Getting the main points across quickly and in a meaningful way, the article quotes Nieske several times. A favorite of mine which I identified with easily is as follows: "I tell them all the time you don't have to make it happy. It can be dark," Nieske said. "Art is a way for them to explore those conversations." Comparing this experience to my own I was never allowed to customize projects, anything “too much” was heavily frowned upon and discouraged or even excluded. I often had lots of big feelings as a child and teen. Not being able to express them in the art classroom—a place where I felt the happiest—was extremely discouraging. One of the most important bits of advice I have ever heard is to remember that high school kids are just that…kids. In the article Nieske states that “kids need to be creative, and we need to do whatever we can to allow them the freedom and the time and the materials to do that”, these words are even more important as children are growing and learning in the pandemic. Encouraging the creative process via art can offer some much-needed mental relief, give students a voice, and build confidence overall! 

This article is from Nov 2021 but it is currently relevant to teachers and students alike so I figured to include it!

Teachers today deal with technology every day—being told to put away your phone as a student is a common occurrence in High school settings. The use of phones in class is mostly frowned upon by educators but occasionally its use is permitted. In this article by BBC news, teachers are said to be burdened by harassment on the popular social media platform, Tiktok. In the article a quote from Mr. Rogers, an educator targeted on the app, said "I think it's pushing some over the edge because of everything we've been through in the last two years," he said, adding that some people were "quite fragile coming out of the pandemic". Taking this into account, I immediately related this article to our readings in ‘Worth Striking For’…teachers are underpaid, over-stressed, and quitting earlier and earlier into their careers. This article featuring teachers being harassed on social media seems to add another layer to teachers' already over-full plates. Another quote in the article states "When a child posts defamatory remarks, or humiliating remarks, on TikTok, it can be seen by up to two million people across the world. That has a really big impact when there is crucially no right to reply for the teacher." To this I wonder, can this negative Tiktok be used to teach? Can this moment be turned around to help better support students or reel them in for more engagement? As mentioned though, the stress of dealing with social media harassment can certainly tip a teacher over the edge if they are already burnt out and considering leaving…and honestly if it was that hard to navigate who would blame them? As a response, Tiktok claimed they would assist educators by removing harmful or derogatory content as well as implementing an online resource for professionals to report content. Perhaps in the future addressing the use of social media in the classroom should be welcomed and included when phones are being used or students are laughing over shared content. As a takeaway, it is important to know not ALL social media is negative but the harmful content can certainly be a test for any teacher to navigate. Understanding that social media is going to be used can help but setting up some guidelines and rules for use will also help students know what is acceptable or not.