Art Department
Art Education
Entering the field of art education—either elementary or secondary—is a two-part process. The first part is to complete an undergraduate degree in art. The second part is the graduate level Alternative Fifth Year Program, the training program for teacher education that prepares you to meet all of your certification requirements and earn a master's degree in education. Students completing the Fifth Year Program earn the M.Ed. with Class A, P-12 (preschool through 12th grade) certification. The advantages of this route to certification are in the breadth and depth of training gained in studio art and art history combined with the Class A certification (and salary scale) earned with a masters degree.
Students planning careers in art education have three undergraduate major options: the Bachelor of Arts in Art (BA) and the Bachelor of Science in Art (BS) and the Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) degree. Most UM students earn the undergraduate professional degree, the BFA; some earn liberal arts degree, a BA or BS in art. If you earn a BA or BS, you may begin phase 1 of the education sequence during your last undergraduate semester, placing you a semester ahead when you enter the Fifth Year Program.
Public school art teachers who hold art and advanced education degrees from the University of Montevallo teach Art education methods courses. In methods classes you learn education theory and also the daily realities of teaching from these experienced teachers.
Art teachers who are certified at the Bachelor’s level (Class B), and wish to earn the masters degree may apply to the traditional M.Ed. program.
Students who wish to teach at the college level normally complete the BFA in preparation for application to a Master of Fine Arts program. The University of Montevallo does not offer the MFA.
For more information contact:
Dr. Clifton Pearson
Chair, Department of Art
pearsonc@montevallo.edu