South Valley Middle School teacher and principal pushing the
program and hope to add ceramics and photography soon
Gilroy – McDonald’s drink containers covered with colorful paints and random objects, lay drying near the doorway of the warehouse-esque classroom. A melange of paintings flank the eastern wall and in the corner stand two dusty pottery wheels.
It’s obvious the large room houses the South Valley Middle School art program, the place where teachers encourage creative juices to flow, but a quick flash of the wipe-off board brings everyone back to reality.
“Five days until CSTs,” Amber Woodward wrote on Tuesday to remind her students that California Standards Testing begins next week.
Woodward sighs when she points to the words which she had to write, explaining that so much emphasis is placed on standardized testing in public schools these days, the arts are being sacrificed. It’s sad, she said, since students actually improve when painting, ceramics and music are added to the equation.
“It really upsets me because they don’t have any idea how important it is to have art,” she said.
Woodward cited numerous examples, such as a study from The College Board, showing students who take art, dance or music, score higher on SATs. Also, the educator said for some students who don’t excel in academics, gain confidence creating artwork.
One of her students walks over everyday from Rebekah’s Children’s Home solely for Woodward’s art class. The girl doesn’t attend school at South Valley.
To Woodward art is invaluable, particularly for her middle school students.
“Especially at this age because they’re learning about who they are and what they want to do,” she said.
Three years ago Woodward was hired by South Valley’s former principal to bring back the then-defunct arts program. She settled into the school’s former wood shop facility and began converting it into the art classroom.
Once the layers of sawdust were cleaned out (although remnants still exist, here and there), the saws and drills were removed and stools were purchased, Woodward had her classroom.
These days, the high-ceilinged, expansive room, clearly resembles an artist’s studio, an environment Woodward relishes. And about a year ago, she found the aforementioned pottery wheels and kilns, tucked away in a storage room on campus.
The three art classes she offers as a part-timer are popular with the middle schoolers but Woodward wants more. She would love to move to full-time and add ceramics, digital photography and painting to her schedule.
Since she only teaches introductory art classes because that’s what officials decided to offer at South Valley, and has to strictly adhere to the state standards, many of the students who take her class multiple times receive the exact same lessons. And that prevents the students from learning the next layer.
“It’s kind of like math, it (art) builds on itself,” Woodward said.
The mother of two wants to see her middle school develop a strong arts program that would in turn cause locals to flock to the east-side school, much like the popular Gifted and Talented Education program at Rucker Elementary.
Fortunately, John Perales has the same vision.
The current South Valley principal wants to beef up the school’s art program and hire Woodward full-time, but he’s only as powerful as the budget laid before him.
“I’m passionate about art and, yes, I’m looking to fund it fully,” Perales said.
But he won’t know if that’s possible until the school district lets him know how many full-time teacher spots he has to fill in order to fulfill all the academic requirements of California state standards. Perales, who freely admits that he wasn’t one bit an artist, “I can’t even draw a circle,” said he loved art class because it was a great outlet and he continually signed up for the classes when he attended Gilroy schools.
That’s why the principal is so emphatic about ensuring South Valley maintains its art programs.
“I think it’s people in my position that need to say ‘We value the arts,'” Perales said. “There are multiple facets to a kid. I believe that kids need that outlet.”
