Undertaking this action research project has taught me that the difficulties of embedding social, racial and climate justice within teaching methods and curriculum have much to do with the problems many staff members face within the Educational Institution. There are many factors included within this theme, such as systemic hierarchy, student numbers, and lack of staff support; however, I now have a more concise understanding of how I could address my question if I were to continue with this research. I enjoyed conducting interviews with staff members as the experience has allowed me to understand where they place themselves within the conversation – I would say it has built stronger connections with them.
The project has also enabled me to gauge an understanding of the student perspective (at a small scale) and how they feel that these areas of sustainability are embedded and taught within their courses, with some feeling that these themes are included in the curriculum but not in their design tutorials. The student feedback from the session has allowed me to understand that my teaching approach, lesson plan, and attempts to foster a culturally relevant teaching environment are successful, with students requesting more. The student sessions are inspirational for me also. Moving forward, I will continue to develop these workshops for the MA students and propose to conduct similar sessions with other pathways and courses I teach in the hope they will benefit from this way of thinking.
The pedagogical theory I have referenced in this unit includes revisiting references that have proved significant to me throughout the Pg Cert, such as Paolo Freire’s views on radicalising and diversifying pedagogy within the curriculum (Freire, P., 1971). I have also gained knowledge about new theories, such as Aronson and Laughter’s theory and practice of culturally relevant education, which enabled me to analyse what I am already doing and how I can ensure that the open dialogue of my teaching approach continues to develop moving forward. (Aronson B., Laughter J., 2016)
Back in February 2023, Lindsay Jordan led a session where we were asked to analyse and make adjustments to the UAL Climate, Racial and Social Justice principles (UAL, 2023), see post here. Since then, these principles have been a reference point for my role at Central Saint Martins and more recently, I have been asked to provide my professional feedback on improvements for the new revision, scheduled to be published this year.
Challenges
• Time Management: Managing time productively between gathering data and analysis was difficult and not evenly distributed.
• Data Collection/Method: Data gathered from interviews should have been smaller and could’ve provided a more concise evaluation of my first research cycle. Thematic Analysis seemed to work well however very time consuming to analyse everything.
• Project Changes: My project title has had many variations and may have been more successful if it were more specific/niche.
• Educational Institution: Lack of support from my line manager and department meant that I was working an additional day per week without remission.
• Anxiety/Personal Life: This unit in particular has been greatly affected by diffuclties at home and with family. I’ve struggled with annxiety more often because of this which may have affected my output.
Plan of Action
• Conduct a revised research cycle with close reference to the UAL Climate Action Plan (UAL, 2023) and Climate, Racial and Social Justice Policy (UAL, 2023) when conducting the interview schedule in future.
• Be more concise in my approach by asking whether the resources available, such as the Climate Action Plan, are communicated well to staff members within the department.
• Design practical steps that can be taken to make for a more supportive teaching environment and approach to social, racial, and climate justice.
• Interview fewer individuals over an extended period of time.
• Interview staff members from different pathways and colleges to cross reference with the data I have.
• Work with students to design ways of embedding Climate, Racial and Social Justice in their design tutorials.
• Manage time more efficiently: take on less data, allow more time spent on analysis.
References
Aronson B., Laughter J. (2016). The theory and practice of culturally relevant education. Review of Educational Research, 86, 163–206. Crossref ISI. Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3, 77–101.
Freire, P. (1970). Pedagogy of the Opressed. London: Continuum.
UAL (2023). Climate, Racial, and Social Justice Principles. Available at: https://www.arts.ac.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0028/374149/principles-for-climate-racial-and-social-justice.pdf (Accessed: 26 Jan 2024)