Visual Arts Education
(pre-K through grade 12)
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Major Brochure | Courses | Sample Plan of Study

Starry nights.

Memory’s persistence.

Water lilies.

The bombing of Guernica.

A man deep in thought.

When artists come along, the everyday gets re-imagined. Artists turn their engagement with the world into statements made of pottery, stone, steel, charcoal, photographs, and paint, making the obvious and overlooked surprising and rich, intricately beautiful, even starkly disturbing.

At Defiance College, visual arts education majors who yearn for unique images and seek to express their deep selves visually are equipped with the theory, tools, and practice to do just that. As majors find their own artistic voices at Defiance, they are also equipped to teach students through their grounding in the theory, practice, and history of the arts.

Education faculty skillfully prepare majors for the challenges of teaching, while art faculty carry their hands-on art-making experience into the classroom, encouraging students to take risks with various media and with ideas about the deep nature of the world.

Van Gogh.

Dali.

Monet.

Picasso.

Rodin.

Engage.  Imagine.  Create.  Teach.

A Rich Tradition

Defiance College has a rich teacher education heritage. For more than 100 years, the College has prepared and graduated teachers who not only teach, but become principals and superintendents as well. The success of Defiance College education graduates rests in part on the rapport established with area schools and the caring, personal attention given to each student by the experienced faculty. In addition to exceeding state minimum requirements, the program has many other strengths.

Early hands-on experience is stressed in this program, and some of the equipment for this experiential learning includes a darkroom, pottery wheels and kilns, a foundry, and an etching press. The teaching faculty are practicing professionals who regularly show and sell their work at galleries across the country. The offerings in art strive to cultivate an understanding of the fine arts as an important factor in a liberal arts education.

The Teacher Education Program
All education students should be aware that the requirements for graduation are extensive, and that careful planning is necessary. Students admitted to the College who wish to be licensed as teachers must be admitted to the teacher education program and should indicate their desire to become a licensed teacher upon entering the College. Early and continuous monitoring of students helps assure success in completing the program in a more timely manner. Students may not take upper-level education courses until a review of lower-level field experiences and coursework has been successfully completed and the student has obtained minimum scores of 176 in reading, 174 in writing, and 175 in math on the Praxis I. Each applicant seeking teacher licensure is considered on the basis of criteria formulated by the Teacher Education Council and continuance in the program is dependent upon approval by that group. The senior capstone experience for all education majors is a semester long internship.

Education Accreditation
The Teacher Education Program has been reviewed and approved by the Ohio Department of Education using the teaching education standards by the National Council of Accreditation of Teacher Education.

Ohio Education Licensure
Since the Ohio Department of Education periodically changes teacher licensure requirements, the College reserves the right to modify its programs and requirements to meet changing state standards. The professional courses and the teaching fields outlined will meet the current state standards for teacher licensure in Ohio. Students interested in teaching in another state are advised to contact that state's department of education to determine if the Ohio teaching license will transfer to a comparable license in that state.

Field experiences in schools, an important part of the program, begin as early as the first semester of the sophomore year, continue through a variety of classroom settings, and culminate in a supervised student teaching experience during the senior year. Studies in teaching diverse student populations are part of the program.

Major Brochure | Courses | Sample Plan of Study

Field Experiences

Defiance College is fortunate in that it has developed a sound rapport with area schools. This type of partnership provides excellent opportunities for students to receive “hands-on” experience under the guidance of highly qualified school teachers or coaches. These field experiences are an important part of the instructional program and they culminate with a supervised student teaching experience. These experiences will be provided through opportunities in the classroom or gymnasium activities, as well as through local coaching experiences.

A Unique Opportunity

Minor in Autism Studies
The Hench Autism Studies Program is designed to educate students about the unique needs of persons with autism and their families. Additionally, students receive training on effective strategies for successful integration of persons with autism into education, vocational, family and community settings. Students are encouraged to apply these strategies in a supervised practicum setting. The minor in Autism Studies may be combined with any major.

Report on the Quality of Teacher Education

As part of the Title II Higher Education Act, all colleges and universities with teacher preparation programs where students receive federal assistance under Title IV of that act must report assessment data on their teacher education “program completers.” Program Completer refers to anyone who completes all requirements for any of the approved teacher education programs. This year’s data is based on a group of 35 students who completed programs during the 2007-2008 school year. The overall pass rate for these students on state required tests was 100%. The students in this group who completed the programs in Early Childhood Licensure, Middle Childhood Licensure, Adolescent and Young Adult Licensure and Pre-K –12 Multi-Age Licensure Programs, had a pass rate on state required tests of 100%. Those students were required to pass the state required content test prior to their student teaching/internship and the state required test on teaching principles before applying for licensure.

After College - What’s Next?

Defiance College graduates are very successful, both in the classroom and in administrative roles. A high percentage of classrooms in northwest Ohio schools are staffed by well-trained Defiance College graduates, but our graduates are often sought by school districts from many parts of the country. Graduates have also been selected into the Teach for America program. With additional training, many graduates also work as principals, superintendents, and in specialty positions such as guidance counselors and program coordinators. Educators who have already completed their baccalaureate degree may choose to enroll in Defiance College’s Master of Arts in Education program.

Graduate Programs

Master of Arts in Education
Teacher leadership, the theme of the program, is implemented through four goals:
1. Teacher leaders will model effective planning and delivery of instruction.
2. Teacher leaders will engage students in learning and accurately evaluating
     the students’ performance.
3. Teacher leaders will be committed to collaborative faculty improvement
     through mentoring and coaching.
4. Teacher leaders will demonstrate the use of scientifically based research to
     solve classroom and school problems.

Graduate programs offered in education
- Master of Arts in Education
- Master of Arts in Education/ Adolescent and Young Adult Licensure
- Master of Arts in Education with Coaching Concentrations
- Master of Arts in Education Intervention Specialist
- Master of Arts in Education with Ohio Reading Endorsement

Evening and summer classes are available.

The Faculty

Jo Ann Burkhardt, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Education
419-783-2315 | jburkhardt@defiance.edu | Faculty Profile

Fred Coulter, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Education
419-783-2416 | fcoulter@defiance.edu | Faculty Profile

Joshua C. Francis, M.A., Assistant Professor of Education
419-783-2571 | jfrancis@defiance.edu | Faculty Profile

Sandra Golden, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Education /
Master of Arts in Education Program Director
419-783-2412 | sgolden@defiance.edu | Faculty Profile

Diane L. Coleman, M.A., Coordinator of NCATE & Clinical
Experiences, Instructor of Education
419-783-2453 | dcoleman@defiance.edu

Douglas Fiely, M.A., Assistant Professor of Art
419-783-2452 | dfiely@defiance.edu | Faculty Profile

Matthew Lydum, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Education
419-783-2419 | mlydum@defiance.edu | Faculty Profile

Jason M. Stockman, M.F.A., Assistant Professor of Art
419-783-2451 | jstockman@defiance.edu

Ian D. MacGregor, M.A., Head of Teacher Education
419-783-2324 | imacgregor@defiance.edu