Personal Learning Plan

This is a personal learning plan for Patrick Yurick as a part of his High Tech High Graduate School of Education School Leadership residency requirements. 

What are your hopes and dreams for your learning through this program? How do you hope to grow as an educator and leader?

– Project Based Learning Blended School System Design
Since I began my career in education I’ve been interested in experimenting with ways of integrating technology into the teaching experience that serve to enhance the way students interact with the world around them. I’m motivated to do this because I’m a tech geek but also, more importantly, I’m interested in helping bring down the costs of high quality education (like HTH’s equity-based PBL) so that it can easily, and affordably, reach people who need it the most.

– Leadership Through The Lens Of Art Education
I’ve been an artist my entire life. Art is the most healing and centering part of who I am. I’m specifically interested in integrating art education into my practice so that I can help people practice the use art for healing and self-expression.

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A PBL Focused K-5 Elementary Art Trimester Curriculum Outline

Introduction

In the winter of 2015 I considered teaching art education at the elementary level within a project based learning school. I am trained to teach at all levels of primary and secondary art education. As I’ve mentioned before, my mother has been teaching elementary art for 33+ years

and without her influence I would not be the artist and educator I am today. When the idea of teaching elementary came I knew just who to call. Several of hours and notes later I had a better idea of what to expect, as well as a reminder of what I already knew. Then I hit the books, specifically the quintessential text for early childhood education: “Creative And Mental Growth” by Viktor Lowenfeld (1964) – which, amazingly, is available free, online, and in  multiple formats care of the Internet Archive.

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The Importance Of Acceptance In Art Curriculum At The Elementary Level

After re-reading a bit of Viktor Lowenfeld’s “Creative & Mental Growth” recently I have found myself more interested in elementary education than ever before. The process of nurturing the human mind towards understanding the world at the foundational level of childhood is fascinating.

“No attempt should be made to censor the child’s creative expression, but rather we should try to stimulate the greatest variety of responses.”

Lowenfeld, 1947, p. 124

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