1999-00 Planning and Review Committee
Consultant Recommendation
I.
Program Reviewed: Bachelor of Science in Art Education
Program Director: Paul DeLong
PRC Consultants: James Maxwell, Bob Peters and Annette Taylor
Date of Review: Spring 2000
Purpose of Review: This review is conducted to assess the quality of the program as a part of the
university systematic seven-year review of all academic degree programs.
Committee Findings: The PRC is recommending that the B.S. in Art Education program is to
remain on a seven-year review cycle. However, this program is scheduled for a status report in
Spring 2002 which will address the concerns listed in the recommendation section of this report.
II.
Abstract:
The Bachelor of Science in Art Education program includes a general education component with
specific preparation in art, design and art history to allow experiences and professional education
coursework appropriate in educating Professional Art educators. The National Association of
Schools of Art and Design accredits the program. A goal of the program is to deliver educational
experiences that blend philosophy and combine theory, practice and experimentation. The program
includes specific art, design and art history experiences, and professional education coursework,
which are combined with the general education component, to complete the program to
appropriately educate professional art educators. These experiences yield graduates capable of
filling creative positions in business, education, and entertainment.
The program is built largely upon a studio-based curriculum. Students must complete a minimum
of 56 credits in studio and related experiences, 39 credits of professional education coursework, 42
credits of general education coursework for a total of 137 credits. The program, as designed,
honors the model fully. Due to their major studies component, Art Education majors enrolled in the
Art Education Program have more than enough credits to meet their Humanities and Arts general
education requirements. The program does not permit them to use courses taken in the Department
of Art and Design to meet the nine-credit requirement. This policy is in place to ensure that they
receive the broadest possible exposure to the humanities and the arts.
The department has voluntarily been involved with student mid-program reviews since 1977. In
1996-97 they conducted a year-long self study as part of the accreditation process for the National
Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD) and every five years they conduct a self study
in conjunction with the university’s review by the Department of Public Instruction (DPI). The
Professional Education Council, an internal group made-up of faculty and administrators associated
with all teacher education programs at Stout, oversees the common professional education core
curriculum.
Art Education program students are required to maintain a minimum of 2.75 GPA in all art related
and professional education coursework and a 2.0 GPA in all other coursework. Each student is
required to present a culminating degree exhibition. Senior students with this requirement work
with a faculty advisor to determine if they have a body of work suitable for exhibition. Once the
faculty mentor/advisor has approved the student for exhibition by signing the approval form, the
student then schedules a senior show with one or more other students for a week-long exhibit in the
Student Gallery.
Due to the demands of the program there are no free electives however, students may add courses if
they choose. The program is an ambitious four-year degree plan with an average of 17 credits per
semester.
Current enrollment in the B.S. in Art Education program is 141 students as of fall 1999 as reported
by UW-Stout headcount. The program director is responsible for both the B.S. in Art Education
program and B.F.A. program in Art that includes approximately 794 students yielding a total of
approximately 935 students in the two programs.
III.
Current Review Process:
Information regarding this program was gathered according to PRC guidelines and includes data
and responses from the following sources:
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
Program Director Report to PRC
UW-Stout headcount by program
Placement Report from Placement Office
PRC Key Instructor Survey (N=3 of 5)
PRC Program Committee Surveys (N=5 of 9)
Follow-up surveys of graduates both one, and three-year Institutional Review
1997 (1 year) (5 of 14 responded)
1995 (3-year) (3 of 9 responded)
g. Cost per credit – as report by UW-Stout
h. Degree summary – as report by UW-Stout
i. PRC Student Surveys (N=30)
j. Planning and Review Committee Report of 1992-93
IV.
Previous Review:
The Bachelor of Science in Art Education program was reviewed in 1993. The following seven
recommendations were made at that time:
1. Course duplication as noted by the students who replied to the survey needs to be addressed.
Many of these courses are in the College of Arts and Sciences. The college should monitor the
extent to which curricular changes have eliminated duplication and report to PRC by May 1,
1994.
2. Competencies as noted by DPI should be specifically identified and the curriculum in the Art
Education Program should be reviewed to determine if these competencies are being met with
as few courses as possible.
3. With the 124-credit limit to all university programs, review of the courses in this program
should continue. The external expectations of various accrediting groups is of concern in
meeting the university expectations.
4. The excellent management of enrollment should be continued.
5. Additional funding should be pursued to enhance the tools and equipment used in the discipline
areas.
6. The results of any assessment on the effectiveness of the advisement program in Art Education
should be shared with PRC.
7. Review of staffing needs for teaching and management of this program and control enrollment
as needed to function within the resources.
The program director, department chair and dean have addressed several of the issues addressed in
the last review recommendations.
The mid-program review evaluation form was developed to address concerns of grading
subjectively. Several issues from the past report appear as potential areas where continued effort
should be directed.
The use of the University Placement Services continues to be rated low by program students.
According to the program director, the generic form of resumes and student presentations used by
Placement Services does not meet the needs of prospective employers who require presentations
and portfolio demonstration of the quality of work including color and uniqueness of design. It was
further stated by the program director that employers prefer to work directly with the art faculty to
recruit.
Advisement was again rated below the all university average and may need attention. Course
overlap appears to continue in areas such as Art History and Graphic Design I and II, based on
student survey responses.
V.
Program Review
Program Strengths:
Students and graduates rate the following program areas highly:
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Problem solving
Thinks Creatively
Develop an Appreciation of the Arts
Course Availability
Course Scheduling (time of day)
Up-to-date Information
Courses achieving objectives
Testing and evaluation procedures appropriately measure learning
Accurate representation of program
Student confidence in preparation
Overall quality of the program
Additionally, most students would choose this major again if they were to do it over again.
Students made many comments that reinforced the preceding strengths. A noteworthy observation
is that student comments regarding strengths were also stated by others as weaknesses.
Additionally, many student comments appeared to address the shortcomings of being a student
during the building/renovation process. Comments of students post renovations should provide a
clearer picture of the facility issues.
Opportunities for Program Enrichment:
Keeping labs current remains a challenge. While the new labs may be appropriate today, the
hardware and software associated with computer technology will need to be replaced.
Establishment of a replacement cycle could assist with continued program development.
Concentration advisement committees can be of continuing help with the content of specific areas,
employment opportunities for students and advice regarding the future direction of the profession.
Students find some courses difficult to access, including courses with prerequisites where the
sequence is difficult to achieve, due to large numbers of students seeking entry into these courses.
Strategies are needed to reduce or eliminate course access problems encountered by students.
VI.
Recommendations:
Department Chair
1. Investigate course duplication and/or overlap and reduce where possible.
Program Director
2. Examine the program requirements in an effort to reduce them to a level commensurate with
the university total credit limits, if possible.
3. Continue to work with admissions to manage enrollment.
4a. Investigate student-identified problems with course access.
b. Develop a procedure to monitor and manage overcrowding and course access.
5. Develop the program committee and meet at least once annually.
6. Work with Placement Services to develop a plan to improve the use and services provided by
that office.
Dean
7. Investigate the viability of a stand-alone program director for the Bachelor of Science in Art
Education.