Needlework Proficiency Levels

Dianne Lewandowski opined thusly:

tennhick wrote:
snip

Based on the description, I think I'm about 14 levels below novice g
I even have different needle threaders for use with different size
needles.

Who's the target audience for schools that use these categories?


It's just my restless mind postulating and pondering. If I had ten
million dollars and could start a needlework school, what would it be
like? What would be the curriculum and how would you separate it to a
coherent whole?

[snipped]

Dianne

I think the definitions are too broad in the early stages of the
curriculum. A curriculum as defined in the original post would result in a
greatly skewed majority of people crammed into the novice(s) category,
never proceeding "up" from there, and eventually dropping out due to
frustration and the perceived lack of advancement.

The curricula would have to be limited in some way. "All" is a mighty
inclusive word. You could have people in novice classes learning threading
and stopping and starting techniques from all over the world for the rest
of their lives.

The curricula also seems to be targeted towards North American, Northern
European work with no mention of Asian (and elsewhere) techniques. So
either the Asian fibers and techniques associated with them are included in
the "thread all fibers" section and then dropped entirely -- meaning a
waste of time -- or the "all fibers" portion should be altered to some
other term.

In addition I would add more plateaus of achievment. Nothing spurs a person
on to greater advancement than a sense of reward.

Slightly disjointed, but it caught my eye from the "advanced" section.

Has an acute interest in developing skills and pursuing solutions to
problems in design, color and techniques in their chosen field.

This is ambiguous. The act of enrolling in the school demonstrates an acute
interest in developing one's skills and techniques.

Has an interest in developing original designs, colors and/or style.

Intro to design should start well up the list. Though I cannot make it out
of the raw novice level of that program, I design and stitch primarily my
own designs and have for years.

--
Regards
--Anne

Blogging to be found at http://www.emptycauldron.com/weblog/musings.html


Remove DIESPAMBOTDIE to e-mail

In article , Dianne Lewandowski
writes:

Prior to the 20th century, I know what the curriculum was - lots of
documentation. This is my own ruminations for "today" and is merely a
wide "outline" as opposed to a day-to-day curriculum.

Dianne, what was the curriculum prior to the 20th century?

Interested,

India

WIPS:

1. Leisure Arts American Sampler
2. ?
3. ?

I've printed your reply out to more carefully read it, but wanted to
comment on one section:

Sorceress wrote in response to:

"Has an acute interest in developing skills and pursuing solutions to
problems in design, color and techniques in their chosen field."

This is ambiguous. The act of enrolling in the school demonstrates an acute
interest in developing one's skills and techniques.

That is plagerized from ANG. Their "master" status. g Interesting how
different people view different objectives. I like your point.
Dianne

You'll find out in January. That's all I can say for the moment. g
Keep watching RCTN.
Dianne

Mmeindia wrote:

In article , Dianne Lewandowski
writes:


Prior to the 20th century, I know what the curriculum was - lots of
documentation. This is my own ruminations for "today" and is merely a
wide "outline" as opposed to a day-to-day curriculum.


Dianne, what was the curriculum prior to the 20th century?

Interested,

India

WIPS:

1. Leisure Arts American Sampler
2. ?
3. ?

On Sun, 28 Dec 2003 15:46:46 GMT, Sorceress
wrote:

Intro to design should start well up the list. Though I cannot make it out
of the raw novice level of that program, I design and stitch primarily my
own designs and have for years.

My first ever needlepoint project was designed by me. Art class,
grade 10, age 15. The only other thing I'd ever hand stitched before
was some easy surface embroidery "to be like mom" when I was 7 or 8,
and hemming some trousers or sewing buttons on garments I made by
machine in Home Ec.. Since then I have designed and stitched
needlepoint, plastic canvas, cross stitch, and surface embroidery
projects for myself.

Like you, I'd be stuck at the novice level of the program today for
lack of fulfilling one or two points, while at the same time having
achieved many points of each higher level.
Debra in VA

On Sat, 27 Dec 2003 20:28:40 GMT, "Linn Skinner"
wrote:

Diane:

An ambitious curriculum. Much higher standards than the RSN. BTW I could
never qualifiy even as a novice because if I ever wanted to stitch
basketweave again in my lifetime - I would have to get out the book to
figure it out G

Linn Skinner
Skinner Sisters

I'll consider myself in good company then because I know you are a
more accomplished stitcher than I.
Debra in VA

Debra wrote:
Like you, I'd be stuck at the novice level of the program today for
lack of fulfilling one or two points, while at the same time having
achieved many points of each higher level.
Debra in VA


And those "one or two points" would be???
Dianne

Dianne Lewandowski said
It's just my restless mind postulating and pondering. If I had ten
million dollars and could start a needlework school, what would it be
like? What would be the curriculum and how would you separate it to a
coherent whole?

Time is not of concern in this imaginary school. Nor is age. One could
start at 7 or 77.

I'm quite fond of imaginary things like unicorns, fairies and schools (can you
say Hogwarts?) ;-)

fwiw, in real colleges and universities, people who are enrolled in fine arts
or music programs aren't expected to be masters of every media or instrument
nor are those who go into 'science' expected to know everything about quantum
physics or molecular biology before they're awarded a degree. IOW, I see
nothing wrong in granting novice or even intermediate status to those talented
people who have specialized in one type of needlework. Also, perhaps you might
want to consider adding 'apprentice' or some other designation for people who
are willing to learn new skills in areas they haven't tackled before.

Anne who enjoys pulling thread or wool through pieces of cloth

p.s. thinking way outside the box ... an elderhostel affiliation
http://www.elderhostel.org/ would be wonderful ;-)

Design is different than needlework proficiency. As is color.
It is rare to find persons that do all three extremely well. Just like
there are few Rubenstein's or Horowitz's, but lots who are somewhere
between not knowing a note and almost to that status.

As I said earlier, I don't have all this knowledge. Nor do I ever
expect that I would get to that degree of proficiency.

Like most things, even in music, if I haven't seen a word or phrase in
awhile, I have to look it up. So, as Linn Skinner mentioned, I might
have to look up basketweave again. But once looked up, if I had once
gained the knowledge, I could do it again and do it well. Just like, if
I haven't played Bach in awhile, I have to rethink and work it through
for a few hours before I'm back into his thinking process. That doesn't
bother me. In the first place, I'm not Bach, nor will I ever have his
degree of proficiency.

Needlework is a constantly improving process. Things you do in one
technique help you in another technique. One needn't study satin stitch
for ten years to become a master at it. Unless, of course, you only did
it 50 times in those 10 years. grin

Each of us has areas that we love best, pursue the hardest. Nothing
wrong with that. I was just thinking in larger terms.

Dianne






Debra wrote:

On Sun, 28 Dec 2003 15:46:46 GMT, Sorceress
wrote:


Intro to design should start well up the list. Though I cannot make it out
of the raw novice level of that program, I design and stitch primarily my
own designs and have for years.


My first ever needlepoint project was designed by me. Art class,
grade 10, age 15. The only other thing I'd ever hand stitched before
was some easy surface embroidery "to be like mom" when I was 7 or 8,
and hemming some trousers or sewing buttons on garments I made by
machine in Home Ec.. Since then I have designed and stitched
needlepoint, plastic canvas, cross stitch, and surface embroidery
projects for myself.

Like you, I'd be stuck at the novice level of the program today for
lack of fulfilling one or two points, while at the same time having
achieved many points of each higher level.
Debra in VA

On Sat, 27 Dec 2003 07:36:33 -0600, Dianne Lewandowski
wrote:

This is not cut in stone. It is an attempt to come up with some
"ideal". Something to ponder.

It has to do with: If I was headmistress of a brand new needlework
school, how would I set up the curriculum, and how would you get to the
next grade level.

Note that I didn't say: cross stitch, or embroider. The operative word
here is "Needleworker".

Prior to the 20th century, I know what the curriculum was - lots of
documentation. This is my own ruminations for "today" and is merely a
wide "outline" as opposed to a day-to-day curriculum.

All thoughts welcome. It's meant to be fun, thought-provoking, and not
meant to be anything else but that.

I find it kind of funny that I can pass half of the requirements for
each level, but not all of any of them. But then, I've always known I
was kind of weird. I guess I'll earn that master needleworker degree
sideways rather than head-on. LOL

I even need to look up some of the stitch names listed because there
are some stitches that I just "do" and never bothered to learn the
names of because it was just important to me at the time to learn the
how. So I might be farther along than I think I am.

Debra in VA