Aesthetic Education: Surviving Challenging Times

Given the dire circumstances in which most teachers and students find themselves in many contemporary classrooms, four professors seized the opportunity to take an aesthetic approach to education inclusive of the multiplicity of relationships central to meaningful teaching and learning environments. We spanned time, place, and vulnerable populations through an interdisciplinary approach to teaching in which we discovered commonalities and overlaps in our disciplinary foci and professional beliefs. Bringing together literacy and art provided students opportunities to explore and multiple means through which to express their ideas. Teaching aesthetically with an emphasis on understanding self and others is an integral aspect of our work with preservice teachers.