Image: Bob and Roberta Smith (NSEAD Patron)

Yesterday, International Women’s Day, was celebrated with social media posts showing people crossing their arms to strike an 'X' pose in solidarity with women across the world. As the horrors of the conflict in Ukraine unfold, the direct power of visual communication and the use of symbols is mirrored on the vests of athletes and daubed on tanks – 'Z' providing a dark counterpoint to the optimism and humanity of 'X'.

As adults, and art educators, we can feel helpless – many of you are asking, how can we support our students in making sense of the senseless? How do we show our solidarity for the victims of conflict? These are sensitive areas, and the responsibility can feel overwhelming.

NSEAD patron Bob and Roberta Smith is making paintings to prompt donations to the Ukraine Humanitarian appeal: dec.org.uk.

Artists have always used their voice to speak out and challenge injustice, and art has always been a way to process our experience when words fail us. Whatever your approach, you can be sure, as an art educator, you are equipping your learners to question, to process and to understand the world around them. To quote Elliot Eisner, 'small differences can have large effects'.

Keep making a difference, the world needs you.

Michele Gregson

General Secretary

We are delighted to share that the NSEAD Conference 2022 will focus on Leadership in Art, Craft and Design Education. 

The full programme (to be released very soon) aims to inspire and provoke conversations about how we nurture and support confident, informed leaders for art, craft and design education. Thank you to this year's conference committee who are helping to shape the programme.

Taking place from May until September, our series of online events, training and regionally-based, face-to-face socials will give you the flexibility to curate your own programme, based on your role, priorities and aspirations. There will be something for everyone – watch this space!

The Menopause is not just a physical and health issue for women, it can have a significant impact on employment. Employers are key to supporting people going through the menopause in the workplace, so we have developed the following resources to help:

1. Some general advice on providing a supportive and knowledgeable environment for those experiencing menopause.  
2. A checklist that aims to ask helpful questions of employers to ensure they are adequately helping those affected by Menopause.
3. A customisable menopause policy that can be used in the workplace to help support individuals experiencing the menopause.

We have had a great response to the APPG four-nation Art Education Survey BUT the more educators that complete it, the more reliable and effective our research findings will be. It closes on 15 March so please fill it out now if you haven't already.

The survey is for art, craft and design educators working in schools and  colleges  from early years to further education. It will provide evidence of the impact that government policies have had on art, craft and design education – before, during and after the pandemic.  

The survey aims to assess changes to art and design provision; the value given to our subject; teacher wellbeing and changes to Continuing Professional Development (CPD). 

It should only take 5-10 minutes to complete the survey, but the evidence collected will help advocate for the value and importance of our subject.

PLEASE complete the survey...

The Mind the Art Gap programme is a free and exclusive tailored series of subject-specific events and training for ECT members, to support your early-career professional development.

Next online session: 16 March, 6-7.30pm 

Assessment, Curriculum and the Big Landscape

In this session you will gain a better insight into essential and desirable theoretical and practical knowledge needed for the secondary art and design curriculum, including:

• the selection of artists, designers and makers for contextualising and planning the curriculum;
• development of art elements as a part of practical skills;
• knowledge and understanding to be gained in each key stage and used to organise schemes of work within the planned curriculum.​​ 

Further sessions:

May - Behavioural Management session

June - Professional Behaviours session

July - The Virtual Staffroom

Meeting dates for 2022:

Tuesday 22 March: 5pm – 6.30pm

Tuesday 26 April: 5pm – 6.30pm

Tuesday 17 May: 5pm – 6.30pm

Tuesday 7 June: 5pm – 6.30pm

Reviewing approaches to learning, teaching and assessment in art education can reveal ableist assumptions that create barriers for disabled children and young people, and devalue the creative capacities of the subject.

The Special Interest Group for Advancing Anti-ableist Pedagogy (AaP) will explore the relationship between disability and art education at curricular level in order to advance anti-ableist pedagogy.

Thank you to all the NSEAD members who are engaged in this work, to Dr Claire Penketh for leading the Group, and to everyone who attended last night's meeting.

If you would like to find out more about AaP Group, or are interested in joining it, please contact Dr Claire Penketh.

When: Friday 10 June

Time: 9am -12 noon

Cost: member £75, non member £125

Susan Ogier, a leading Primary Art specialist and author, has developed this sell-out course for Primary subject leaders. Participants will learn how to:

• develop strategies to embed confidence, enthusiasm and key knowledge in art, craft and design.
• plan for progression across the primary years.
• provide rich opportunities for children to explore and experiment.
• reflect and begin to develop an action plan that can be implemented in your school.

We have just added a resource that provides ideas for whole school or departmental CPD to improve teachers' confidence when drawing.

Just log in to the NSEAD website as a member and click on the link below to access a PowerPoint file or a Keynote file (for Mac). Both versions have presenter notes, which along with the slides, will help you to build teacher confidence in the understanding and use of drawing. 

When: Saturday mornings, term-time only, 10.30-13.00. The programme started, 5 March but participants can still join.

Where: Oxford Brookes University Headington Campus

Cost: Free

The Black Excellence Project is a culture & creative industries programme, for young people aged 11-16, exploring culture and building skills. The programme aims to address the lack of multicultural representation in mainstream education by providing an African, Caribbean and mixed heritage focus.

Participants will have the opportunity to develop practical and analytical skills, and gain an understanding of the opportunities that are available to them.

The Big Draw Festival is a worldwide celebration promoting the universal language of drawing as a tool for learning, expression, and invention. The Festival is made up of a collection of thousands of creative events, activities, and workshops across the globe run by organisations big and small; from individuals to cities. 

The Big Draw Festival 2022 theme is #ComeBackToColour, and aims to encapsulate vitality, health, care and vibrancy in everyone's lives after what has been a challenging last few years. 

The Big Draw website has lots of information and resources to help you and your school or organisation participate, so check it out here.

The International Photography Exhibition, IPE 164, is open to everyone, of all ages and everyone can enter one image for free.

Awards include a £4000 prize fund, a group exhibition at the Royal Photographic Society, a photographic commission, and more. 

Entries are open to new, emerging, and established photographers, working in any subject or genre. 

All images submitted before 1 April will be entered into a prize draw to win Ioanna Sakellaraki’s photobook, The Truth is in the Soil. Entry will close for shortlisting at 23:59 BST on Tuesday 17 May 2022.

We have been asked to share details of CVAN England's snapshot survey of artists and arts workers in the visual arts sector who are from underrepresented and marginalised communities.

This survey will gather data on the current picture and enable CVAN to hear directly from artists and arts workers from these communities about how to move towards a more equitable sector.

The deadline is 11 March so don't delay in responding!

This fortnight's advocacy quote comes the late Jamal Edwards. 

Jamal Edwards founded SBTV when he was a teenager, turning it into a YouTube channel that gave young musical artists exposure to global audiences. He was an advocate for the arts, active in many youth charities, and worked hard to break down taboos around mental health. 

Sadly, Jamal passed away last month, but his legacy lives on through his charity Jamal Edwards Delve.

University of Brighton

The School of Art & Media is currently seeking to appoint an external examiner for the BA (Hons) Animation. The post will require the moderation of scripts, practical work, examination board attendance and completion of an annual report. Deadline for applications is 1 April.

Kingston University

The Department of 3D Design at Kingston University, are seeking an External Examiner in the area of BA (Hons) Jewellery Design and Production. 
The appointment will commence from 1 August 2022 for a period of four years up to 31 August 2026.

Warwickshire College University Centre

Warwickshire College University Centre requires two external academic experts to act as panel members for the approval of a Graphics and Photography undergraduate degree and an Animation undergraduate degree.