“This was a Challenge upon a Challenge!”: Reframing Uncertainty in K–12 Teacher Preparation as an Opening for Museum Educators

Systemic challenges facing K–12 teacher preparation programs may represent opportunities for museums with strong educational missions. This article offers insights from a two-year partnership between a campus art museum and teacher education program in which future secondary-level teachers in all disciplines gained hands-on experience in lesson planning, using artwork on display at the museum as a common thread. This partnership took place in the context of a new methods sequence for a small teacher preparation program, in which all students took an interdisciplinary class covering shared issues in curriculum and instruction while completing a discipline-specific methods lab. The authors describe the sequence of museum visits and project development in-depth while highlighting the lived experiences of participating preservice teachers, and then turn to describe their own learning. The conclusion provides takeaways for museum educators interested in pursuing a similar strategy with teacher education programs.