically in the past years and resources must not be 

stripped from the classroom in order to fund professional development. 

Therefore, comprehensive professional development must be easily 

accessible for every school district in the state. 


9. Provide professional development opportunities based on evaluation 

criteria that will build each teacher’s knowledge and skills. 

10. Provide staff development to help teachers interpret testing data 

and develop and target instructional strategies based on the data. 

11. Support instructional strategies by providing professional development 

activities such as, but not limited to, peer coaching, mentorship, 

professional learning communities (PLCs) or cohorts, teacher shadowing, 

workshops and classes for all Minnesota educators of students 

ages birth to 21, regardless of subject, grade level, teaching assignment 

or district size. 


The Teacher Evaluation law targets the improvement of student achievement 

by having the most qualified and highly effective educators teaching 

our children. We believe the highest level of student learning will be 

achieved by equal access across the state to professional development 

that is closely linked to student achievement data, teacher evaluation 

data, individual professional development goals and PLC training and 

implementation. Individual professional goals will vary by content area 

and teacher/student need. When these needs are addressed, student 

achievement will increase. Data collection and analysis over a threeyear 

observation/evaluation cycle will contribute to building teacher 

knowledge and skills. 

In addition, we believe student achievement throughout the State of 

Minnesota will continue to be at high levels and grow even further 

when there is a collaborative model such as peer coaching, mentoring, 

or a cohort focus on professional development with statewide access 

for all the teachers/educators in Minnesota. 


Measures of Educator Effectiveness Obtained through Observation 

Should be Averaged over Multiple Observations Done by More than 

One Trained Observer 


Teachers, like most people, want to know that the quality of their 

work has been fairly and accurately assessed in order to improve the 

impact they have with students. Research validates that a one-time 

observation of a teacher is a less reliable indicator of the quality of 

that person’s work than when the teacher is observed multiple times 

throughout a year and the average of the observation results is used 

to describe the teacher’s instructional skills. 

Proposed Solution: 

12. Take a longer-term view of teacher performance that includes 

input from a variety of observers and multiple measures over time so 

a teacher’s evaluation is not based on a “snapshot.” 


Districts, regardless of size, do not have the capacity to observe every 

teacher multiple times per year utilizing administrators alone. Given the 

magnitude of the task posed by a statewide teacher evaluation system, 

most districts will have no choice but to carry out the task through a 

variety of well-trained observers from the ranks of both teachers and 

administrators. Conducting multiple observations by different observers 

and using an average across all observations ensures fairness and is a 

more accurate reflection of a teacher’s overall instructional effectiveness. 

Fairness in the process is critical to our students and teachers. 

Fairness ensures that no teacher is mischaracterized in any way based 

on a single observation. Teachers working with a well-constructed 

evaluation system implemented by skilled observers will seek to use it 

as a tool to help define their performance and the success of students. 

Failure to gain the trust of teachers could impact teacher retention, 

teacher recruitment, and teacher morale, all of which are important 

factors that impact students. 


Train Educators as Instructional Coaches for District and/or Inter-District 

Observations 


Fair, unbiased and with integrity: These are words that educators use 

when describing the professionals who should be observing and evaluating 

them. Educators want to have trained, knowledgeable individuals, 

both peers and administrators, working with them to guide their 

professional growth and increase their students’ achievement levels. 

Educators have said loudly through their input on the VIVA site that 

they want their evaluation to include both observations and evaluations 

that include collaborative work with peers and an administrator’s input 

with the focus on quality instruction for increase student engagement 

and higher student achievement. 

An evaluation is, “The making of a judgment about the amount, 

number, or value of something; assessment.” An observation is, “The 

action or process of observing something or someone carefully in order 

to gain information; the ability to notice things, especially significant 

details; a remark, statement, or comment based on something one 

has seen, heard, or noticed.” This distinction is necessary. 

Administrators are now required by law to do evaluations of educators. 

Due to their increasing workload and the structure of the evaluation 

systems used, administrators do not have the time needed to get a 

full, balanced view of an educator’s knowledge, the application of this 

knowledge and how it impacts student achievement levels. Educators 

are comfortable being observed but strongly voiced that they want a 

system that is fair, unbiased and reliable across the different content 

areas and developmental levels. Consistently, educators, as well as 

researchers on the topic, have said that a balanced approach using 

observations in addition to evaluations would provide that full, rich 

picture of an educator’s competence. 

This balanced view (observation and evaluation combined) will lead to 

increased teacher knowledge, effective application of data, productive 

instructional strategies and collaboration and professional growth 

among educators across the state. As professionals, educators want 

to continue to grow and implement strategies that help every student 

achieve their full potential. 


13. Train licensed educators as subject area instructional experts who 

will serve as coaches in collaboration with the teacher to identify 

strengths and areas of growth. 

14. Provide and fully fund, with state financing, the training of teachers 

to be instructional coaches. 

15. Provide state funding and time for collaboration (PLCs) needed to 

continue advancing the training and teaching of Minnesota’s highly 

educated teachers. 

16. Conduct peer observations and reviews during the review cycle. 

17. Create a pool of educator coaches who are instructional subject 

experts who can provide balanced and unbiased observations that 

hold equal weight as the administrator’s in the summative evaluation. 


Trained Instructional Coaches will engage in cognitive discussions 

centered on observations and the use of current, research-based, 

relevant teaching methods that reflect best practices. These coaches 

will facilitate balanced and open communication to celebrate successes, 

improve instruction, and plan professional growth, all aimed at 

increasing student achievement. Instructional Coaches will mentor and 

work with their peers, building a greater level of trust and openness 

in conversation focusing on students’ growth and success. Utilizing 

trained instructional coaches will provide opportunities for principals 

to efficiently and effectively observe staff on a rotating basis. 


Value-Added Measures Should Be Used to Provide Educators Feedback 

and to Determine Professional Development Needs, but Should Be 

Excluded from Consideration in Employment Decisions. 


While Value-Added Measures are intended to demonstrate the effects 

of a teacher’s work on student achievement, researchers widely agree 

that use of VAM to make conclusions about a teacher’s effectiveness 

includes a degree of error that makes it inappropriate for use in employment 

decisions. Students should never lose a great teacher because of 

a tool that has so many limitations. 

VAM have limitations and can only estimate a range of effectiveness 

for a teacher. However, VAM outcomes can change from year to year 

for reasons other than a teacher’s effectiveness, and numerous different 

employment situations such as co-teaching, short-term leaves of 

absence, or a change of assignment that makes it extremely difficult 

to interpret the meaning of the data. The amount of this measurement 

error is also increased when small numbers of students are included 

in the data, when Value Added data from a single year is used to 

make conclusions, and when class size is not taken into consideration. 

Researchers agree that it is inappropriate to use VAM as a factor in 

making a high-stakes employment decision. Researchers also caution 

that the use of VAM in a high-stakes employment decision may lead to 

the practice of “teaching to the test,” which fails to show real student 

growth because of the distorted results. 


18. VAM data should be used only to identify curriculum or instructional 

strategies that have been of greatest value to student achievement and 

to identify the professional development teachers need to improve. 


VAM is not appropriate for use in a high-stakes employment decision, 

but it can be helpful to educators, and therefore students, for other 

purposes. VAM can be a helpful tool to educators in determining 

whether curriculum or teaching strategies they use in the classroom 

have improved student achievement. This diagnostic use of VAM has 

a positive influence on student achievement by helping districts and 

educators determine appropriate professional development needs. 


Administrators Should Collaborate with Educators in Non-Tested Subjects 

to Determine Mutually Agreeable Curriculum-Based Assessment 

as the Source of Student Achievement Data for Their Subject Area 


To meet the requirement that 35 percent of an evaluation be based 

on student achievement data, districts face a great temptation to find 

one-size fits all testing sources that can be administered by as many 

teachers as possible. It is an understandable temptation considering 

the magnitude of the task posed by evaluating every teacher in a district 

There is no one-size-fits-all testing source, any more than there is 

a one-size-fits-all “student need.” All of our students have different 

needs and teachers ardently want to target these needs to increase 

their students’ achievement. Using student achievement data in an 

evaluation system requires that we find reliable and valid sources of 

26 





information that identify how students are growing. But, to be of 

greatest use to a teacher, student data must reflect actual classroom 

content based on the needs of specific groups of students. Using state, 

district, or even common assessments by grade or subject turns the art 

of teaching into a mechanical process, void of the creativity needed to 

inspire students toward a thirst for knowledge, toward curiosity, and 

toward higher-order thinking. Teachers have expressed their concern 

for years that testing has made a significant and negative influence on 

what and how students are taught. The new emphasis on collecting 

student data for the purpose of measuring teacher effectiveness will 

make this situation even worse. 


19. Districts should empower their principals to work with all teachers 

to reach mutually agreeable decisions on what data will be collected. 

Such decisions allow the greatest degree of flexibility for teachers to 

determine, based on their curriculum and the needs of their current 

students, what will be measured how it will be measured, and how it 

will drive instruction in the various teaching assignments in our schools 

today. (See Appendix 2, List of Teaching Assignments) 

20. Appropriate rubrics should be used or developed to capture the 

growth of students in areas that are difficult to measure through 

standardized tests. 

21. Even when district or common assessments are available, teachers 

and principals must be allowed to choose classroom-based assessments 

due to the variety of teaching assignments in our schools in order to 

meet this requirement of the statute covering 35% of the evaluation. 


Teachers already have and use curriculum-based assessments now. 

This will avoid a major time and financial investment in creating common 

assessments which would detract from actual teaching time with 

students. It will also save the money being spent now to purchase 

commercial products that were not intended for such use in the first 

place. While some teachers may benefit from using common assessments, 

those who have well-established measures of student progress 

will maintain the kind of autonomy and flexibility that professionals 

need and expect in order to serve the individual needs of their students. 

While work will need to be done to increase the reliability of 

curriculum-based assessment tools, this work is worth the investmentreturn 

of empowering teachers as professional decision-makers who 

know their students’ needs best and desire for all their students to be 

successful learners. 


Create a Defined Time-Limited Appeal Process as Part of the Evaluation 

System 


Teachers from around the state of Minnesota weighed in on the 

topic of teacher evaluations and overwhelmingly agreed that being 

evaluated was necessary and ALSO strongly stated that the evaluation 

model must be fair. Teachers voiced serious concerns that all required 

steps would not be taken prior to disciplinary action “for not making 

adequate progress” in the teacher improvement process. There must 

not be any shortcuts taken in the improvement process: The steps are 

evaluation, improvement plan, and re-evaluation, concluding with a 

decision for either no discipline or discipline, as laid out in the law. 

There is currently no process or committee to ensure that teacher 

evaluations and resulting decisions are fair and unbiased. Due to differences 

in perspectives of evaluation results, arbitrary goals set by 

administrators, interpretation of data and teacher situations, mitigating 

circumstances, or bias on the part of the evaluator, it is essential that 

teachers have access to a clearly defined progressive appeal process. 


22. Create a defined appeal process that teachers would utilize if 

there are conflicting interpretations of evaluation data and/or teacher 

performance. 

23. Create an unbiased, systematic appeal process involving a committee 

composed of two each: administrator, the teacher, union leadership, 

peer leader/instructional mentor and one randomly selected leader 

from the district to balance the decision. 

24. Develop a collaborative teacher improvement plan focus that has 

a defined limited timeline, which leads to teacher improvement and 

greater success for students based on evaluation data. 

25. Provide professional development opportunities for educators who 

need skill development based on evaluation data and/or an improvement 

plan. 

26 Allow teachers involved in the appeals process to request observations 

be conducted by two evaluators (instructional coach and administrator) 

concurrently to minimize bias, maximize inter-rater reliability 

and ensure fairness. 


The ultimate goal of teachers is for the highest student achievement 

possible. With this focus we believe it is essential to dialogue about the 

interpretation of evaluation data. It is also important to reach a consensus 

and concur on the validity of the results of this data. We believe 

a process for appeals is necessary and fair in this Teacher Evaluation 

Legislation because teachers have the right to challenge and defend 

any evaluative interpretations and actions resulting from the evaluation. 

The current legislation violates districts’ Labor agreements where 

due process is guaranteed, undermines teacher morale and trust, and 

affects the quality of daily classroom connections with students, thus 

having the opposite effect on our ultimate goal of increasing student 

achievement to the highest levels possible. 


Provide Full, Sustainable State Funding and Personnel to Support the 

Mandated Teacher Evaluation Model 


Teachers sharing their ideas with VIVA expressed deep concerns in 

regards to the inequity of funding and personnel across districts. 

Successful implementation of a mandated comprehensive evaluation 

program requires full sustainable state financial support. For many 

districts there are limited or no available funds for implementation and 

support, to pay for training and compensation of evaluators and peer 

coaches, substitutes, data management and other related and or yet 

to be determined evaluation expenses. 

Teachers in districts of all sizes have expressed that being observed, 

coached and/or evaluated by someone who understands researchbased 

best practices for their particular discipline would be an essential 

element of any evaluation model. In some school districts there may be 

personnel that can serve as evaluators and/or coaches. In other school 

districts, there may simply not be enough personnel to take on those 

roles. It is important that the evaluation process not become an additional 

burden to teachers by taking them out of the classroom on a 

regular basis to observe other teachers. A limited number of teachers 

that can serve as instructional coaches means more time out of the 

classroom and reduced quality of instruction for students. 


27. Provide full and sustainable state funding to allow for effective 

training for all personnel involved with the mandated evaluation model. 

28. Provide full and sustainable state funding including compensation 

for educator coaches, substitute teachers, staff development, travel 

and data management. 

29. Provide full and sustainable state funding to develop a statewide 

pool of subject experts who are trained as instructional coaches for 

any district needing personnel to serve in this role. Statewide pools 

of subject matter experts should be available to all regions (use the 

Minnesota Association of School Administrator MASA job site regions) 

of the state. 

30. Re-establish state funding of professional development consistent 

with MN Statue 122A.60 as formerly mandated by state law for this 

mandated evaluation law. 


The Minnesota Teacher evaluation model must include full and sustainable 

state funding. Only when the state funds the training for 

instructional coaches, staff development, and management of data, 

will this investment in the evaluation model be successful. This will 

result in meaningful teacher development that will drive classroom 

instruction and positively impact student achievement. 

In addition, the differences in district size and funding will create an 

undue burden for many districts as they struggle to manage this new 

legislation with limited time and personnel resources and diminishing 

general funds, thus removing resources from student instruction. With 

full, sustainable funding, this burden would be minimized, allowing 

dollars and personnel to remain in the classroom and have a positive, 

direct and significant impact on student achievement. 

Conclusion 

Every day, the voices of tens of thousands of teachers in Minnesota are 

heard saying to their students: “Here is what you need to know. Here 

is why you need to know it. Here is how you can learn it. Here’s how 

I will help you to know it. Here is how you can show me you know 

it. Here’s what you can do if you already know it. ” These questions 

sound so clear and simple, but teaching is anything but clear and 

simple. Teachers stand before students with one overriding passion: 

to help each of these children, adolescents and young adults reach 

their full potential. 

Teachers need to be supported in this monumental task, to be trusted 

in their skill and expertise of their subject matter and pedagogy to 

move all our students forward in their learning. This is a team effort of 

all the teachers, school support personnel, administrators and parents 

to prepare students for the future. It needs to be the mission of all. 

Every student deserves to have a great teacher, and one way for us 

to ensure this is to create a solid evaluation that teachers can believe 

in and can have a say in and that adequately accounts for the many 

challenges teachers face every day. An effective evaluation model can 

direct our energies to hone our craft and strengthen instructional 

practice, resulting in optimal student achievement. 

Minnesota teachers are committed to upholding our state’s great 

education legacy. We want to continue and build on this legacy with 

a solid evaluation model because it can be a powerful tool to help us 

achieve our utmost priority: to maximize student learning. 

28 





2012 aem retiree 

recognition event 

by Nancy Lee 

The 2012 AEM Retiree Recognition Event was held at noon on November 9th during the AEM Fall Conference at the Crowne 

Plaza Hotel in Plymouth, MN. Art Educators who were honored during the Retiree Recognition Event were Lynn Callahan, Susan 

Geihl, Colleen Patterson, Linda Thoni, and Vicki Wintheiser. The honored retired art educators in attendance each received a certificate, 

a lifetime AEM Fall Conference free attendance card, and corsage. 

Lynn Callahan retired in 2011 from Dakota Meadows Middle School, in North Mankato, MN following 35 years of teaching. 

Susan Geihl retired in 2012 from Ellen Hopkins Elementary School in Moorhead, MN following 16 years of teaching. In addition, Sue 

taught for the Prairie Region Teacher Training Institute held at Concordia College, Moorhead, MN in 2012. Colleen Patterson retired 

in 2012 from Franklin Elementary School in North Mankato, MN following 39 years of teaching. Linda Thoni retired in 2012 from 

Byron Elementary School in Byron, MN following 16 ½ years of teaching. Vicki Wintheiser retired June 2012 from Byron High School 

In Byron, MN after teaching for 26 years. Previously she taught in Glenville and St. Paul Park and a short time was a preschool 

teacher in Albert Lea and Byron. 

Within their combined years of teaching, that total 132 ½ years, there is a spread of art education influence that stretches from 

preschool through high school and into college. With gratitude for their dedication to the students they guided, we honor Lynn, 

Susan, Colleen, Linda and Vicki and wish them fabulous art experiences in their retirement. 

30 






Kevan Nitzberg 

21325 County Road 117 

Rogers, MN 55374 

Non-Profint Org. 

U.S. Postage 

PAID 

Minneapolis, MN 

Permit No. 3174

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