This article reports on a project that employed narrative inquiry captured on film to explore the creative practices of five mature graduates. They had previously been mature students and continued to work within their various communities after they had left formal education. The participants were asked to describe their creative practice and its impact on other people through interviews and presentations. A researcher with help from a professional filmmaker carried out the project. From the initial footage, three polished, edited versions of the films were made. The participants could use the films to promote their own work if they so wished. Narrative inquiry is a means of seeing the connections between significant incidents and longerterm impact beyond formal education. The film footage was able to capture the connectivity between formal education, the participants and the people who had been touched by their creative practices. It successfully gave a narrative coherence to the participants’ stories. Where appropriate, the visual aspects of creativity were captured, in this case, the participants all had a creative practice, and the visual realm was an important part of their stories. The findings of the project were that the participants had some shared values about the importance of creative education. They all developed portfolio careers in order to carry on their creative work. All the participants were able to give examples of particular instances where their creative practice had had an impact on other people. In other words, adult learning does not just influence the individual but can have a wider and longer-term impact on others.
This article draws upon research from a longitudinal study (2011-2014) that sought to capture the experiences of adult students as they studied their degrees in art and design in the United Kingdom. Due to the entry qualifications to higher education held by these students they were perceived by their institutions as being ‘non-traditional’. They also tended to be mature students with a variety of backgrounds and life experiences. The project entailed the participants meeting with the researcher twice a year for the duration of their higher education. The methodological approach that was used is based on narrative inquiry. Bernstein’s (1999) theories that relate to horizontal discourse (everyday talk that is informal and specific to the context in which it is enacted) informed the analysis of the participants’ stories. It is suggested that informal, day-to-day dialogue is as important as the formal, specialist discourse about art and design in the studio. The sense of belonging seems of particular importance for those learning in an art and design studio where the students are diversified due to their age. It prevents a sense of exclusion among ‘mature’ students who stand out with their appearance, clothes and behaviour. In conclusion, the author suggests establishing a relevant curriculum and developing a strategy for fostering better social integration of “mature” students, which can greatly affect their sense of belonging to the group as well as educational experience directly related to the studied subject matter.
PL
Artykuł opiera się na wynikach badań podłużnych przeprowadzanych w latach 2011-2014, skoncentrowanych na doświadczeniach dorosłych osób studiujących sztukę i wzornictwo w Wielkiej Brytanii. Ze względu na to, że osoby te posiadały wstępne kwalifikacje do uczestnictwa w edukacji wyższej, postrzegane były w swoich uczelniach jako studenci „nietradycyjni”. Byli to zazwyczaj dojrzali ludzie pochodzący z różnych środowisk i mający różnorodne doświadczenia życiowe. Projekt wymagał od nich spotkania z badaczem dwa razy w roku w trakcie trwania studiów. Zastosowane podejście metodologiczne opierało się na badaniach narracyjnych. Do analizy opowieści uczestników badań wykorzystano teorie Bernsteina (1999), dotyczące dyskursu horyzontalnego (codziennej rozmowy, nieformalnej i specyficznej dla kontekstu, w którym została przeprowadzona). Uważa się, że ten nieformalny, codzienny dialog jest równie ważny jak formalny, specjalistyczny dyskurs o sztuce i projektowaniu w studio. Dla osób uczących się w studiu artystycznym, gdzie studenci są zróżnicowani ze względu na wiek, szczególnie ważne wydaje się być poczucie przynależności. Przynależność zapobiega poczuciu wykluczenia wśród „dojrzałych” studentów, wyróżniających się wyglądem, ubraniem i zachowaniem. W podsumowaniu autorka proponuje stworzenie odpowiedniego programu kształcenia i opracowanie strategii sprzyjającej lepszej integracji społecznej „dojrzałych” studentów. Mogłoby to w znacznym stopniu wpłynąć na ich poczucie przynależności do grupy, a także na doświadczenia edukacyjne bezpośrednio związane ze studiowanym przez nich przedmiotem.
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