Assessing final-year preservice teachers’ preparedness for teaching art education in NSW primary schools

Preservice primary teachers may not implement the presiding mandatory art education syllabus if they are not confident to teach art. Outcomes-based education may provide a basis for examining preservice primary teacher’s potential for teaching art. Eighty-seven final-year preservice teachers were surveyed on their confidence for teaching primary art education. The items on this survey were derived from outcomes in a presiding state art education syllabus. Although results indicated these preservice teachers believed they were prepared to teach art education in primary schools, many believed they were less prepared for discussing artists and their work, and organising meetings to talk with artists. The preparation of preservice teachers needs to be aligned with a presiding art syllabus, and the potential for preservice teachers to teach art within an education system may be measured using a survey with items associated with the syllabus outcomes. Survey data can provide valuable information for further enhancing tertiary education coursework in art education.