Master of Arts in Art Education

The Master of Arts in Art Education offers a comprehensive curriculum. This orientation emphasizes the role of education as a mediator between art and the public. Therefore, the program's focus on art instruction springs from broad definitions of art and education. Art study encompasses aesthetics, art history, criticism and art production that embrace mainstream art forms, visual culture, folk and cultural traditions, as well as self-taught or outsider milieus.

The goals of study and research are to understand and improve teaching and learning of art in a variety of settings including schools, communities and museums. The program seeks to prepare mature and sophisticated art educators capable of providing intellectual and practical leadership in the field.

The Master of Arts in Art Education is concerned with theory, practice and research in a constantly expanding field that encompasses schools, communities, and museum settings. Research in the program inquires into the conditions in which art is most richly learned and most effectively taught. Study is supported by concepts from the humanities and social sciences. Embracing a critical orientation, students explore the interconnectedness of art, education, and society.

The Master of Arts in Art Education degree is awarded with, or without, the K-12 teaching certification. Students pursuing the degree are those already certified to teach grades K-12, or students desiring certification who must take an expanded program.