Document Type
Article
Rights
Available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike 4.0 International Licence
Disciplines
5.3 EDUCATIONAL SCIENCES, *pedagogy, 5.6 POLITICAL SCIENCE
Abstract
This paper focuses upon the interpretation of freehand drawings produced by a small sample of 220 first-year students taking an Irish politics introductory module in response to the question, ‘What is Irish Politics?’ By sidestepping cognitive verbal processing routes, through employing freehand drawing, we aim to create a critical and collaborative learning environment, where students develop their capacity for interpretation and critical self-reflection. This is because the freehand drawing technique, as part of a critical pedagogy, can generate a more critical and inclusive perspective, as visual representations permit us to comprehend the world differently, and understand how others also see the world. We feel that the drawings provide insights into how our youngest voters perceive their society and their place in it, and thus communicate to us their understanding of Irish politics.
Recommended Citation
Feeney, S., Hogan, J. & Donnelly, P. (2015) What Stick Figures Tell Us About Irish Politics: Creating a Critical and Collaborative Learning Space. Teaching in Higher Education, 20(3): 313–327. DOI: 10.1080/13562517.2015.1016416
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21427/D7GZ1K
Included in
Higher Education and Teaching Commons, Other Political Science Commons, Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Commons
Publication Details
Teaching in Higher Education