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Design+ Multimodality in art teacher education in China

enactment of Teacher Law in 1993 provided a legal basis policies. According to Ye et al. 37,p.19 “For practitioners in
for recognizing teachers as a profession, resulting in more teacher education, the major challenge will be to create
teachers receiving professional training. State-directed processes that can help realize the potentiality of those
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initiatives have resulted in a steady increase in the number quality mechanisms that have been installed by the plethora
of teachers with formal teaching degrees, with the student- of state directives.” It is therefore behooves individual
teacher ratio in compulsory education now reaching teachers to unlock the potential behind educational
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12.9:1. Ye et al. 37,p.1 summarized the benefits of teacher policies, with the support of mechanisms established by
education reform in China as follows: “Institutional the educational system.
diversification; structural changes through upgrading, One critical focus of the Chinese state is to ensure
merging and eliminating institutions and school;
innovations on modes of teacher preparation, curricula that teachers integrate technology into their classrooms,
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and teaching practicum; certification and examinations; particularly online learning elements. The Implementation
and strengthening teacher supply for the rural schools.” Plan for Accelerating the Modernization of Education
(2018 – 2022) calls for the vigorous promotion of education
Teacher education in China also emphasizes informatization and the development of new models of
digitalization and e-learning. Extensive investments have education and teaching, driven by information technology
been made in the construction of infrastructure, the and spurred by professional ethics and passion. There are
40
production of learning resources, and the promotion of ongoing calls for continuous professional development
academic education for e-learning. Under the National in e-learning settings and for the provision of more
38
Training Program, for instance, teachers in China have convenient and useful e-resources. 39
undergone large-scale training in the use of educational
technology and are now accessing Massive Open Online However, to avoid an overreliance on technology as the
Courses with their global counterparts. 39 ultimate solution to all of China’s educational problems,
the modern approach to national education in China
Notably, modern reforms in Chinese teacher education “is aimed primarily at building a moral, humane, and
have adapted Western models as points of reference. creative personality with extensive knowledge and the
For instance, China has drawn on the French model for ability to apply it in practice.” 8,p.2 Under the state initiative
large-scale teacher training and the Soviet model for pre- to “strengthen moral education for cultivating people” (li
service and in-service teacher training. Since 1990s, the de shu ren), teachers are tasked with integrating moral
American model has influenced the design of a three- education into all aspects of education. Moreover,
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tier system of teacher training, comprising Teachers’ promoting creativity among students has remained a
College, Normal University, and the Master of Education consistent challenge for teachers. 43
program. Despite the widespread use of Western models,
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China is now working toward developing hybrid models Given these challenges, it is unclear how teacher
that are culturally sustainable. The Action Plan for the education in China will help the nation achieve its goals
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Revitalization of Teacher Education (2018 – 2022) calls for of training quality teachers who can effectively integrate
the continual optimization of the teacher education system technology in the classroom, inspire creativity, and uphold
as “open, coordinated, and interactive.” 40,p.199 moral education. Zhou 40,p.203 underlines this challenge,
noting: “China has obtained remarkable results on the
3.2. Issues in Chinese teacher education ‘scale’ aspect of its national team of teachers. However,
Having secured an adequate number of teachers, there remains a long way ahead on the path of enhancing
institutions, and infrastructure, China’s current focus is on its ‘quality.’” For instance, it is argued that Chinese teachers
enhancing the quality of the teaching profession. Recent are culturally fossilized in the Confucian style of teacher-
state-proposed guidelines emphasize strategies to develop centered teaching, while high-stakes and rigid assessment
“high-quality and professional” teaching personnel who use methods continue to obstruct teacher innovation. 39
heuristic and interactive teaching methods and integrate
technology in the classroom. Moreover, guidelines for 4. Art teacher education in China
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teacher preparation and in-service training under the Having provided an overview of teacher education in
Teacher Education Curriculum Standards (2011) underline China, we now turn specifically to the important subject
that teacher education programs should strengthen teachers’ of art teacher education. We will discuss the developments
practical awareness and focus on real-world problems. 37 in art education in China that have impacted art teacher
Each individual teacher plays a crucial role in the education before highlighting the issues that art teacher
classroom and serves as a vessel for realizing national education in China faces.

Volume 1 Issue 1 (2024) 5 doi: 10.36922/dp.4554