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This page is not public and has been built for a proposal for NAEA Administration. 

"Unlocking the Powerful Art Program"

A proposal for a presentation/keynote for the NAEA Convention 2016 Chicago.

If you have any doubts that art is THE MOST important class a student can take in school, the speaker, Eric Gibbons, will explain the facts, figures, approaches, and research that proves it. Gibbons assures us that you are already the expert that you need to be, and if you are not, a few simple adjustments that can amp up a tepid program. Touching on STEAM versus STEM, the inter-curricular approach, arts integration, and choice based learning, we come to understand why art students outscore their peers by an average 100 points on tests like the SAT. Gibbons' approach beats that by another 55 points, and his students are 50% less likely to fail other state assessments.

Art teachers know, when we grid, measure, and draw—we use geometry. When we make sculptures—we use engineering. When we mix colors—we reveal information about physics. When we create illustrations for stories—we learn about literature. When we review the styles of art from da Vinci to Bansky—we teach history. When we write about art—we strengthen these skills. When we create works of art, we solve complex visual problems in creative ways.  

Believe it or not, art is at the heart of education, and if you are in a district that minimizes your importance by calling you a "prep teacher," enrichment, or a special area teacher, you need to see and understand why you are much more than that. All attendees will be gifted a packet of support information, lesson ideas, sample assessments, benchmarks, strategies for improving collegial and administrative respect, understanding, funding, and ultimately the stability of your department.

Eric Gibbons has been a classroom art teacher in the United States, Japan, and Egypt for more than 25 years. He has authored more than 80 books, with about 20 dedicated to art education including the bestselling books If Picasso Had a Christmas Tree, The Art Student's Workbook, and Art Assessments. His work may be better known to you through his numerous articles in School Arts Magazine, or his blog, ArtEdGuru.com. With work in the Obama White House, a dozen original classical piano pieces to his credit, this Renaissance Man offers an uplifting message to art educators all over the world:

"You are the solution to the education woes of this country and the world, many just don't know it yet."
If this were to a large audience, I would be able to offer small group pull-outs with specific information about implementing portions of this presentation like: 
  • STEAM vs STEM, 
  • Altering cookie-cutter projects into unique art experiences, 
  • Advocating, and what that could look like for tenured and non-tenured teachers. 


For further information please email the speaker through email to LOVSART (at) AOL (dot) com, or Gmail to the same address. Please include the subject NAEA 2016.