Online Art Teacher

Art teachers must earn a bachelor’s degree in Education with specialization in Art. Some art teachers have a bachelor’s degree in fine arts, studio arts, art history, visual arts, or related field partnered with a degree in Education. Higher postgraduate degrees and doctorates in Art could be required for senior academic positions in art schools and colleges, as higher education with experience could also improve your chances of career growth within an institution..

Public school teachers must be licensed by the state in which they choose to teach. There are specific licenses for each education level that you may earn through supervised training and proficiency exams. Most private schools do not require art teacher licensing, but a bachelor’s degree is still required. To further their education and development, art teachers may obtain an art teaching certificate.

Note: Professional artists without a formal degree may qualify based on experience, but still need to secure a state license. Once licensed, art teachers instruct the basic principles of art and its history through hands-on interaction with their students.

Successful Any art educator is expected to possess good teaching skills, which make classes interesting for pupils and encourage them to participate. Diversified knowledge of various art forms―such as digital arts, photography, printmaking, cinematography, calligraphy, jewelry designing, and fashion designing―may also be beneficial. The basic attributes of a successful art teacher will include high levels of organization and time management, patience, reliability, and artistic creativity. The ability to work with disabled students may sometimes be necessary.

Art teachers specialize in teaching art to various age groups from preschool to high school. They use art to help students develop basic concepts essential to lifelong learning. They work in private or public schools and teach a variety of aspects of art, such as basic concept, history, different cultures and techniques. Art teachers create lesson plans on art and evaluate students’ performance with activities, projects, assignments, and tests. They must supervise student progress, assist students in cultivating their creativity, manage classroom discipline, grade papers, and prepare lessons. Furthermore, art teachers interact with management, other instructors, parents, and the community to address issues from the student level to the school budget.

The overall outlook on job opportunities for art teachers of all levels looks positive, as the number of such jobs is expected to increase about as fast as average, approximately at 15% through 2016, adding 479,000 additional jobs to the 4 million jobs held in 2006. Positions in extreme urban or rural environments offer higher salaries due to the demand for quality teachers in those areas. In addition, states in the South and West are experiencing large enrollment increases, resulting in an increased demand for art teachers in those areas. Northwest enrollment is forecast to decline, so teachers who are willing to relocate will be more likely to obtain a position. Moreover, the non-English-speaking population continues to increase, resulting in a high demand for bilingual teachers. Currently, the middle 50% of public school teachers earn annual salaries between $43,680 and $58,034 with the highest 10% earning more than $65,293 annually.

Now What Are You Waiting For?

If becoming a qualified Art teacher is your goal, go ahead and pick the online Art Education degree program that suits you the most from the list of courses offered by accredited universities and be on the way to building a successful career!

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics