Art Education in Transformation: Reconstruction and Subject Development for Visual Arts in the Revised Primary Teacher Education

The aim is to study how the subject visual arts is reconstructed and developed in primary teacher education.

In two sub-studies, the teaching practice in visual arts in primary teacher education is analysed in relation to the 2011 school reform, curriculum reforms and changes in policy documents through policy ethnography and visual ethnography at seven universities.

In relation to the reforms and the current state of research there is need to understand how teaching in visual arts in primary teacher education has changed and developed. There is a lack of research on teaching in visual art education at universities with a focus on school years F-6.

Different educational backgrounds risk to arise conflicting professional positionings between teachers advocating different subject conceptions and approaches to the subject, leading to lacking  equivalence that affects students.

This underlines the value of the study of conditions to understand and improve the teaching and the work culture in higher education.

The project contributes with a national picture in Swedish primary teacher education with significance for how the art educational field can identify and challenge traditional concepts of the subject.

The 3-year project is carried out by a research group with three lecturers led by a professor in collaboration with a teaching group with nine participating lecturers and assistant professors as well as a teaching group consisting of teacher educators at the universities.