Cross-national Comparisons of Background and Confidence in Visual Arts and Music Education of Pre-Service Primary Teachers - read online free

Oct 15, 2026

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This paper reports findings from a study of pre-service primary teachers’ background and confidence in music and visual arts education. Data were collected from 939 non-specialist pre-service teachers across five countries. The study first examines participants’ perceptions of their background and confidence, then compares Australian responses with those from four other countries. Results show only limited agreement on having a good background, and notable confidence levels differ by art form and country.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages14

Reading Time35 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Introduction

Background

Australian Journal of Teacher Education Cross-national Comparisons of Background and Confidence in Visual Arts and Music Education of Pre-Service Primary Teachers Deirdre Russell-Bowie University of Western Sydney [d.russell-bowie@uws.edu.au](d.russell-bowie@uws.edu.au) Abstract: This paper reports the findings of a study on pre-service teachers’background and confidence in music and visual arts education. The study involved 939 non-specialist pre-service primary teachers from five countries. Initially the paper identifies the students’perceptions of their background and confidence in relation to music and visual arts education. Secondly it examines any differences between the visual arts and music education background and confidence of Australian students and those from the other four countries. Results indicated that 25% of the subjects agreed or strongly agreed that they had a good background in music education and 16% indicated that they had a good background in visual arts education. In relation to confidence, 56% of the respondents indicated they felt confident teaching visual arts and 50% felt confident teaching music. There were also significant differences between countries in relation to background and confidence in the two art forms. Introduction Generalist primary pre-service teachers in Australia enter their teacher education courses with a variety of backgrounds and attitudes to the different subjects in which they enrol. The Senate Enquiry into Arts Education ( Senate Environment, Recreation, Communication and the Arts Reference Committee [SECARC], 1995) found that in relation to the arts (music, drama, dance and visual arts) students often entered teacher education courses with very little formal background and low confidence levels. In their primary school experiences, they had little satisfactory arts education as their teachers were generally ill-equipped by their own pre-service training to provide them with developmental and quality arts experiences. There is a general consensus that universities are not meeting this challenge as for the past forty years this paucity of quality arts education in schools has been highlighted in a number of reports (Department of Education, Employment and Work Relations,[DEEWR; 2008]; Department of Education, Science and Training [DEST], 2005; Lepherd, L. (n.d.); Russell-Bowie, 1993; Schools Commission and Australia Council [SCAC], 1977; SERCARC, 1995) and little has changed. This research indicates that specialist teachers in the arts in most public schools are a rarity and with the crowded curriculum favouring mathematics and literacy, the arts are generally the first set of subjects to be left off the timetable (SERCARC, 1995) . Over the past years, funding for visual arts and music programs, specialist arts teachers, resources, priority for the arts and hours in teacher education courses have all decreased significantly (Bamford, 2006; SERCARC, 1995) . Generalist primary school teachers are now expected, not only to teach social science, mathematics, science, literacy and physical education but also music, visual arts, dance and drama. This is despite the fact that many of them have not been adequately trained in some or all of these arts subjects. As a result, many primary schools have less Vol 35, 4, July 2010 65 Australian Journal of Teacher Education than adequate music and visual arts education programs. Teachers perceive that they do not have the confidence, competence, resources, time or priority to implement an effective arts program and so avoid teaching the arts (Bamford, 2002; O’Hara, 2005; Russell-Bowie, 2002) . This scenario seems to be similar across the five countries on which this paper focuses, including USA (Bresler, 1991), Namibia (Mans, 1997), Ireland (Council of Europe, 2010), Australia (SERCARC, 1995) and South Africa (van Niekirk, 1997) . Background Earlier research into music education (Fromyhr, 1995; Mills, 1989; R

FAQs

How many pre-service teachers took part in the study, and how many countries were included?

The study involved 939 non-specialist pre-service primary teachers from five countries.

What percentages of respondents reported having a good background in music and in visual arts education?

Twenty-five percent agreed or strongly agreed they had a good background in music education, and 16% reported a good background in visual arts education.

Did confidence in teaching differ between visual arts and music education?

Yes. Fifty-six percent felt confident teaching visual arts and 50% felt confident teaching music, with significant country differences also reported for both background and confidence.

Oct 15, 2026

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