How much support does your organisation provide for your professional growth as a Visual Art Educator?

About the right amount

"School offered postgrad research program in house and sponsored. But all the lecturers were from maths science and nobody understood arts based research methodologies. I ended up with hydra wing after one year of the Masters project as there were no staff tsupport me researching visual arts education"

"Different artistic styles."

"I am able to attend PD when it is appropriate. I am invited to attend any PD that is relevant to teaching and learning, technology, first aid etc."

"Hard question: Great support to attend academic conferences, less support for practical/artistic prefossional development."

"Professional learning opportunities in a diverse range of experiences through school, conferences and tertiary study."

"If a PD is important for me, I apply and usually can participate in it. I am sent emails regarding various courses."

"Conferenec finding and research finding availble to suppor professional development and career development."

"I was sent on a 2 day NGV workshop but not the AEV conference also applied for. This was a budget issue."

"I have been supported to visit interstate art festivals. exhibitions and conferences"

"More readily supported if it no interuption to the school day or routine."

"This year alone: Attendance for all full-time Visual Arts teachers at National Visual Arts Educators Conference; funding and support for two Visual Arts teachers to spend time in Melbourne planning an excursion; allowance for two teachers to attend 'Nurturing Creative Spirit Conference in Melbourne."

"permission to attend proffessional learning opportunities is usually supported"

Much too little

"I find and access PD myself. It is often on my weekends and funded by me. I am encouraged to run events for the Arts. Behaviour PDs take precedence at our school."

"Professional development provided by the school is always general and never subject specific"

"Speaking mainly for Primary Education ratehr than High schoool. We have very few primary VA specialists and the classroom teachers operate on very minimal knowledge and skills or are supported by in school 'experts'."

"The only professional growth I get, is that which I organise myself, and it is often unsupported."

"There is insufficient funding for professional learning opportunities. I am applying for a 2017 Churchill Fellowship to investigate best practice overseas."

"No professional development is offered - this would only be gained via research practices"

Slightly too little

"I would like the opportunity to further my own development, but it is assumed that as a tertiary educator in visual arts you don't require any further PD."

"Not much of the in house opportunities are directed towards the visual arts."

"Being a gallery, it is the sole responsibility of the education staff to put specific effort into our growth - other staff do not necessarily understand it (nor would I expect them to)."

"Limited opportunities for professional growth because of administrative roles and overall faculty size."

"Professional learning is generally poorly supported. There is little time and any development is self funded"

"The PL budgets are tight everywhere and so any PL is done during my own time and at my own expense. I was given terrific flexibility by my school while I studied four years ago, but still no actual concrete time, nor funds...My school is hampered by budget in tis regard for all of its staff."

Somewhat too little

"With some allocated regular time, I could expand my professional growth by completing a special project, working with other schools, etc."

"Collaborative work and planning to broaden teaching and learning experiences for both staff and students"

"Most of professional development is done on my time and with my money."

"Self sourced and paid for personally and usually in own time"

"I access my own PD."

"I have to find PD and organise it all myself - I am the only Primary VA educator in my area so PD is non existent without traveling long disances"

"Good question. This is an area I've been wondering if I'm expecting too much. A few years back, I decided to act positively and try and be involved. I work and live in a regional school so one needs to proactive and not wait for things to happen. To begin with, I believed the more you are involved with changes the more opportunities you have for growth. So a group of classroom teachers and myself applied as a group for the ACARA trial of visual Arts, we were successful and the trial process was interesting especially as I observed the reactions of classroom teachers teaching curriculum. Then I was later to provide support documents for Acara visual Arts. This was followed by the opportunity to include primary arts in WA's TDS communities - teacher development schools, Primary Arts was included as a TDS community but I worked individually with the support of the TDS team and other Arts agencies such as Department of Arts. These experiences were followed winning the Western Australian Premiers Teacher of the Year Award, so I had access to $ 12000 for professional learning - not easy finding professional learning opportunities directly relating to primary education.. ...I was then asked to work with the School Curriculum Standard authority on developing support documents for curriculum and assessment. This meant travelling 3 hrs to Perth living with my mother in law during the week but I took it on because you don't often get these opportunities. So, in a bizarre way, from that moment years ago when I looked at the beginning of the AITSL standards and examples, and I realised there was no examples of what best practice in primary art education looked like...... Social media sites like Pinterest, Facebook and blogs provided examples that I felt weren't what I needed - it was curriculum and assessment I wanted to improve myself in..... So for myself to find opportunities for professional growth I embarked on an extraordinary series of events, my colleagues provided emotional support but it did require me to go &; and place yourself in situations were you felt vulnerable. Fortunately there are many individuals on the way who provide belief and support of the belief in the need to continue the conversation about primary art education."

none

"Visual Arts staff have had to seek their own professional growth and fund it"

"Working in a tertiary context, there is no Arts education specific professional learning opportunities provided to me"

"I do it all: co/organise attend/present at national and international conference and symposia, read and write global professional publications on art/ceramic/ceramic education."