If you have any additional information, comments or feedback in relation to the current state of visual art education in Australia please add them here!

If you have any additional information, comments or feedback in relation to the current state of visual art education in Australia please add them here!

"I think we need a consolidated approach wherin all states and territories through their representative organisations get together to start or resetablish a conversation in the fist instance about what's happenign and how we should move to strengthen our work and pool resources to progress our agendas. So far the colonisation of this space by ACARA with a very low quality curriculum full fo holes and silly assumptions about art education has been destructive rather than generative, so we need to seize the day on this ourselves."

"I do not like the reporting system of giving DCBorA for primary students. It can make or break their interest in learning. I know teachers who have never given their students any art because they were given a D. I watch some students during art sessions,work so hard to get to a result, which is still not the best standard, but they are proud of their effort and result, I have students who are creative in such a different way that I could easily misunderstand their artwork. therefore I think a comment on the achievements is good but marking is not."

"I believe that Visual Arts education in Australia has had a small ressurgence over the last six months. After many years of disparity, particularly over different views and philosophies surrounding the Australian Curriculum, the community is reforming and addressing the interests and advocacy of different territories, stakeholders and systems. Finally there seems to be a recognition of the differences in each state and an understanding of the foundations of different approaches to Visual Arts education. There appears to be an acknowledgement of those differences and a retirement of well established researchers and academics making way for new idealists and advocators for the individual nature of Visual Arts education within the Arts education community and the broader educational sector."

"I have seen the standard of visual art education severely deteriorate over my time as a teacher. This is mainly because the teachers have not had the knowledge to pass on due to a less rigorous training program."

"WE need to maintain the status of arts education....keep access to student loans for art education; it would be wonderful to return to specialist education for arts within teaching stream. There is a huge potential to incorporate art into so many areas of the curriculum esp mathematics to reconnect children to application of concepts"

"there needs to be more specific PD provided by Education bodies from both state and catholic sectors. More value and appreciation of the Arts in learning and education e.g. visual learners."

"Really feel quite fearful for the future of visual arts education due to Federal Government's announcement that the creative arts are a 'lifestyle choice' and the very place where I work, a creative arts institution, funded mainly by the government, is asking me to prove that my work is valid and valuable."

"Looking for more Research supervisors to support higher degree arts. Educat ion research in Australia using Arts Based Mehtodology"

"I have worked as an artist in residence for over 20 years. In the past 5 years I have noticed that students are less willing to try new ideas, and unwilling to MAKE mistakes. They now have a FEAR of getting the work wrong. Art should be about FOSTERING CREATIVITY and whilst creating allowing the students to learn skills that allow the development of work to evolve and grow. Too often I am asked,,,,"is this good enough?" This is a search for gratification. My reply is......"Are YOU happy with the result?" AND, "What do you like about the work and what would you change if you could?" The results are interesting. Students will give very honest answers once they have confidence in the teacher,,,and become very responsive and very good at critiquing their own work andadept at assessing their peers work. The art room in schools at present does not allow creativity and self assesment. Parents are too concerned with actual results in performance even though the art work is a copy of the teachers. Art is not about copying the teacher...Art is about creativity and imagination ,,,,and then the skills."

"Thank you for your contribution to research in Visual Arts education. Your questions are ones I have been thinking about and I am so pleased to see these considered at such a national level. I have reacted instinctly to these questions rather than give a more formal approach, as I believe this has more value for research.... So I apologise for my typo's and spelling mistakes! I have been impressed by the quality of the questions but found it frustrating not being able to read my stream of consciousness responses, as I'd like to reread and edit my response if possible. Also my response about support for professional growth identifies myself in WA because of my unique experiences, I would like my responses to remain anonymous so if these responses are quoted could this not be used as it would identify me and basically I'm needed a period of not being so visible basically just feeling a bit burnt out and wanting to focus on my teaching for a while. Once again thank you, wonderful to come across research relevant to what I do every day. I almost enjoyed reading your questions, loved the quality and sequence of them."

"I feel like it is being gradually killed in primary schools. Art rooms being carpeted for general classrooms. No room in the timetable. Reduced to colouring in and collage (to avoid mess). No time to draw a picture to go with the story. Must focus on naming the grammar and conventions instead. Etc etc."

"Visual arts education has been at the receiving end of cutback after cutback for the last fifteen years. In NSW the current government has not only defunded arts education in TAFE but is currently actively attempting to close the NAS and supporting University of Sydney's removal of SCA and closure of its ceramics, glass and jewellery departments. Support for vis arts education is moving back to the situation of the early seventies. Many reasons - the rise of (ir) rational economics, governments looking to raise money for budgets and seeing the arts as a soft target, the introduction of outcomes being applied to the arts, the enormous and constantly increasing amount of paperwork that educators have to submit, reduction of face to face teaching time, increasing focus on concept and a move away from teaching art/craft skills, lack of understanding of the importance of process and knowledge of materials, lack of community outreach, lack of incorporating cultural diversity as reflected in our multicultural society, lack of support for teachers, lack of depth, breadth and time in teaching visual arts to visual arts education students, lack of networking and cross disciplinary partnerships between TAFE and university, prioritising fine arts education at the cost of craft/applied arts education, lack of marketing education, lack of industry partnerships/internships/apprenticeships, complete absence of political lobbying."

"I fear that art education is becoming too bureaucratic. Quotas that were put in to ensure minimum standards in the hands of ill informed principals are enabling them to lower the bar. Ideas and understanding of arts education at all levels are a concern. The government with an over emphasis on STEM learning and principals over focused on literacy and numeracy outcomes."

"I would like to see a continuum of arts skills and arts mediums students should be achieving/exploring at particular levels. This is not evident in current curriculum. The vic curriculum and AUSvels are very vague and are interpreted differently by each teacher and school. Although there are improvements in vic curriculum there are still more changes for consistency to occur."

"I worry that visual art is being seen as a second rate subject as time moves on. I was told what I taught wasn't 21st century enough! What rubbish. We have students who can't hold a pencil correctly, or make a decision let alone problem solve! Visual art is needed to combat this narrow mindedness! We add value to people and their lives!"

"There needs to be a stronger United voice to promote the value of Visual Arts education, and each state needs to unite as a strong body to facilitate this. Even the process of developing writing and implementing the Australian Curriculum Visual Arts was discordant, vague, driven by universities and NOT the classroom experts. It lacked coordination, explicitness and direction and at best still remains a vague ineffective document."

"I'm worried!"

"I have seen many positive changes over my 25 years of teaching VA in schools and tertiary institutions, however, these have been in pockets. We need more research and we need to get the research out to teachers and parents. We need to clarify the significance of VA to meaning-making for educators and get them to seriously engage. I wish that where I work they were not cutting VA time for pre-service teachers, but adding."

"I think art education in Australia is inconsistent and inequitable."

"I would be more than happy to discuss my responses further; prior to working in Museum Education, I also worked as a Secondary Art/Humanities Teacher, and feel my experiences across both settings are illuminating."

"It's a tangled mess - not helped by a national organisation on its knees due to a lack of willing workers - the few can't keep doing it for the many - we're tired. More of us need to get politically active."

"More funding needs to be provided at a state and national level to visual arts education in Australia. Visual arts education at a tertiary level is in decline with pre-service teaching courses shrinking arts education units and providing very little support for arts education. At the same time, the National Curriculum is mandating that all children be exposed to the Arts in all its forms during their schooling. They are not prepared to put forward funding to support what they say should be happening. The situation is dire in my opinion."

"No."

"As a museum educator, I work closely with primary and secondary art teachers to support the work that they do in the classroom. It is my observation that teachers in schools are overwhelmed with responsibility and underwhelmed with resources. Visual Arts Education in schools is impacted as it is not as valued as other subject areas. For students to develop the capabilities critical to 21st century learning - literacy, critical and creative thinking, personal and social capability and intercultural understanding [I would like to add empathy and spirituality], then the importance of quality Visual Arts Education to Australia's future should not be underestimated."

"Australian culture clearly values certain things and art is not one of them. Art will only be appreciated once individuals are given the means to think outside the box. Unfortunately because free thinkers are dangerous to the powers that be, I don't see how this can happen except subversively."

"STEAM. YES. and Restore funding to arts orga's reduced by Brandis. The focus on STEAM must commence in early education."

"How would I know what the current state is? I am pretty isolated! Im pretty passionate about arts education though and have lots to say about it."

"It's a shame that the current state of education policy promotes a them (STEM) and us (the Arts) cultures and within the Arts we are competing for time and resources."

"It is not valued enough. It depends on what the Principal of the school values and how strong of character the Art teacher is to put their ideas forward and continue them. I feel like a sales person continually promoting my subject to make sure it stays afloat. Because if students don't 'choose' it Art will be cut. Why will they want to choose it if they are not good at it or don't know how it can help them? It is a constant battle. Then I have to make my subject 'fun' in order for more students to be fooled into thinking they like it because they are being entertained by the multiple activities and materials they get. By the time they reach high school it should not be a matter of selling the subject. Students need to be well rounded as they develop through primary school, then it is extension in junior high school, instead of the rudimentary 'catch up' we do now to introduce the Arts. Then students will be more able to address the Post-Modern concepts and media used in Senior because they will be used to problem solving communication and reading symbols as they grow. They will really be communicating important issues, synthesising information and doing something valid and feel comfortable using the most higher order thinking skills."

"Resourcing and investment in quality art educators is critical so the complexity of how the curriculum can live is in the hands of educators and teachers who are fully conversant with the Arts its practices and power."

"The approach we have for arts and always fighting for its value is like this TED talk."

"The above image reflects the thoughtful ponderer of the state of visual art education and its future. Its importance in developing creative thinking and the cognitive development of students is increasing evident in research. Though its status in economic rational focus in education is less clear."

"early years/primary school art trained teachers/specialists required"

"The Australiana curriculum runs the risk of devaluing Visual Arts education. The Arts exist as separate disciplines and should be taught as such."