Program Overview
College of Performing and Visual Arts
Location: Guggenheim 101
Telephone: 970.351.2143
Fax: 970.351.2299
Website: arts.unco.edu/art/
Advising Information:
Students must consult with their assigned major advisor each semester prior to registering.
To find your advisor, log into ursa.unco.edu; go to 'Student' tab and click 'View Student Information' link. If no advisor is listed, contact the major program for advisor information.
Contact the Art office for more information.
The program consists of four parts:
- Liberal Arts Curriculum (LAC) Credits
- Required Major Credits
- Professional Teacher Education Program (PTEP) Credits
- University-Wide Credits
*For Educator licensure majors, PTEP coursework counts towards the minimum of nine upper-division UNC credits (300-400).
Program Description:
The art education concentration is a K-12 teacher education program preparing students to teach visual arts in elementary, middle, and secondary schools. The art education program requires competency in visual art technique and processes, analysis of the place of the arts in our historical heritage and current community, and the ability to apply the arts to human experience and learning. Satisfactory completion of requirements leads to K-12 art education licensure.
Program Admission Requirements:
Academic Good Standing
- It is important to note that the Art & Design major cannot be completed within 2 years. The first year is spent in completing the Freshman Foundation courses and requirements. Seniors and transfer students considering applying to the Art & Design program are advised that it is not possible to complete requirements in fewer than four regular semesters.
- Should the number of qualified applicants exceed space available in required courses, the school will admit only those students ranking highest in cumulative grade point averages.
Program Requirements:
- New Art & Design students must complete the Foundation requirements before they can begin their advanced art studies. The Foundation Courses include ART 181, ART 182, ART 183, ART 184, and ART 234. Passing the portfolio review is required to take upper level courses in the School of Art & Design.
- Transfer students who have articulated coursework from another institution will only submit artwork completed in courses taken at UNC. Students who have completed ART 181, ART 182, ART 183, ART 184 and ART 234 at another accredited university are exempt from the portfolio review.
- Students need to achieve an overall rating of 3.0 or higher on the assessment rubric in order to advance in the program. Students who do not meet the minimum 3.0 may rework and resubmit the foundation portfolio by the announced deadline in a given semester for reconsideration. Those who do not meet the minimum requirements after the re submission are encouraged to meet with an advisor to discuss options for completing a degree at UNC.
- An Exit level PTEP Senior Portfolio assessment is required prior to graduation. The portfolio consists of work from the student's concentration area. Students are evaluated on their knowledge and successful demonstration of professional portfolio preparation of artwork, art history and cultures, and verbal and written critical analysis. The PTEP Review also evaluates students on their knowledge and successful demonstration of art education pedagogy.
PTEP Program Requirements:
Teacher candidates who complete an approved content degree and the UNC professional teacher education program, as well as pass the appropriate Colorado Department of Education designated PRAXIS exam (if applicable), will be eligible for recommendation from UNC for a Colorado Department of Education teaching license.
If you are seeking licensure in your program area, the following items are required to complete your program.
- Completion of Application for Initial Admission to PTEP – referred to as Checkpoint #1 (Enrollment in this checkpoint will result in a one-time program fee, assessed to student accounts to pay for assessment software. This checkpoint will also require an out-of-pocket payment - to the chosen approved vendor - to obtain a fingerprint background check, which is required by the Colorado Department of Education.)
- Completion of Full Admission to PTEP – referred to as Checkpoint #2
- Completion of Application for Student Teaching – referred to as Checkpoint #3
- Completion of content specific PRAXIS test prior to Student Teaching
- Candidates may not take extra courses with Student Teaching without prior approval from the Program Coordinator and the STE Director.
- All PTEP Field Experiences and methods courses need to be successfully completed prior to Student Teaching.
- Student Teaching outside the supervision of UNC Faculty may or may not be approved.
- Teacher Candidates will not be placed in a school where they were once students or where they have a close relative attending and/or working.
- Teacher education and educator preparation licensure programs do not accept Professional Teacher Education Program (PTEP) or field based courses that are more than ten years old. PLEASE NOTE: Teacher Candidates have the right to petition this policy at the discretion of the program coordinator.
Please work with your content advisor to determine when these requirements will be completed throughout your program.
Degree Requirements — 120 Credits
1. Liberal Arts Curriculum — 31 credits
To complete the degree in 120 credits as outlined, the program recommends the below LAC courses that also count toward the 70 required major credits.
Any additional coursework completed outside of the recommended list below may extend the length of the program of study.
Written Communication — 6 credits
Select any courses to fulfill this requirement from the currently approved LAC course list.
See Written Communication courses
Mathematics — 3 credits
Select any course to fulfill this requirement from the currently approved LAC course list.
See Mathematics courses
Arts & Humanities, History, Social & Behavioral Sciences, U.S. Multicultural Studies [MS], and International Studies [IS] — 15 credits
To complete the LAC in the minimum number of credits, be sure to choose at least one course with an IS designation and one course with an MS designation.
ART 181 (3), ART 182 (3), and ART 185 (3) are recommended to fulfill Arts & Humanities requirement and the additional 3 credits required in Arts & Humanities or History or Social & Behavioral Sciences and will fulfill both LAC and major requirements.
See Arts & Humanities, History and Social & Behavioral Sciences courses
Natural & Physical Sciences — 7 credits
Select any courses to fulfill this requirement from the currently approved LAC course list.
See Natural & Physical Sciences courses
See Liberal Arts Curriculum
2. Required Major — 70 credits
Take all of the following courses:
Complete the following five Freshman Foundation Courses first
Complete the following courses:
| ART 185 | Neoclassic to Modern Art HistoryLAA1 | 3 |
| ART 210 | Introduction to Ceramics | 3 |
| ART 231 | Painting I | 3 |
| ART 237 | Introduction to Digital Media | 3 |
| ART 248 | Introduction to Art Education/Art for the Exceptional Child | 3 |
| ART 250 | Introduction to Printmaking | 3 |
| ART 261 | Introduction to Sculpture | 3 |
| ART 265 | Metalsmithing | 3 |
| ART 270 | Graphic Design I | 3 |
| ART 271 | Introduction to Photography | 3 |
| ART 345 | Clinical Experiences I: K-12 Art | 3 |
| ART 440 | Foundations of Art Education | 3 |
| ART 441 | Cultural Studies in the K-12 Curriculum | 3 |
| ART 442 | Curriculum and Instruction in Art: Studio Strategies | 3 |
| ART 445 | Clinical Experiences II: K-12 Art | 3 |
| ART 449 | Current Issues in Art | 3 |
| ART 466 | Visual Arts Student Teaching Seminar | 1 |
Concentration (6 credits)
A minimum of six semester credits at the 300-level or above must be completed in one of the following areas of concentration: art history, ceramics, digital media, drawing, graphic design, painting, photography, printmaking, or sculpture.
3. Required PTEP — 23 Credits
| EDF 366 | Conceptions of Schooling: Context and Process | 3 |
Choose one of the following courses, based on preferred teaching level:
| PSY 347 | Educational Psychology for Elementary Teachers | 3 |
| PSY 349 | Educational Psychology for Secondary Teachers | 3 |
Complete the following courses:
| ECLD 340 | Academic Language/Literacy Development in the Content Areas at the Secondary Level | 3 |
| EDFE 444 | Supervised Student Teaching | 1-15 |
| EDSE 433 | Exceptional Students in the Regular Classroom | 2 |
4. University-Wide Credits — 0-5 credits*
*Note: Students must apply the recommended courses to both the liberal arts curriculum requirements and the major requirements to complete this degree program in 120 credit hours. Students may have up to 5 credits of university wide electives to apply to this degree depending on the number of credits applied to both the LAC and the major. See your advisor for details.
Program Notes
Complete Initial PTEP Application (0) semester before or during ART 248 Introduction to Art Education /Art for the Exceptional Child (3)
It is recommended that application for PTEP be made during the sophomore year, or after completing 30 semester hours of University coursework and no later than the first semester of the junior year. Application to PTEP requires the student to have declared a major in art. A copy of the requirements for admission to PTEP should be obtained from the art education advisor before making application for PTEP.
Before receiving approval to student teach, an art education student must complete the Comprehensive Art Education PTEP review. The review is scheduled each semester of the academic year. Students are advised to complete the review at least one semester before the semester they plan to student teach. In order to take the comprehensive review, students must have completed the prerequisites and be currently enrolled in the art education concentration.
The PTEP review will evaluate students on their knowledge and successful demonstration of: professional portfolio preparation of art work, mastery of media and techniques, the elements and principles of art, content in art work, art history and cultures, and verbal and written critical analysis. The PTEP review also assesses knowledge and successful demonstrating of art education pedagogy. All students preparing for the review should work closely with their advisor.
The PTEP committee will determine whether the student: satisfactorily passes the review and is approved to student teach; passes with stated conditions that must be met before gaining approval to student teach; or fails to pass the review. A student who fails the review will not be approved to student teach, but may apply for a second review the following semester. Failure to pass the review a second time will be considered grounds for terminating the student's art teacher licensure program. The decision of the committee on a second review may be appealed.
Eligibility to student teach is based on the satisfactory completion of the Art Education PTEP review, required and elective art courses, required art education courses, PTEP courses, PRAXIS examination and exit or competency examinations as they pertain.
Art students who are not in the art education concentration and are not seeking licensure, may enroll in art education courses to provide background for teaching art in the helping professions and other related areas, such as community art centers. Appropriate advising is recommended to plan a suitable course of study for a non-licensure program.