Fred Parker on fri 16 oct 09
My first kiln was a result of an art teacher who did not understand how
kilns work. I was a relative beginner; she was an art teacher who "neede=
=3D
d
the space" her old Skutt 1027 was taking up. It was old and cracked and
elements were hanging and element pins dropped out regularly. She said i=
=3D
t
"misfired," and decided to throw it out. I found out about it and took i=
=3D
t
off her hands.
Being equally unknowledgeable I asked my supplier what I might do to
"repair" a "misfiring" kiln. As soon as I asked the question I knew from=
=3D
the expression on her face there was more going on there than I thought.=3D=
20=3D
She said something to the effect, "plug it in and fire it." Then she
explained there are so many art teachers who have zero knowledge about
ceramics that, probably, there is nothing at all wrong with the kiln.
I followed her advice and the kiln fired perfectly -- for three years unt=
=3D
il
I bought a new L&L. Then I set the old Skutt aside and considered tr=3D
ying to
convert it to gas.
While it sat there someone tried to buy it, its top accumulated a nice
collection of small test glaze samples and my wife became progressively m=
=3D
ore
annoyed at me for keeping an old piece of junk there. Then, one day I
received news the school "wanted their kiln back." Glad I kept it. They=
=3D
sent a crew of demolition experts with a trailer to haul it away and it l=
=3D
eft
trailing shards of fire brick down the street. I have no doubt it arrive=
=3D
d
back to school in much worse condition than it was in when it left.
I'm not complaining about having the use of a great starter kiln for all
that time. However, I can't help wondering how many kids might have been=
=3D
introduced to the magic of art and ceramics had their teacher been more
knowledgeable.
Not being in that field I really don't know much about how art education
works. I know there are amazing teachers, and there are also those who a=
=3D
re
no more than bureaucrats employed by school boards. There is much latitu=
=3D
de
for those who want to make a difference. Sadly, there is also much
opportunity for those who don't, and they all get paid the same thanks to=
=3D
the "feel good" politics du jour of certain political parasites known to =
=3D
all.
Most of my cynicism on the subject comes from my own college days at a ve=
=3D
ry
large public university that had huge engineering and sciences components=
=3D
.=3D20
The campus was literally awash with incredible scientists, engineers and
mathematicians. But with all of this available, the education majors wer=
=3D
e
"protected" from the rigors of such "real" science and mathematics by
internal math and science courses taught within the Education Department.=
=3D
=3D20
Consequently, teachers got a watered-down take on math and sciences -- an=
=3D
d
then went on to teach those subjects.
Now, exactly where do we rank in math and science education international=
=3D
ly?...
Surely art education majors are not similarly "protected" from the real A=
=3D
rt
Department? If anything, art teachers should be given a more rigorous
program -- especially in the mechanics/technologies of art where many
dangers lie. To do otherwise is just plain, well, stupid! Surely the
powers that be see this!...
On second thought, judging from the perversions of political correctness =
=3D
and
rampant avoidance of anything that might "damage little junior's self
esteem" like giving awards only when deserved, maybe future art teachers
should be spared the inconvenience of such. After all, it IS all about t=
=3D
hem
-- not a bunch of little brats who haven't even been born yet...
Fred Parker
On Thu, 15 Oct 2009 12:14:05 -0500, mel jacobson wrot=
=3D
e:
>this is funny, but illustrates how even art teachers do not
>have a clue about materials.
>that is why i rant about knowing your materials.
>
Fisher Cheryl on fri 16 oct 09
At the time I went to college, graduated in 1970, I did not get a lot
of clay experience. Did take some classes but was taught by a teaching
assistant, so I did not go into teaching art with a lot of knowledge
about firing. My first teaching job the custodian fired the kiln -
badly. He made sure it was shut off before he left for day. Glazes
that were picky sucked.
When I went to the next school I had to use a parent, who had her own
studio, for help in getting me to fire. And even that it was so much
time on low, with lid open, lid closed, so much time on medium, so
much on high. I had a Jen-kens kiln that lasted about 20 years (from
previous art teacher and my time with it) , and replaced it with
another one. When I left we had gotten a SKUTT. I guess I'm saying
that art teachers, per se, do not or did not get that good of training
in firing. I have learned so much over the years here and at the
studio about clay, including what I don't want to do that other people
do and what I do want to do.
Cheryl Fisher
potterytalk@verizon.net
Sarasota, FL
steve graber on fri 16 oct 09
fred - in 1994 when a lot of engineers became unemployed, i became a substi=
=3D
tute teacher. ~ it was income. i looked into perhaps becoming a math-scei=
=3D
nce teacher, and found that with my 18 years engineering experience at that=
=3D
time, i would be accepted at the starting salary of an out of college bran=
=3D
d new teacher. =3D20
so, i dropped THAT idea.
also, the ability to bring real industry experience into the classroom was =
=3D
certainly not something the education world wanted. it appears only those =
=3D
going from their own high school, thru school, to school are supposed to be=
=3D
teachers (who needs "real" experience to be a teacher?). i know with warh=
=3D
ead fuzes, rocket motor igniters, mechanisms, other real world dynamics app=
=3D
lications physics classes might have had additional real examples instead o=
=3D
f regular problems 1 thru 12... =3D20
meanwhile, i saw they had a room full of pottery equipment that was set asi=
=3D
de because they dropped their pottery program several years prior. so i bo=
=3D
ught all their equipment. for $1000.00 i gained 10 electric pottery wheels=
=3D
, a walker pug mill, extruder, slab roller & table, 10 cubic foot gas kiln,=
=3D
several hundred square feet of kiln shelves, posts, etc, etc. all totalle=
=3D
d i figured $50,000 in equipment. i might be one of the few people who can=
=3D
walk thru my pottery supplier's store and say "got that, got that, got tha=
=3D
t...yeah, got that too". =3D20
the school didn't even know or care about the value of the equipment they h=
=3D
ad on hand! they only wanted my $1000 for paper and coloring pensiles.... =
=3D
=3D20
now having moved to another city, my now local high school pottery teacher =
=3D
retired. a great guy who's students often won awards at the los angeles co=
=3D
unty fair each year. he was replaced by another. one who actually thinks =
=3D
pottery is "iky" and thinks colors come out of the bottle, right? "well it=
=3D
SAYS red!"
using the room now on adult education pottery nights, i can see from the LA=
=3D
CK of anything on the shelves that pottery at that school is nearly gone. =
=3D
~ so heads up if anyone wants to buy pottery equipment! THAT school will c=
=3D
ertainly drop their program one day soon and unload it at awesome prices! =
=3D
=3D20
Steve Graber, Graber's Pottery, Inc
Claremont, California USA
The Steve Tool - for awesome texture on pots! =3D20
www.graberspottery.com steve@graberspottery.com
On Laguna Clay's website
http://www.lagunaclay.com/blogs/
--- On Fri, 10/16/09, Fred Parker wrote:
> From: Fred Parker
> Subject: Re: teachers and plaster/story - a long rant
> To: Clayart@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG
> Date: Friday, October 16, 2009, 5:53 AM
> My first kiln was a result of an art
> teacher who did not understand how
> kilns work.=3DA0 I was a relative beginner; she was an art
> teacher who "needed
> the space" her old Skutt 1027 was taking up.=3DA0 It was
> old and cracked and
> elements were hanging and element pins dropped out
> regularly.=3DA0 She said it
> "misfired," and decided to throw it out.=3DA0 I found out
> about it and took it
> off her hands.=3D0A=3D0A=3D0A
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