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Here's a little introduction.
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If you never had art class before, watch this. Try something new!
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Teacher: Mr. Eric Gibbons
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Mr. Gibbons is a highly qualified, award winning, doubly certified with an additional National Board Certification in art education with over 30 years of art education experience in New Jersey (where he was awarded NJ’s Best High School Art Teacher in 2015), North Carolina, Japan, and Egypt. In 2020 he earned his National Board Certification in High School Art. He is also a published author, speaker, publisher, award-winning inventor, and operated the Firehouse Gallery of Bordentown for 25 years. His novel intercurricular, choice-based, STEM/STEAM approach to art education has been internationally recognized, published, and is followed by thousands of art teachers globally. As an artist, Mr. Gibbons’ work has been featured in art exhibitions around the globe, appeared in Art News Magazine, American Art Collector, with a special painting going to the Obama White House. He is thrilled to be a member of the Vernon Malone Staff and meeting the creative needs of the students and staff. You can see him here at WRAL News for winning Teacher of the week HERE. VMCCA art student's work often appear in the national publication, School Arts Magazine.
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Why Art Class Is Important:
In a test driven, results oriented public school system, the art department costs money. Supplies don't come cheap, nor do teacher's salaries. Is art just a class that allows core content teachers a bathroom break or preparation time? Is it a moderated block of time for kids to express themselves, have fun, and blow off some steam? The short sighted and ill-informed will say "AMEN!" They fail to understand something very important.
The solution to failing schools is right under our noses. It has been for a long time. Research, studies, and evidence prove it, but schools ignore it because they feel it's counter-intuitive. Worse yet, when schools do decline, they cut the one program they should be strengthening. ART! Not "craft time," or follow-along busy work, but a rigorous, focused, inter-curricular program taught by a certified ART instructor. The facts show that schools that implement STEAM programs, outperform schools that promote STEM. The "A" (Art) is THE important key to student success!
A study by PlosOne (https://goo.gl/6XZ5KZ ) shows that exploring art and making art both help the brain make more neural connections, but that making art showed significantly greater cognitive gains.
Evidence from The National Assembly of State Arts Agencies and the AEPsupport (https://goo.gl/op4zGo ) the fact that art students are more successful than their non-art involved peers by a significant margin.
72% of business leaders say that creativity is the number one skill they hire for. Art is one of the few places children develop these kinds of problem solving skills. Students who participate in art are 4X more likely to participate in a math or science fair. Art students are more likely to be recognized for student achievement. Art reduces truancy in schools and in poor districts student dropout rates go from an average 22% in schools without art to 4% within the SAME population in schools with art. Art students are 17% more likely to volunteer, and 20% more likely to vote. Art students outscore their peers on the SAT exam by an average of 100 points. https://goo.gl/wik68T and https://goo.gl/CBMB3R
Art does even more, like lowering stress so students can cope with the challenges of school. (https://goo.gl/pguZ2l ) A Missouri study (https://goo.gl/t796S2 ) of public schools in 2010 found that greater arts education led to fewer disciplinary infractions, higher attendance, graduation rates, and confirmed data that student test scores were higher. Conversely a New York City high schools study showed that schools that had a graduation rate under 50% offered the least access to art education with fewer certified arts teachers. (https://goo.gl/a9AOHY)
Additionally, medical schools are noticing a decline in students’ dexterity, likely from spending time swiping screens rather than developing fine motor skills that we know are a hallmark of hands-on classes like art. https://nyti.ms/2YTnaem
With such huge, verifiable benefits, it's amazing that only 7% of schools require art education. State arts agencies receive 0.037%—less than one half of one tenth of one percent—of state general fund expenditures. https://goo.gl/qjqKFo .
The solution to failing schools is right under our noses. (https://goo.gl/Ps1YWN) More statistical evidence can be found on the Arts Ed Now organization publication located here: (https://goo.gl/a9AOHY)
In a test driven, results oriented public school system, the art department costs money. Supplies don't come cheap, nor do teacher's salaries. Is art just a class that allows core content teachers a bathroom break or preparation time? Is it a moderated block of time for kids to express themselves, have fun, and blow off some steam? The short sighted and ill-informed will say "AMEN!" They fail to understand something very important.
The solution to failing schools is right under our noses. It has been for a long time. Research, studies, and evidence prove it, but schools ignore it because they feel it's counter-intuitive. Worse yet, when schools do decline, they cut the one program they should be strengthening. ART! Not "craft time," or follow-along busy work, but a rigorous, focused, inter-curricular program taught by a certified ART instructor. The facts show that schools that implement STEAM programs, outperform schools that promote STEM. The "A" (Art) is THE important key to student success!
A study by PlosOne (https://goo.gl/6XZ5KZ ) shows that exploring art and making art both help the brain make more neural connections, but that making art showed significantly greater cognitive gains.
Evidence from The National Assembly of State Arts Agencies and the AEPsupport (https://goo.gl/op4zGo ) the fact that art students are more successful than their non-art involved peers by a significant margin.
72% of business leaders say that creativity is the number one skill they hire for. Art is one of the few places children develop these kinds of problem solving skills. Students who participate in art are 4X more likely to participate in a math or science fair. Art students are more likely to be recognized for student achievement. Art reduces truancy in schools and in poor districts student dropout rates go from an average 22% in schools without art to 4% within the SAME population in schools with art. Art students are 17% more likely to volunteer, and 20% more likely to vote. Art students outscore their peers on the SAT exam by an average of 100 points. https://goo.gl/wik68T and https://goo.gl/CBMB3R
Art does even more, like lowering stress so students can cope with the challenges of school. (https://goo.gl/pguZ2l ) A Missouri study (https://goo.gl/t796S2 ) of public schools in 2010 found that greater arts education led to fewer disciplinary infractions, higher attendance, graduation rates, and confirmed data that student test scores were higher. Conversely a New York City high schools study showed that schools that had a graduation rate under 50% offered the least access to art education with fewer certified arts teachers. (https://goo.gl/a9AOHY)
Additionally, medical schools are noticing a decline in students’ dexterity, likely from spending time swiping screens rather than developing fine motor skills that we know are a hallmark of hands-on classes like art. https://nyti.ms/2YTnaem
With such huge, verifiable benefits, it's amazing that only 7% of schools require art education. State arts agencies receive 0.037%—less than one half of one tenth of one percent—of state general fund expenditures. https://goo.gl/qjqKFo .
The solution to failing schools is right under our noses. (https://goo.gl/Ps1YWN) More statistical evidence can be found on the Arts Ed Now organization publication located here: (https://goo.gl/a9AOHY)
Student Reviews:
- "Each project I got to learn a new skill, and incorporate my own ideas and creativity in these projects..." ~Christopher W.
- "This class taught me to go out of my comfort zone and use tools and mediums that I wouldn't have considered otherwise...Art is a language of many dialects and now I love abstraction and cubism. They remind me of math formulas, how I can break them down into their own little parts and stack them back up again to create something wholly unique." ~Lynx B.
- "I learned that art is never a means to be perfect. As long as you put your heart and soul into it, it's art." ~Brooklyn W.
- "I think having a place to experiment with all the different ways you could express yourself artistically is very important to young artists, and I'm happy to see Mr. Gibbons working hard to make sure each student can be seen through their art. I believe everyone who can take this course should take it. Even if you aren't the the best at art, this class can not only give you a better appreciation for the art world, but a better appreciation for yourself and your work." ~ Sandy D.
- Art is so much more than drawing and painting its food, different languages, reading, writing. That’s all that I have learned in this. ~Crystal L.
- It has helped me with better patience and just knowing that everything doesn’t have to be perfect because that’s not what I'm getting graded on. ~Lisa S.
- Art taught me that art can be anything you’re feeling on a canvas and that you don’t need to be a talented artist to be successful in the art world because anything can be art. ~Keiry I.
- I have learned that no one is the same and everyone expresses themselves differently whether it is through art, how they talk, how they act, or even the mistakes they make, everyone is unique. ~Jamir D.
- Overall art is a place for relaxing, stepping out of your comfort zone and learning. ~Leigh H.
- I would say this course impacted me the most because it allowed everyone to express their emotions without having to do it out loud, which may have been the case for most people. ~Isaiah F.
- One thing I’ve taken from this class is how we can examine art to find out its true meaning, and what the painter is trying to say to us. ~ Jalise D.
Some Featured Student Artwork
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