In 2006, California’s Governor and Legislature approved a state budget that committed an unprecedented level of funds to enable schools and districts in the state to develop arts education programs. The funding came at a critical turning point in arts education in California. A research study that SRI International conducted on behalf of The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation found that California is far from meeting its own goals for arts education—the provision of a standards-based, sequential course of study in dance, music, theatre, and visual arts. Moreover, the study found that elementary schools in particular are failing to provide a standards-aligned course of study in all four arts disciplines. That study, entitled An Unfinished Canvas. Arts Education in California: Taking Stock of Policies and Practices, provides an overview of the current status of arts education in the state.

Given the concerns raised in An Unfinished Canvas with respect to the skills and knowledge of teachers to provide arts instruction, at the request of The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, SRI International launched this follow-up study. The purpose of this new study, whose results are presented here, was to investigate the system for training and preparing elementary classroom teachers and secondary arts teachers to provide standards-aligned arts instruction, their familiarity with and use of the state’s VPA standards, their ongoing professional development, the supports and resources available to them, and the barriers to their delivery of standards-aligned arts instruction.