As the Fall 2020 semester begins at Moore, the graduate program welcomes a new cohort of MA and MFA students from a large, diverse range of artistic and educational backgrounds. In this interview we learn about the exciting research and teaching practices of incoming Master of Art Education student Jordan Muñoz. She talked with Qiaira Riley MFA ’21.
Riley: What program are you in and why did you choose it?
Muñoz: I’m in the MA in Art Education with an Emphasis in Special Populations program. I picked it because of the opportunity to pursue further research and understanding around topics of interest to me. Moore has provided an opportunity for me to study what I am passionate about while I am working as a full-time teacher. I also really like my degree title and think it is important for art educators to better understand how to teach all types of learners.
Riley: What research topics interest you the most at the moment?
Muñoz: I am researching best practices for art educators to use in their classrooms while teaching English Language Learners. I am also including the theory of “funds of knowledge” and visual literacy into my pedagogical research.
Riley: What are some of the practices you are finding that educators can implement with their ELL students?
Muñoz: I just started my research, so I do not have a solid or clear answer to that question just yet. From my experience so far, using the funds of knowledge helps educators to consider the home knowledge or “other” knowledge and experiences that their students are bringing into their classroom and teachers can use that to frame their curriculum.
Riley: What experiences are you most excited about in this upcoming semester?
Muñoz: I’m most excited about elaborating on and growing from my undergraduate research with my thesis research this semester. My school district has a population of Spanish-speaking EL students, and my principal is excited to implement my teaching practices with my action-based research.
Riley: Great! And last question: Is there any place where we can follow up on your work and research?
Muñoz: Sure! I post primarily to my art/teacher Instagram: j_art_educator. You can follow up on my art-making, my teaching and my research there.
Muñoz is Moore’s 2020 recipient of the Croy West Memorial Art Education Scholarship, given to a candidate who has a love for children and the discipline of art. The scholarship was created by Debi West ’92 in memory of her son, Croy, who passed away in 2008.
