Teaching Artists Unite
The Tyler School of Art and Architecture at Temple University in Philadelphia provides you with opportunities that not many other schools can.
Big and Small in All the Best Ways
You get the chance to study art education inside a close-knit, vibrant and challenging art school. You also enjoy access to all the opportunities and resources available at a top, urban, R-1 research university in a major city.
Tyler is big and small at the same time — in all the best ways.
Thanks to the breadth of studio art disciplines taught at Tyler, you immerse yourself in a greater variety of materials and methods. You gain fresh perspectives, rooted in art history, global cultures and art as professional practice.
At the same time, you learn and use educational strategies for introducing students of all ages to art itself.
Choose Tyler and build your leadership skills where arts, education and communities intersect.
Further Your Education
Tyler offers a master’s degree in Art Education. Learn more about furthering your education here.
5 Reasons to Study at Tyler
Consider these reasons to earn your art education degree at the Tyler School of Art and Architecture:
- Develop your own studio art practice and study art education at a renowned art school — rather than one that happens to offer both art and education degrees.
- Thrive in small classes with supportive artist-scholar peers and faculty-mentors who share your vision of art’s place in communities.
- Consider Philadelphia as part of your professional training ground, both in art and education, including a variety of sites for field placements.
- Study here and work here after graduation thanks to robust job opportunities inside Pennsylvania and throughout the northeast region.
- Take a variety of studio art classes to learn about and play with a variety of methods and materials.
Say You’re Interested
Reach out to Tyler’s embedded admissions team with any questions or to get specific information you need.
Role of Teaching Artists
Being a teaching artist in your community means not having to choose. You can do both. You can fulfill your unique artistic vision, and you can teach K-12 students and help foster their self-expression through art.
- Introduce students to art itself
- Demonstrate foundational art skills
- Foster individual students’ art interests
- Coordinate fun group projects
- Elevate diverse perspectives of your students
- Bring art into public and community spaces
Transferrable Skills From Art Education
As you challenge yourself as a teaching artist, expect rigorous academics, research and writing as well as self-expression through your studio practice and in your teaching coursework and placements.
What you learn at Tyler will likely blow your mind at times and make you rethink your own art and the role of art in communities of all kinds.
In the process of earning your degree, you also build in-demand, transferable skills.
- Effective communication
- Leadership and collaboration
- Cross-disciplinary research skills
- Professional presentation skills
- Critical thinking and assessment / analysis
Popular Art Education Courses
In addition to art education and liberal arts courses, you will take these core studio classes as well as other options for your electives :
- Ceramics
- Drawing
- Fibers and material studies
- Painting
- Printmaking
Commitment to Communities
Because art and education play such vital roles in civil and democratic society and bring a unique power to engage individuals in communities, Tyler maintains strong connections to schools and community organizations. This links you directly to students, local leaders and professional networks that create the foundation for your education and your future career.
Array of Projects
Community arts projects include thinks like visual autobiographical quilts, graphic novels or narrative storytelling videos informed by oral histories.
Philadelphia Heat Response
Philadelphia Heat Response was a community-based project where students engaged with the community to develop real-world solutions to the challenges of global warming in our urban context.
Student Art Exhibits
Every semester Tyler showcases the works of K – 12 art students, taught by Tyler pre-service teachers in our Art of Student Teaching exhibition.
Culture-Rich City
Take advantage of Philadelphia’s rich cultural offerings, including museums, galleries and open-studio events hosted by local artists.
Art Education Degree Requirements
Get all the details about the bachelor’s degree in art education, including Tyler’s required courses and electives as well as other liberal arts and general education classes available from Temple University. In most cases, students need 5 years to complete the required 155 credits.
Careers & Success Stories
We asked our alumni to share insights into their careers and other success stories about their time at Tyler and beyond.
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Art Education FAQ
Here are a few answers to common questions about the art education programs at the Tyler School of Art and Architecture.
How do art education field placements work?
Throughout the program, you complete several types of field placements, , mentored by an art teacher from our vast network. These experiences teach you valuable classroom management, organizational skills, pedagogy and build strong relationships with students and the community.
For example, Tyler places you with an art teacher one day a week for a semester where you shadow and assist in an art classroom.
During your final semester, you complete your full-time student teaching placement under the tutelage of one of our cooperating teachers. This opportunity gives you the chance to take over the classroom and teach lessons you develop for the entire semester.
What can you do with an art education degree?
Many of Tyler’s art education graduates go on to earn their Pennsylvania Teaching Certificate in Art, K-12, by getting passing scores in the Praxis I and II National Teacher Examinations, Elementary Education: General Knowledge, and the Art Education Examinations.
Other options include teaching art to students of all ages through community centers or even at resorts or on cruise ships.
Do I get to use Tyler’s art studios?
Yes. When you take studio art classes at Tyler, you will use the materials and spaces in our art building.
In addition, Temple’s Duckworth Scholars’ Studio in the Charles Library provides spaces, resources, and technology to support your research and creative work.
Art Education Faculty
Meet your faculty-mentors from Tyler’s art education degree program. In addition to teaching your courses, they model the strategies and skills needed for a career as an art educator.
Tyler Art Education News
Read the latest news about the visual studies faculty, current students and alumni.
Program Contacts
In addition to Tyler’s specialized admissions team, you’re welcome to contact the art education degree program leadership.
Lisa Kay
Professor and Program Head of Art Therapy
Chair, Art Education and Community Arts Practices Department
lisakay@temple.edu