Visual Arts Education: the potential for teacher delight and despair

The paper reports on Australian research with Early Childhood teachers reflecting in various ways on their preparation to teach areas across the curriculum, their perceptions of their ability to do so and their levels of confidence in teaching in these areas. The research contrasts the Visual and Performing Arts vis à vis the more traditional academic areas of the curriculum such as Literacy and Numeracy. Preschool teachers were invited to respond to a mailed survey focussing on these issues together with a range of considerations pertinent specifically to the Visual Arts; they were also invited to indicate their willingness to participate in the next phase of the research. The subsequent stages of the study involved, firstly, an intensive interview with a selection of the participants and, secondly, a case study mentoring programme with three teachers exploring the possibilities of tailored support. The research revealed critical gaps between preschool teachers levels of ability, confidence and enjoyment which impacted significantly on their delivery of Visual Arts programmes which accords with the findings of national and international studies in relation to generalist primary teachers. Many of the early childhood teachers referred to the paucity and inadequacy of their initial teacher preparation for Visual Arts, compared with the perceived key areas of Literacy and Numeracy, and the dearth of subsequent professional learning opportunities. The paper interrogates these disparities and explores teachers specific concerns. In response to these concerns, a mentoring programme was developed and trialled in Australian preschools using only existing resources. Its efficacy as an individualized strategy suggests its strong potential for a broader but targeted professional development mentoring program.