Welcome to Learnings/Unlearnings Reader #2: Resources, Frameworks and Concepts for Playful Built Environment Learning, guest edited by Anette Göthlund and Meike Schalk. The Reader includes contributions from the section “Conversing: Environmental Learning Discourses” from the conference Learnings/Unlearnings: Environmental Pedagogies, Play, Policies, and Spatial Design, which took place in Stockholm in September 2024. The contributions in Reader #2 focus on the multifaceted realm of theory and discourses that shape and broaden our understanding of environmental learning, as well as how they have shaped hands-on formats, methodologies, and “concept-tools” for action (Frichot 2016). With contributions by Anna Keune, Marta Brkovic Dodig, Angela Million, Rosie Parnell, Claudia Carter, Simeon Shtebunaev, Hannah Klug, John Wood, Claudia Carter, and Emma Jones.

Welcome to Learnings/Unlearnings Reader #2: Resources, Frameworks and Concepts for Playful Built Environment Learning, guest edited by Anette Göthlund and Meike Schalk. The Reader includes contributions from the section “Conversing: Environmental Learning Discourses” from the conference Learnings/Unlearnings: Environmental Pedagogies, Play, Policies, and Spatial Design, which took place in Stockholm in September 2024. The contributions in Reader #2 focus on the multifaceted realm of theory and discourses that shape and broaden our understanding of environmental learning, as well as how they have shaped hands-on formats, methodologies, and “concept-tools” for action (Frichot 2016). With contributions by Anna Keune, Marta Brkovic Dodig, Angela Million, Rosie Parnell, Claudia Carter, Simeon Shtebunaev, Hannah Klug, John Wood, Claudia Carter, and Emma Jones.

Research topic/aim Inspired by the question How can we as researchers and teachers bring about learning and teaching adventures? we will turn to a recent pilot study regarding possibilities and challenges in students’ production of multimodal degree theses within our teacher education in visual arts. When a group of students approached us with the question whether they could produce multimodal theses, instead of written ones, we said yes. Their idea coincided with our interest in developing approaches to knowledge production and knowledge representation that acknowledge, and take advantage of, the visual as a valid mode and of epistemological qualities in transductive and transformative processes (e.g. Kress, 2003; 2010; Huang & Archer, 2017; Selander & Kress, 2021).  

Theoretical framework Offering students the opportunity to explore forms of knowledge production and representation other than those traditionally found in an academic context, also introduce moments of risk and uncertainty (Biesta 2013). Together, we open up adventurous spaces of possibility that are more or less unexplored, e.g. regarding how students are thereby (re)positioned as active learning subjects. Performative theories about the various forms of knowledge, about the making of the student subject are also borrowed from Denzin (2003) and Dewsbury (2000) and are here put in relation to the various affordances and cultures of recognition (Selander & Kress, 2021) that students encounter.

Methodological design The data consists of five multimodal and digitally disseminated degree theses (using Research Catalogue as a platform) and conversations with the five students who produced them.  Expected conclusions/findings Preliminary findings suggest a number of positive effects, e.g. in relation to academic literacy, understanding of subject matter; while also implying some challenges in terms of workload and construing cohesion in the multimodal text. However, as a means to invite students to work from within their own desires, offering an understanding of differences (between forms of knowledge) as productive, and the courage to encounter unpredictability, we find this pilot project promising.  

Relevance to Nordic educational research The approach applied in this project appears as a possible first step towards a wider recognition of multimodal forms of knowledge representation in academia, while also indicating some issues that need further consideration. 

Format: Performative round table conversation 

A conversation between co-researchers (young people, youth leaders, artistic practitioners, researchers) investigating ‘Cultural Commons’ by reflecting upon the sensitive balance between giving support, paving the way for youths, and letting go. Conversing about negotiations, different levels of control and the difficulty of dealing with open processes.

How is friction and/or coexistence embodied, felt, sensed, performed, manifested, made knowable in artistic practice and research?

With attention to the perspectives of young people and the underlying social power structures they encounter in their everyday lives, this contribution explores the frictions within our ‘collective body’ during a series of common workshops, excursions, and conversations.

The peer-to peer conference gathered project members from all 10 projects funded by the research call Designed Living Environments – architecture, form, design, art and cultural heritage in public spaces (2020–2024). During this two-day symposium we shared experiences and concerns encountered in the projects so far. We talked about what has been found and realized during the explorations of new ways of co-creating and working with each other, and what has been learned in-process, with one year left of the projects (2020–2024).

Drawing upon theories from visual studies, critical visual culture studies, and cognitive psychology, and with a special focus on gender and ethnicity, this book gives students a theoretical foundation for future work as visual communicators.

The book takes a closer look at the interwoven character of perception and reception that is present in everyday visual encounters. Chapters present a wide variety of visual examples from art history, digital media, and the images we encounter and use in our daily lives. With the tools to understand how images and text make meaning, students are thus prepared to better communicate through visual media.

This book serves as a main or supplementary text for visual communication or visual culture courses.

När vi på IBIS bedriver lärarutbildning inom ämnena bild och slöjd är alla aspekter av de estetiska lärprocesserna inbegripna. Vi har en mångårig tradition av att arbeta med det vi kallar ”ett dubbelt perspektiv”, som bygger på tanken att olika kunskapsformer kan och bör kombineras i stället för att ställas emot varandra. En undersökning kan således genomföras och kommuniceras med såväl konstnär- liga/gestaltande/performativa metoder och teorier som vetenskapliga sådana. Trots detta framträder en kunskapsform fortfarande som den dominerande i kursen Självständigt arbete i bild (30 hp): textpro- duktion i form av skrivande. Den skrivna texten ges alltjämt större tyngd (i t.ex. bedömning), samtidigt som vi vet att många studenter kämpar med olika språk-, läs- och skrivproblem. Skrivandet tar därför mer tid och energi i studenternas projekt och flera av dem upplever den sista kursen som ett nödvändigt ont, medan vi vill att det ska vara utbildningens höjdpunkt. 

Inför den senaste omgången av kursen (VT 22) hade en grupp studenter ansökt om att få arbeta multi- modalt i samtliga delar av sitt undersökande arbete, vilket även innebar att de lämnade den traditionella uppsatsformen. För oss, som examinatorer, innebar detta en möjlighet att testa oss själva och påbörja ett arbete kring hur vi kan tänka och göra annorlunda: Kan självständiga arbeten kommuniceras i ett alter- nativt format till den traditionella uppsatsen? Kan det skrivna ordet t.o.m. ersättas av film, illustrationer, intervjuer? 

Studenternas processer och de material som arbetena resulterade i ingår som empiri i Anderssons pilotprojekt kallat ”Performativ pedagogik - ett prismatiskt perspektiv i skärningspunkten teori/gestalt- ning”. I projektet undersöks hur det dubbla perspektivet, som förhållningssätt i utbildningen benämns, förstås och kommuniceras genom att studera hur studenterna samtalar och iscensätter sin förståelse av detta. Projektet undersöker också hur det dubbla perspektivet, som arbetssätt ytterligare kan stärkas och utvecklas genom att synliggöra hur agens och kunskapsskapande framträder hos studenterna.Vi avser beskriva och diskutera förutsättningarna för det alternativa, multimodala självständiga arbete som fem av studenterna genomförde. Vi kommer att visa exempel från deras arbeten och lyfta några av de för- och nackdelar som framkommit hos examinatorer, handledare och studenter. Vår forskning be- finner sig i ett tidigt stadium och vi ser konferensen som ett första tillfälle att formulera oss kring detta och få respons och kommentarer. Vi menar att vårt projekt är viktigt inte minst för att kunna erbjuda ett mer inkluderande arbetssätt i estetiska lärarutbildningar.