Fine arts teaching and teachers' competency in the adapted programme of a nine year primary school with a lower educational standard

Art education develops a pupil’s understanding of space and is a fundamental field for any professional and subject partaking of a pupil. Through art education, pupils express their internal feelings, values, opinions, artistic thinking, visual memory, and develop sensory and motor skills, in addition to being prepared for cultural participation in the immediate and wider setting. The thesis focuses on the subject of teaching art education and the educator’s competencies, which are required for art pedagogy work in an Adapted Programme of a Nine Year Primary School with a Lower Educational Standard where art education is thought by special educators in addition to art educators. The study empirically determines the representation of the educator’s individual profile in practice and which strategies, methods, and forms of work they use in their teachings. The research surveyed thirty-two subjects about which aspect of art pedagogy work (planning, organization, adapting to special needs, performance/articulation, and evaluation) presents them with the most problems and how they confront them, what types of special needs are most challenging for the educators, what kind of adjustments they use in their teachings and what type of additional education they use for teaching art and working with pupils with special needs. The subjects were also asked how competent they feel about teaching art education and for what aspect of educating pupils with special needs do they wish to acquire additional training. The survey results concluded that special educators are challenged with evaluating and planning lessons, while, art educators are challenged with adjusting art lessons in addition to evaluating pupil artwork. They solve such issues by working with co-workers, more experienced educators, and with the internet. The subjects predominantly used strategies and methods of work that are mentioned in the recommended professional literature, and there was not much difference between the strategies used by the special educators and the art educators. Special educators expressed, that their greatest challenges come from pupils with emotional behavioural issues and issues on the autistic spectrum, whereas, art educators are challenged by pupils on the autistic spectrum. The pupils are given a chance to relax and have a safe space, the lesson itself is simplified, the tempo decreased, frequent breaks are allowed and they use picture material. In most cases special educators feel competent in teaching art education, whereas, art educators feel competent or very competent, which influences their teaching, primarily in the field of teaching pupils with special needs