Integrating Comic Narrative Illustration into Pre-Service Teacher Education Coursework
Location
Session 1 Presentations - College Students I
Proposal Track
Research Project
Session Format
Presentation
Abstract
In Fall 2020, Dr. Gierhart collaborated with art professor Hannah Israel to facilitate two workshops in which elementary teaching candidates learned how to design comic strip art.
Using comic strips as a tool of expression helps to organize complex information within a narrative structure, inviting readers to relate emotionally to characters and situations.
The teacher education students created comic strips depicting the experiences of diverse elementary students during the pandemic to display in a public-facing campus gallery.
The focus question of this case study was 'How does engaging in the design of comic strip artwork foster elementary teacher education students' consideration of diverse K-5 students' experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic?'
We interviewed two students from this class in a pair of focus groups, before and after the gallery was finalized. They also shared notes, sketches, reflections, and final works. Thorough readings and description of the data were followed by open coding, axial coding, and finally, selective coding to establish themes.
Data analysis is ongoing; however, it is clear that the participants engaged in deep reflection as they made their design choices for their artwork, developing greater empathy for diverse students and elementary classroom teachers amidst the challenges of the pandemic.
Keywords
elementary education, reflection, art, case study
Professional Bio
Aaron R. Gierhart is an Assistant Professor of Elementary Education at Columbus State University in Columbus, GA. He previously taught at the elementary level in the Illinois public school system for 11 years. Aaron hosts and produces the seasonal podcast Journeys of Teaching. He lives in Columbus with his wife and two daughters. Hannah Israel is the Gallery Director of the Illges Gallery and a Professor of Art in the Department of Art at Columbus State University. Ms. Israel received her MFA in Sculpture from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and her BFA in Art History at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. She has taught at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and Cornell University, Ithaca, NY. Ms. Israel has worked at The International Studio and Curatorial Program and James Cohan Gallery in New York City. She has curated several group exhibitions, exhibited her own work nationally and worked on collaborative projects with other artists.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Gierhart, Aaron R. and Israel, Hannah, "Integrating Comic Narrative Illustration into Pre-Service Teacher Education Coursework" (2021). Georgia Educational Research Association Conference. 2.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/gera/2021/2021/2
Integrating Comic Narrative Illustration into Pre-Service Teacher Education Coursework
Session 1 Presentations - College Students I
In Fall 2020, Dr. Gierhart collaborated with art professor Hannah Israel to facilitate two workshops in which elementary teaching candidates learned how to design comic strip art.
Using comic strips as a tool of expression helps to organize complex information within a narrative structure, inviting readers to relate emotionally to characters and situations.
The teacher education students created comic strips depicting the experiences of diverse elementary students during the pandemic to display in a public-facing campus gallery.
The focus question of this case study was 'How does engaging in the design of comic strip artwork foster elementary teacher education students' consideration of diverse K-5 students' experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic?'
We interviewed two students from this class in a pair of focus groups, before and after the gallery was finalized. They also shared notes, sketches, reflections, and final works. Thorough readings and description of the data were followed by open coding, axial coding, and finally, selective coding to establish themes.
Data analysis is ongoing; however, it is clear that the participants engaged in deep reflection as they made their design choices for their artwork, developing greater empathy for diverse students and elementary classroom teachers amidst the challenges of the pandemic.
