“I’m just not artistic.” An exploration of Initial Teacher Education trainees’ confidence in their art-ability and their perceptions of teaching the primary art and design curriculum

This study explores the ongoing debate surrounding the degradation of art and design in primary education and the perceptions of trainee teachers preparing to teach the subject. It provides a starting point for further research into the role of Initial Teacher Education (ITE) in reframing trainee teachers’ conceptions of the nature and importance of the art and design curriculum. This qualitative study interviewed six trainee teachers at the beginning of their first year of teacher education to ascertain their experiences of art to date and explore themes around artistic confidence and preparedness for teaching primary art. The data indicates a surprising trend where trainee teachers have little confidence in their own artistic abilities yet consider themselves effective future art teachers. The study identifies a number of common misconceptions around the nature of primary art as a subject that is fun, low-stakes and expendable, as well as highlighting key tensions about trainees’ perception of artistic skill as pre-ordained rather than learned.