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 complete one term-long practicum internship and become eligible for one license in teaching visual arts from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education—either Pre-K–8 or 5–12. The practicum internship 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 Pyramids to Cathedrals: An Introduction to Ancient and Medieval Art | 4 units |
| CAS AH 112 Introduction to Art in Europe and the United States from the Renaissance to Post-Modernism | 4 units |
| Art Education Major Requirements | |
| The following courses are needed to meet state licensing requirements. | |
| CFA AR 123 Foundation Design | 2 units |
| CFA AR 241 Painting II | 4 units |
| Elective in Photography: CFA AR 243, 508, 515 | 4 units |
| CFA AR 470 Ceramics I | 4 units |
| Intermediate/Advanced Studio Electives (CFA AR 221, 223, 224, 225, 226, 236, 238, 239, 242, 243, 250, 251, 270, 309, 369, 385, 386, 425, 447, 448, 469, 501, 508, 515, 517, 518, 540, 547, 548) | 12 units |
| Elective in Art History or History of Graphic Design (all CAS AH or CFA AR 580) | 4 units |
| CAS PS 101 General Psychology | 4 units |
| CFA AR 586 Child Development Through Arts | 4 units |
| CFA AR 565 Art, Access, and Inclusion | 4 units |
| CFA AR 558 Contemporary Issues in Art Education | 4 units |
| CFA AR 590 Elementary and Secondary Methods in Art Education | 4 units |
| CFA AR 591 Curriculum Design + Pre-Practicum Seminar | 2 units |
| CFA AR 592 Pre-Practicum | 2 units |
| CFA AR 554 Art Education Seminar: Curriculum and Instruction | 4 units |
| CFA AR 557 Practicum | 8 units |
| BU Hub Requirements Outside Major and Electives | |
| Courses taken outside the major to fulfill BU Hub requirements, plus any additional studio/general electives needed to reach 132 units | 40 units |
| Total units | 132 units |
