the artistic training to discuss the formal qualities of the artwork. A typical Picture Study lesson was as follows: Teachers purchased materials from the Perry Picture Series, for example. This is similar to the prepackaged curriculum we have today. These materials included a teacher's picture that was larger for the class to look at together, and then smaller reproduction approximately 2 ¾” by 2” for each child to look at. These were generally in black and white or sepia tone. Children would often collect these cards and trade them much like modern day baseball cards. The teacher would give the students a certain amount of information about the picture and the artist who created it, such as the picture's representational content, artist's vital statistics, and a few biographical details about the artist. These were all included in the materials so an unskilled teacher could still present the information to his or her class. Then the teacher would ask a few discussion questions. Sometimes suggestions for language arts projects or studio activities were included in the materials. The picture study movement died out at the end of the 1920s as a result of new ideas regarding learning art appreciation through studio work became more popular in the United States. Since World War II Since World War II, artist training has become the charge of colleges and universities and contemporary art has become an increasingly academic and intellectual field. Prior to World War II an artist did not need a college degree. Since that time the Bachelor of Fine Arts and then the Master of Fine Arts became recommended degrees to be a professional artist. This change was facilitated by the passage of the G.I. Bill in 1944, which allowed many World War II veterans to attend school, art school included. With the expansion of university art departments, independent art schools began to lose popularity. Students pursuing a career in art began enrolling at universities, rather than independent art schools, such as the Art Students League, known for artists like Jackson Pollock and Mark Rothko. By the 1960s, the School of Visual Arts, Pratt Institute, Cooper Union, Princeton and Yale had emerged as leading American art universities. Currently, the PhD in studio art is under debate as the new standard for a degree in professional art. Although, as of 2008, there are only two United States programs offering a PhD in studio