Browse
Covid-19 advice
Updates Advice and Guidance Remote Resources
About us
Why join NSEAD Who we are and what we do What we stand for Membership benefits Our history Support us
Resources
Curriculum Design Digital Media Craft Drawing Health & Safety Life after lockdown Units of Work
Publications
iJADE AD Magazine Research, reports and reviews START library Books Miscellaneous items Archive
Courses & Advice
Courses & conferences Careers advice Consultant members
Community & Activism
Advocacy Governance & opportunities All-Party Parliamentary Group Regional Networks Groups
News
News Newsletters Vacancies
Trade Union
About the union How to seek help Legal advice & aid Trade Union FAQs Useful Links Member Updates
Join Us

NSEAD Survey Report 2015-16

The NSEAD Survey Report 2015-16 documents the findings of NSEAD’s largest and most comprehensive survey to date and answers the question: In the last five years how has government policy impacted on art, craft and design education?

The Report details 14 key findings which show how government policies have impacted not only on the value of the subject, but on the time and resources needed for children and young people to participate and excel in art, craft and design. These changes, evidenced throughout NSEAD’s report, are reducing opportunities and choices to engage in a broad and balanced curriculum and risk jeopardising and limiting the UK as a creative and competitive force in a global market.

Selected key findings include:

A. Curriculum provision in art and design:

Key finding and evidence: Learning opportunities in art, craft and design across all key stages have reduced significantly.

• At least a third and up to 44% of teacher responses over all key stages indicate that time allocated for art and design had decreased in the last five years.

Key finding and evidence: Provision for art and design is increasingly influenced by school type/sector. At key stage 3 and 4 academy sponsors have seen the biggest reduction in time allocated for the subject.

• More art and design teachers in academy sponsors reported a reduction in the time allocated for art and design at key stage 3 (55%) and key stage 4 (42%) than in any other sector.

B. The value given to art and design in schools:

Key finding and evidence: The value given to art and design has impacted on the choice and provision of art and design qualifications offered for both higher and lower ability students.

• Teachers across all sectors indicated that their schools were more likely to enable lower ability students to take art and design qualifications than higher ability students.

• Respondents teaching in free schools were the most likely (93%) to agree/strongly agree that their schools enable lower ability students to study art and design. However, they were also the most likely (32%) to disagree/strongly disagree that their schools enable higher ability students to study art and design.

Key finding and evidence: Opportunities for examination groups to work with creative practitioners or to engage with original works of art, craft and design in galleries and museums, varies according to school sector:

• 82% of independent school art and design teachers indicated that their schools support the principle that every examination group should engage with artworks first hand in galleries and museums and/or through meeting practitioners. In contrast, only 36% of free school art and design teachers said their schools support this principle.

C. Professional development opportunities in art and design:

Key finding and evidence: Access to relevant CPD in art and design is limited and for some teachers subject-specific training is non-existent. Significant numbers of art and design specialists in all phases ‘rarely or never’ receive CPD.

• 55% of primary subject coordinators rarely or never attend subject-specific CPD.

• Over half (51%) of all art and design teachers in independent schools attend CPD annually, this drops to under a third (31%) of all art and design teachers in the state sector

D. Wellbeing and workload of art and design educators:

Key finding and evidence: The reduced profile and value of the subject have contributed to art and design teachers leaving or wanting to leave the profession.

• 56% of respondents reported that the reduced profile and value of the subject (56%) by government and school management had contributed towards teachers leaving or wanting to leave the profession.

Recommendations

Based on the survey’s key findings the report lists a series of recommendations for a wide group of stakeholders.

We are asking the Department for Education, parents, head teachers and school governors, Ofsted, Creative Industries Federation and creative industry leaders, the Local Government Association, Arts Council England and higher education institutions to help address the impact of policies on our subject by supporting and acting on these recommendations.

The recommendations include:

Schools should review the time allocated for the teaching and learning of art and design within the curriculum, adjusting the mechanisms and barriers that deplete time resulting in damage to standards in art and design, in primary schools and through carousel systems, shorter lessons and compressed key stage 3.

Parents should, through membership of parent teacher associations and as parent governors, hold the governance and management of the school accountable for the appropriate time, resources, facilities and value given to art and design on the curriculum and in the professional development of its teachers and support staff

The Department for Education should decline from stating or inferring that higher education and career opportunities will be limited by examination study in art and design, thus misrepresenting the subject to parents and young people

Download the full report here.

Download key findings and recommendations here.

Back
When
9th February 2016
Share

See the latest NSEAD News Stories

exams
Summer assessments will be based on teachers' judgements
news

Ofqual today announced the outcome of the consultation on arrangements for regulated qualifications in 2021

Find out more
News Logo
We need art at the heart of recovery
news

The education recovery programme must have making and creative activity at its heart

Find out more
Show and tell
Show and Tell exhibition
news
Covid

The first Show and Tell 'How are you feeling?' exhibition is ready!

Find out more
exams
DFE make BTEC exams announcment
news
Covid
Examinations

Late yesterday evening, the DFE issued a statement advising schools and colleges that they could make a local decision about whether to continue with…

Find out more
Learn More
T&Cs Legal / Privacy
Company
Support our work
Support
01225 810134 Contact Us FAQs
Advertise with us
Learn more
Follow Us
© 2021 NSEAD | All Rights Reserved
Made by Grandad