ArtHive: 2022

This year we conducted our Learner Voice survey during our first formal Y12 student assessment and sketchbook hand in. Here is what they had to say, and our responses!

What do you love about the art department at Thomas Rotherham College?

Facilities and techniques taught and available in the department – 53%

Over half of our students during our Learner Voice survey said their favourite part of the course and department is the access to a wide range of facilities and mediums to work with, as well as new techniques they have been introduced to that they may not have done before at their previous schools. This includes the range of techniques taught in the lessons and the content of the course itself, as well as being able to use these in their free time. This is fantastic to hear, as we are always striving to give students the experience of a wide range of skills while they study here, and it is great to see that this is already the case two months into the course!

“I love the darkroom in photography and the studio”

“I enjoy all the creative things I can do and resources I can use such as the darkroom”

“’The practical work and gaining new skills”

“I love the content we cover”

“I really like the new materials compared to secondary school”

Freedom and creative independence – 22%

It is important for all of our students to feel they have autonomy and freedom when coming up with their own ideas, this way everyone’s projects are always different! It also encourages independent and creative thinking, which is crucial for all our courses. At this point in the course this aspect is more structured than later on, as everyone is still learning new techniques and easing into the department as a whole. So it is great to hear even at this point that our students feel they are able to creatively express their own ideas and have some independence on the themes they are exploring.

“I like the freedom of the course that we get to express our own ideas, and I like the structure of the lessons that we always know what to do”

“I love the freedom but we still have help to fall back on if needed”

Helpful teachers and the support provided – 18%

Amazing to hear! Our aim as staff is to always ensure our students feel supported in the work they are doing and within the department in general. We are always here to help and appreciate that this is known and felt by the students.

“The teachers are nice and understanding”

“Teachers are amazing and reliable”

“How the teachers are so supportive and understanding”

“All staff are friendly and discuss work and ideas thoroughly”

The Open Door booking system – 14%

Our Open Door system is always something our students love about the department, and this year it seems it is just as popular! Students can book in to use the facilities during their free periods, which can be so helpful especially for students who do not have those facilities at home, for example a printer, or students who find it easier to work in the college environment rather than at home.

“‘I love all the resources and that I can book in”

“Open door system is very useful”

Comfortable atmosphere and environment free of judgement – 11%

It is great so many of our students love the atmosphere and environment of the department as a safe space to work and be in. Just as we encourage students to be free to express their ideas, it is just as important that the environment they do this in is supportive and free of judgement. It is very reassuring to hear from our students that our department is somewhere they feel confident to be themselves, and somewhere they can work effectively in.

“It’s a comfortable environment, I rarely feel stressed”

“Everybody has a voice”

“The ability to express myself in the classroom and in my work with no fear (acceptance)”

“The department is really big and a great work environment to concentrate in”

A few honourable mentions….

· Using sketchbooks and presentation (7%)

What do you wish for in the art department at Thomas Rotherham College?

Nothing! – 20%

Thank you! This is always a lovely comment to receive!

More time for homework’s/extended deadlines – 15%

This was mostly mentioned in Fine Art, and we understand you folks have had a really heavy workload for the start of the course. We structure this in this way to ensure you can learn all the techniques necessary during your Exploring Media project to then take forward into your Major Coursework Project which is more tailored to your personal ideas and skills. Because this project is so short (you will be completing this in February!) and we have tried our best to fit everything in, this ultimately means strict deadlines and a very practical based workload. Unfortunately there is not much we can do in regards to extending the deadlines because of the tight schedule we are keeping to. However, on the other side of this, you should all be super proud of just how much work you have produced in just two months on the course! We have been so impressed by the amount of good quality practical work in particular you have done in such a short amount of time, so you should give yourselves a round of applause for how hard you have worked!

More guillotines – 11%

This never fails to make an appearance on our wish list! No matter how many guillotines we have in the department, you guys always want more! We currently have 5 guillotines in the department, making sure there always at least two in each room. We would love to have more of these, however it isn’t just money, it’s space as well! These already take up a lot of the surfaces in the department so we’re not sure where another one would be able to go. But we do appreciate that when there are 20 students trying to use the guillotines in one lesson, as well as open door students – there can be quite a queue!

As always, we will look into whether this is doable both in terms of our budget, and logistically in the rooms themselves.

We did have one request for the shop to sell mini-guillotines! We will definitely look into this and see if it is viable for us to do. If we do, we will let you know when these are in stock, and you can purchase your own little guillotine to use here and at home!

More equipment available in lessons – 10%

Particular mentions in these wishes were for more scissors and inking boards! These are two things we seem to have been really short of in the last few weeks. We will definitely be ordering in more scissors next time we do an order, and have picked up some more *very specialist* lino inking boards (which definitely are not just chopping boards) from IKEA this weekend.

Tripods were also mentioned. We do have a number of tripods in the department, however they have had their fair share of use over the years, and we only have one fully working one left now. We have just ordered in a brand new tripod as well which will be also be available to use. If these are not already out in the studio when you want to use them, come and speak to our tech team in the office who can get one for you, as they may be stored safely in there.

More feedback/support/step by step explanations of tasks – 7%

Your work planner slides that are up on the board at the start of each lesson identify all the work set in class and for your homework that week. This is essentially a step by step guide of what needs to be done that week, how to do it, and specifically what needs to be included on that sketchbook page (sketchbook bingo!). If for any reason you find that this information isn’t clear as to what you need to do, clarify this with your teacher at the start of the week. We sometimes have students not understand the task set, and arrive to their lesson a week later without their homework because they ‘did not know what they were doing’. This is not an excuse! Make sure you read through the work planner slides thoroughly, and use all the resources available to you to help with this. Your student resource files have PowerPoints, handouts, and your homework-go-to-guide to help you with specific tasks. We also have our Pinterest page which has a wealth of examples on to support you with presentation, as well as researching artists.

Ultimately, if you feel you need more feedback on your work, or explanations of the tasks set, this is down to you as a student to make your teacher aware of this so they can support you. We are always here to help you, so never be afraid to ask for it! And if a task isn’t clear, it may not just be you that is struggling with it, so this also help others in your class who are in the same position as you.

A few honourable mentions….

More resources for presentation

We are not quite sure what you mean by this! Some slips said more things available to make presentation more ‘adventurous’, but we’re not sure how you would go about this! We already see a lot of really interesting and creative ways students present tasks in their sketchbooks, whether using the resources available here or one they have bought themselves. We have a variety of coloured papers, as well as interesting collage materials and scrap paper which is always available for you to use. We also have lots of examples in the rooms and on Pinterest of different presentation methods and styles. You have to remember that the key to your sketchbook is that it is clear, easy for us to understand, and be visually engaging, particularly showing off your own practical/digital/photography work. Going too far into the ‘adventurous’ category may make your sketchbook over-complicated and difficult to understand. So be careful not to tip that balance!

If there is anything specific you would like us to stock to help with your presentation, do let us know!

Card machine for the art shop

We are looking into this as we speak – watch this space!

Better chairs upstairs (especially for tall people!)

Yes please! We know our stools upstairs are not the nicest, nor the comfiest when sitting on them for long periods of time. They are also clearly not suited to tall people, as we heard in this survey! We will look into the cost of getting new chairs for upstairs, and seeing what sort of chairs would be better for our classes.