What’s different about arts teachers (and why it matters)

Original Research

Written by: Chris Hall and Patricia Thomson

Published on: September 12, 2019

7 min read

We’ve recently finished analysing 6,000 responses from 14–18-year-old students. As part of a three-year research project, we asked students – through focus group interviews and a survey – about the arts in school: whether the arts subjects matter to them, what they learn and how they experience the teaching. One message came through consistently and powerfully: that students think their arts lessons and their arts teachers are different. This short article is about what those differences are and why they matter. These findings and our analysis of them come from the Tracking Arts Learning and Engagement Project (TALE), a study funded by Arts Council England and jointly conducted by the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC), Tate and the University of Nottingham. The research took place in 30 secondary schools, 15 nominated by the RSC and 15 by Tate because of the long-term professional involvement of either a teacher or the school with the company/gallery. The case study schools ar

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This article was published in September 2019 and reflects the terminology and understanding of research and evidence in use at the time. Some terms and conclusions may no longer align with current standards. We encourage readers to approach the content with an understanding of this context.