Abstract
Arts and crafts classes are mandatory in elementary schools in Japan, but very few teachers have a background in arts education. To concretely grasp teachers’ burden in arts and crafts classes at elementary schools, firstly, we interviewed 20 teachers to develop a survey. Secondly, we conducted a survey with 89 teachers (average years of teaching 12.1 years, SD 10.95 years, range 1–37 years). Results showed that teachers with less teaching experience tended to experience a stronger burden in the class. They also wanted to learn about wider varieties of art supplies and techniques. Overall, the teachers frequently stated that they wanted to learn more about how to use art supplies, how to teach expression techniques, and how to grade a student in arts and crafts classes. In addition, they especially wondered how to evaluate student’s artwork.
