What do art educators need to know to teach elementary generalists well? Our collaborative autoethnographic inquiry.

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Title: What do art educators need to know to teach elementary generalists well? Our collaborative autoethnographic inquiry.
Authors: Willcox, Libba1 (AUTHOR) swillcox@iu.edu, Huxhold, Dianna2 (AUTHOR) dmhuxhold@gmail.com, Lackey, Lara3 (AUTHOR) laralackey@gmail.com
Source: International Journal of Education through Art. Jun2026, Vol. 22 Issue 2, p245-263. 19p.
Subject Terms: *Art education, *Teaching methods, *Elementary education, *Elementary school teachers, *Education policy, *Curriculum planning, *Teacher training, Autoethnography
Geographic Terms: United States
Abstract: Our collaborative autoethnographic (CAE) inquiry explores what art educators need to know to teach elementary generalists well. We analysed how authors in the United States perceive the challenges and remedies for teaching generalist art methods courses and how our lived experiences support or complicate normalized assumptions about teaching art methods for general educators. We found that authors identify familiar teaching challenges (e.g. students' misinformed beliefs about art, limited content knowledge and fear about art-making) and suggest curricular, pedagogical and philosophical remedies. However, our lived experiences revealed that many challenges consist of structural, administrative and policy-related issues beyond individual instructors' control. Our CAE reveals what a literature review alone could not, exposing how structural and cultural dynamics profoundly shape this work. Our findings suggest that problems extend beyond our classrooms and stem from institutional and broader cultural environments that position art as supplementary rather than essential to schooling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of International Journal of Education through Art is the property of Intellect Ltd. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Database: Education Research Complete
Full text is not displayed to guests.
FullText Links:
  – Type: pdflink
Text:
  Availability: 1
Header DbId: ehh
DbLabel: Education Research Complete
An: 194429499
AccessLevel: 6
PubType: Academic Journal
PubTypeId: academicJournal
PreciseRelevancyScore: 0
IllustrationInfo
Items – Name: Title
  Label: Title
  Group: Ti
  Data: What do art educators need to know to teach elementary generalists well? Our collaborative autoethnographic inquiry.
– Name: Author
  Label: Authors
  Group: Au
  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Willcox%2C+Libba%22">Willcox, Libba</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> swillcox@iu.edu</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Huxhold%2C+Dianna%22">Huxhold, Dianna</searchLink><relatesTo>2</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> dmhuxhold@gmail.com</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Lackey%2C+Lara%22">Lackey, Lara</searchLink><relatesTo>3</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> laralackey@gmail.com</i>
– Name: TitleSource
  Label: Source
  Group: Src
  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22International+Journal+of+Education+through+Art%22">International Journal of Education through Art</searchLink>. Jun2026, Vol. 22 Issue 2, p245-263. 19p.
– Name: Subject
  Label: Subject Terms
  Group: Su
  Data: *<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Art+education%22">Art education</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Teaching+methods%22">Teaching methods</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Elementary+education%22">Elementary education</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Elementary+school+teachers%22">Elementary school teachers</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Education+policy%22">Education policy</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Curriculum+planning%22">Curriculum planning</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Teacher+training%22">Teacher training</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Autoethnography%22">Autoethnography</searchLink>
– Name: SubjectGeographic
  Label: Geographic Terms
  Group: Su
  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22United+States%22">United States</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: Our collaborative autoethnographic (CAE) inquiry explores what art educators need to know to teach elementary generalists well. We analysed how authors in the United States perceive the challenges and remedies for teaching generalist art methods courses and how our lived experiences support or complicate normalized assumptions about teaching art methods for general educators. We found that authors identify familiar teaching challenges (e.g. students' misinformed beliefs about art, limited content knowledge and fear about art-making) and suggest curricular, pedagogical and philosophical remedies. However, our lived experiences revealed that many challenges consist of structural, administrative and policy-related issues beyond individual instructors' control. Our CAE reveals what a literature review alone could not, exposing how structural and cultural dynamics profoundly shape this work. Our findings suggest that problems extend beyond our classrooms and stem from institutional and broader cultural environments that position art as supplementary rather than essential to schooling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
– Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright
  Label:
  Group: Ab
  Data: <i>Copyright of International Journal of Education through Art is the property of Intellect Ltd. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
PLink https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=ehh&AN=194429499
RecordInfo BibRecord:
  BibEntity:
    Identifiers:
      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1386/eta_00232_1
    Languages:
      – Code: eng
        Text: English
    PhysicalDescription:
      Pagination:
        PageCount: 19
        StartPage: 245
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Art education
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Teaching methods
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Elementary education
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Elementary school teachers
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Education policy
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Curriculum planning
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Teacher training
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Autoethnography
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: United States
        Type: general
    Titles:
      – TitleFull: What do art educators need to know to teach elementary generalists well? Our collaborative autoethnographic inquiry.
        Type: main
  BibRelationships:
    HasContributorRelationships:
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Willcox, Libba
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Huxhold, Dianna
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Lackey, Lara
    IsPartOfRelationships:
      – BibEntity:
          Dates:
            – D: 01
              M: 06
              Text: Jun2026
              Type: published
              Y: 2026
          Identifiers:
            – Type: issn-print
              Value: 17435234
          Numbering:
            – Type: volume
              Value: 22
            – Type: issue
              Value: 2
          Titles:
            – TitleFull: International Journal of Education through Art
              Type: main
ResultId 1