Pursuing art education as a major gives you the chance to develop and hone art-making skills, pursue a professional education, and build a cultural understanding of visual art.
In addition to studying art, you’ll complete the required Education Core courses, which leads to certification to teach K-12 art in the State of Washington.
Declare the BFA here! For any questions, contact:
Jenny Hyde
Art Program Director
Art Education Faculty Advisor
jhyde@ewu.edu
The following information comes from the official EWU catalog, which outlines all degree requirements and serves as the guide to earning a degree. Courses are designed to provide a well-rounded and versatile degree, covering a wide range of subject areas.
Art - Education K-12 Major, Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA)
The Bachelor in Fine Arts (BFA) in Art Education prepares students to become both practicing artists and effective teachers, leading to state certification to teach art K–12. The program combines a strong foundation in studio art with professional coursework in education, emphasizing that great art teachers first understand the creative process as artists themselves. Students gain early, hands-on classroom experience and learn to design engaging, inclusive art lessons. Graduates pursue careers as K–12 art teachers, community arts educators, museum educators, and leaders in creative learning environments.
Art Education students will work closely with an Art Advisor as they complete the program. This program requires all majors to apply to the School of Education in their Junior year before completing the Secondary Education requirements in their Senior year.
Admission: This Program requires admission into the School of Education.
Grade Requirements: ≥B- in all Education (EDUC) courses is required. Education Grade Requirements
GPA Requirement: A minimum ≥2.8 GPA.
Students should apply to the Education program under the guidance of the Faculty Advisor.
| Art Courses | ||
| ART 201 | ART AND TECHNOLOGY | 5 |
| ART 202 | METHODS AND MATERIALS | 5 |
| ART 211 | DRAWING | 5 |
| ART 313 | ART ACROSS TIME: 18TH CENTURY TO CONTEMPORARY | 5 |
| or ART 312 | ART ACROSS TIME: PREHISTORY TO 17TH CENTURY | |
| ART 325 | CERAMICS: FUNCTION & FORM | 5 |
| or ART 365 | SCULPTURE: MOLD MAKING AND WOOD CONSTRUCTION | |
| ART 355 | PAINTING | 5 |
| or ART 356 | WATERCOLOR | |
| ART 331 | CONTEMPORARY ART | 5 |
| or ART 314 | THE BODY IN ART | |
| or ART 340 | NATIVE NORTH AMERICAN ART | |
| ART 406 | ART AND COMMUNITY | 5 |
| ART 440 | EXPANDED PRACTICE: 2D | 5 |
| or ART 466 | EXPANDED PRACTICE: 3D | |
| Art Electives - choose in consultation with art advisor: | 10 | |
| ILLUSTRATION | ||
| DIGITAL ART | ||
| PHOTOGRAPHY: DIGITAL PRACTICES and PHOTOGRAPHY: DIGITAL PRACTICES LAB | ||
| PHOTOGRAPHY: BLACK AND WHITE | ||
| FIGURE DRAWING | ||
| CERAMICS: FUNCTION & FORM | ||
or ART 425 | CERAMICS: CONTENT & SURFACE | |
| WATERCOLOR | ||
or ART 355 | PAINTING | |
| PRINTMAKING | ||
| SCULPTURE: MOLD MAKING AND WOOD CONSTRUCTION | ||
or ART 465 | SCULPTURE: WELDED AND EXPANDED FORM | |
| FIBER AND TEXTILES | ||
| ART IN THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL | ||
| EXPERIMENTAL | ||
| CERAMICS: CONTENT & SURFACE | ||
| TOPICS IN PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE | ||
or ART 450 | WORKSHOP IN ART | |
| INTERNSHIP | ||
| Art Education Courses | ||
| SOST 300 | PEOPLES AND GOVERNANCE OF THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST | 5 |
| CSBS 186 | EARLY CLASSROOM EXPERIENCE (taken along with EDUC 231) | 1 |
| ART 391 | ART EDUCATION K-12 | 4 |
| CSBS 420 | STUDENT TEACHING SEMINAR (taken during student teaching) | 1 |
| Required Capstone | ||
| CSBS 490 | SENIOR CAPSTONE (Secondary EDUC CAPSTONE) | 4-5 |
| or ART 490 | SENIOR CAPSTONE: BFA EXHIBITION | |
| Required Education Courses | ||
| EDUC 231 | FOUNDATIONS OF INSTRUCTION AND ASSESSMENT | 3 |
| EDUC 232 | FOUNDATIONS OF CLASSROOM COMMUNITY AND CULTURE | 3 |
| EDUC 233 | FOUNDATIONS OF TEACHING, LEARNING, AND MOTIVATION IN SCHOOL CONTEXTS | 4 |
| EDUC 234 | UNDERSTANDING EDUCATION IN THE US | 3 |
| EDUC 331 | SECONDARY APPLIED INSTRUCTION AND ASSESSMENT | 4 |
| EDUC 332 | PRACTICES OF CLASSROOM COMMUNITY AND CULTURE IN SECONDARY CLASSROOMS | 4 |
| EDUC 431 | DESIGNING EQUITABLE LEARNING IN SECONDARY CLASSROOMS | 4 |
| EDUC 434 | PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE: COLLABORATION AND PARTNERSHIPS | 3 |
| EDUC 386A | FIELD EXPERIENCE 1 | 2 |
| EDUC 386B | FIELD EXPERIENCE 2 | 2 |
| EDUC 386C | FIELD EXPERIENCE 3 | 5 |
| EDUC 423 | FULL-TIME STUDENT TEACHING | 15 |
| Total Credits | 122-123 | |
The following plan of study is for a student with zero credits. Individual students may have different factors such as: credit through transfer work, Advanced Placement, Running Start, or any other type of college-level coursework that requires an individual plan.
Courses could be offered in different terms, checking the academic schedule is paramount in keeping an individual plan current. Students should connect with an advisor to ensure they are on track to graduate.
All Undergraduate students are required to meet the Undergraduate Degree Requirements.
| First Year | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall Quarter | Credits | Winter Quarter | Credits | Spring Quarter | Credits |
| ART 201 | 5 | ENGL 201 | 5 | ART 202 | 5 |
| ENGL 101 | 5 | Natural Science BACR 11 | 5 | MATH 107 | 5 |
| Humanities & Arts BACR 11 | 5 | Natural Science BACR 21 | 5 | Social Science BACR 11 | 5 |
| 15 | 15 | 15 | |||
| Second Year | |||||
| Fall Quarter | Credits | Winter Quarter | Credits | Spring Quarter | Credits |
| ART 211 (Humanities & Arts BACR 2) | 5 | CSBS 186 | 1 | EDUC 234 | 3 |
| EDUC 231 | 3 | EDUC 233 (Social Science BACR 2) | 4 | SOST 300 (Diversity - graduation requirement) | 5 |
| EDUC 232 | 3 | Elective - minor or general elective | 5 | Art Elective2 | 5 |
| Elective - minor or general elective | 5 | Elective - minor or general elective | 5 | Elective - minor or general elective | 3 |
| 16 | 15 | 16 | |||
| Third Year | |||||
| Fall Quarter | Credits | Winter Quarter | Credits | Spring Quarter | Credits |
| ART 355 or 356 | 5 | ART 313 | 5 | ART 331 (Global Studies - graduation requirement) | 5 |
| ART 325 or 365 | 5 | EDUC 331 | 4 | ART 406 | 5 |
| ART 391 | 4 | Art Elective2 | 5 | EDUC 332 | 4 |
| EDUC 386A | 2 | ||||
| 14 | 14 | 16 | |||
| Fourth Year | |||||
| Fall Quarter | Credits | Winter Quarter | Credits | Spring Quarter | Credits |
| ART 440 or 466 | 5 | CSBS 490 (Senior Capstone - graduation requirement) | 5 | CSBS 420 | 1 |
| EDUC 386B | 2 | EDUC 386C | 5 | EDUC 423 | 15 |
| EDUC 431 | 4 | EDUC 434 | 3 | ||
| Elective - minor or general elective | 4 | ||||
| 15 | 13 | 16 | |||
| Total Credits 180 | |||||
University Graduation Requirements (UGR) and Breadth Area Course Requirements (BACR) courses may be less than 5 credits and additional credits may be required to reach the required 180 total credits needed to graduate. Students should connect with an advisor to ensure they are on track to graduate.
Art Electives - choose ten credits in consultation with an Art advisor.
Students who earn a BFA in Art - Education K-12 from EWU should be able to:
Pre-requisites: sophomore standing.
Introduces methods and strategies for teaching visual art to K-12 students. Students develop skills in lesson planning and curriculum design that align with state and national art education standards. Through hands-on art making, students learn to create inclusive, developmentally appropriate art experiences that encourage creativity and critical thinking.
Pre-requisites: ENGL 101, ART 213 (may be taken concurrently); or permission of the instructor.
This critical survey traces the development of art from the beginning of humanity in Mesopotamia, the “cradle of civilization,” to the global Baroque. Includes the study of Ancient Greek art, the Medieval period, and the Renaissance, with a focus on cultural contact and the trade routes. Emphasis is on situating key works of art in their context. Provides the principles of visual analysis and library research.
Pre-requisites: sophomore standing.
Introduction to oil painting that explores painting techniques, accurate color mixing, and value tones within a composition. Develops technical, color theory, and compositional skills to build a foundation for continued growth and experimentation.
Create functional objects and expressive works of art in clay. This course is a hands-on exploration of clay as an artistic medium for students with little to no ceramics experience. This course introduces the fundamental steps of learning how to design, make, troubleshoot, and produce finished ceramic objects. This course gives students the time and space to explore projects with more creative depth and to begin developing a personal style/voice.
If you love creating art and helping others grow, majoring in Art Education lets you do both.
You’ll learn to teach various art forms, including painting, drawing, digital media, and sculpture. Meanwhile, you’ll sharpen your own skills as an artist and educator.
In this program, you’ll get plenty of hands-on studio experience while also learning how to educate people about art. You’ll explore art history, practice different techniques, and learn to develop dynamic lessons that foster creativity and critical thinking in others.
Graduates can teach in schools, run art workshops, work in museums, and lead arts programs. With an Art Education degree, you’ll leverage your creativity to inspire others and highlight the importance of the arts.
Explore careers in art education: