BFA in Art Education

The BFA in Art Education provides students with the opportunity to become skilled artists as well as to prepare for teaching art in Pre-K–12 settings. A rich complement of studio, education, and liberal arts courses are included in the degree. In addition to the academic requirements, students complete fieldwork experiences in art classes in local schools. Students may opt to complete one or two term-long internships and become eligible for one or two licenses in the teaching of visual arts from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education—one for secondary and one for primary (either Pre-K–8 or 5–12). Each requires a 300-hour practicum in the field with an Art Education department–approved mentor.

Learning Outcomes

• Demonstrate studio skills necessary to teach a variety of media and strategies for embedding concepts.
• Demonstrate the understanding of the methods and processes necessary to nurture artistic behaviors in students.
• Design a developmentally appropriate scope and sequence of curriculum.
• Develop and implement classroom practices that align with the Massachusetts Professional Standards for Teachers and lessons that align with the Massachusetts Curriculum Arts Standards.
• Demonstrate an awareness and ability to integrate contemporary art and issues into their community engagement, artistic, or teaching practice with a global and cross-cultural lens.
• Demonstrate an awareness of the broad needs of learners and be able to design classroom spaces, activities, and assessments that take into consideration issues of disability, trauma, emotional and mental health, and English language proficiency.

Requirements

All BU undergraduate students, including both entering first-year and transfer students, will pursue coursework in the BU Hub, the University’s general education program that is integrated into the entire undergraduate experience. BU Hub requirements can be satisfied in a number of ways, including coursework in and beyond the major as well as through cocurricular activities. Students majoring in Art Education will ordinarily, through coursework in the major, satisfy a number of BU Hub requirements in Philosophical Inquiry and Life’s Meanings, Aesthetic Exploration, Historical Consciousness, Social Inquiry I, the Individual in Community, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Ethical Reasoning, First-Year Writing Seminar, Writing, Research & Inquiry, Digital/Multimedia Expression, Oral and/or Signed Communication, Critical Thinking, Research and Information Literacy, and Creativity/Innovation. Remaining BU Hub requirements will be satisfied by selecting from a wide range of available courses outside the major or, in some cases, cocurricular experiences.

Art Education Program of Study

The BFA requires 132 term units.

Visual Arts Foundation Requirements
CFA FA 100 Doing, Making & Knowing: The CFA Experience	2 units
CFA AR 131, 132 Drawing I	8 units
CFA AR 141 Foundation Painting	4 units
CFA AR 121 Foundation Sculpture	4 units
CAS AH 111, 112 Introduction to Art History I and II	8 units
Art Education Major Requirements
CFA AR 261 Introduction to Art Education	2 units
Additional Drawing (1) and Printmaking (1) electives	8 units
CFA AR 241 Painting II or CFA AR 242 Painting III	4 units
The following courses are needed to meet state licensing requirements.
Design or Technology: CFA AR 123, 210, 225, 385, 389, 527, 581, 589	4 units
CAS PS 101 General Psychology	4 units
CFA AR 586 Child Growth and Development in Art Education	4 units
CFA AR 470 Ceramics I	4 units
CFA AR 243, 508, 515 Photography Course	4 units
CFA AR 551 & 552 Processes and Structures I & II	4 units
CFA AR 455, 460 Elementary and Secondary Methods in Art Education (3 units each) and CFA corequisite CFA AR 456 Elementary and CFA AR 462 Secondary Pre-Practicum (1 unit each)	8 units
CFA AR 565 Art, Access, and Inclusion	4 units
CFA AR 558 Contemporary Issues in Art Education	4 units
CFA AR 553, 554 Art Education Seminar: Curriculum and Instruction I & II (4 units each)	8 units
CFA AR 555 Practicum I	4 units
CFA AR 556 Practicum II*	4 units
History of Art & Architecture elective	4 units
BU Hub Requirements Outside Major and Electives
BU Hub Requirements outside the major, including First-Year Writing Seminar (e.g., CAS WR 120) and Writing, Research & Inquiry (e.g., CAS WR 151/152/153) or equivalent	28 units
Additional BU Hub Requirements and/or studio/general electives	4 units
Total units	132 units

*If a student completes a single practicum for one license only, they will take 4 additional units of electives.