Part I
Physical culture and visual pedagogies in school
1 Beyond words
The visual as a form of student-centered inquiry of the body and physical activity
Kimberly L. Oliver
Introduction
Figure 1.1 Girls transforming barriers to activity participation
âImages are visual representations, which are defined by Eisner (1994) as just one of many âdevices that humans use to make public, conceptions that are privately heldââ (Sanders-Bustle, 2003: 3). Drawing on fifteen years of research with girls whereby we have used a variety of visual methodologies (Oliver, 1999, 2001; Oliver and Lalik, 2000, 2004a, 2004b; Oliver et al., 2009; Oliver and Hamzeh, 2010) as both research tools and pedagogical approaches for helping young girls to name, critique, and transform their worlds, in this chapter I share some of what we have learned about the power of integrating inquiry and image.
My use of image as a way of knowing was initially inspired by people like John Dewey (1934), Elliot Eisner (1984; 1993; 1997), Maxine Greene (1995), John Berger (1972) and Lynn Sanders-Bustle (2003; Bustle, 1996) well before visual methodologies became fashionable and more widely utilized in educational research (Leitch, 2008; Johnson, 2008; Thomson, 2008; Weber, 2008). My continued use of visual methodologies stems from the unique contributions they consistently bring to my work (Oliver et al., 2009; Oliver and Hamzeh, 2010). Visual methodologies, such as young people's artwork, (for example, collages, drawings) or photographs and photographic essays, invite viewers to glimpse young people's worlds. Visual methodologies challenge the viewer, and in my case, the researcher, to see the world from the perspectives/eyes of the young person (Johnson, 2008; Oliver, 2001). Visual methodologies encourage young people to shape the research agenda and challenge and/or transform their environment in ways they can benefit (Oliver et al., 2009; Oliver and Lalik, 2004a), and visual methodologies help young people to communicate thoughts, feelings, and ideas that are otherwise difficult to put into words (Leitch, 2008; Oliver and Hamzeh, 2010). Sanders-Bustle (2003) captures for me the power of visual methodologies when she writes,
Visual representations invite questions and multiple perspectives, encourage exploration and engagement, and allow learners to âbreak freeâ from that which has been done before them. Engagements with visual representations encourage learners to be creative and critical at the same time, to challenge the status quo, and to create possible worlds. In doing so, learners transform understanding and ultimately reconstruct their lives.
(Sanders-Bustle, 2003: 14)
I have divided this chapter into three sections. In the first section, I discuss how we have used cultural images, photography, and visual representations as part of inquiry-based approaches for helping girls communicate how they interpret cultural messages of the female body and physical activity. In the second section, I provide examples of visual representations (such as photographic essays, maps, and collages) that girls have created illustrating how they name, critique, resist, and at times transform the messages they receive about their bodies and physical activity. In the final section, I conclude with a discussion of some of the possibilities that result from integrating inquiry with visual methodologies and pedagogies.
Inquiry through and in the visual
Across my research I have used a variety of inquiry-based approaches to help girls name and critique cultural images and messages they receive about the female body and physical activity participation. These approaches have consistently included using a variety of cultural images and/or photography to both elicit knowledge and understanding, as well as to represent, resist, and/or transform that knowledge and understanding (Oliver, 1999; 2001; Oliver and Lalik, 2000; 2004a; Oliver et al., 2009; Oliver and Hamzeh, 2010). For us, like Weber (2008), the use of visual images is in many situations essential rather than an add-on, for images encourage embodied ways of knowing. With respect to photographs, Sanders-Bustle writes,
Photographs offer an interesting visual component to inquiry. They function as devices for reflection. As objects or artifacts, individuals can return to them over and over again. They can share them with others, revisit them, and even translate or interpret them through language.
(Sanders-Bustle, 2003: 33)
In 2001, Rosary Lalik and I did a study with ninety high-school girls in a rural town in the Southeast United States. The intention was to learn how we could integrate a curriculum strand into regular physical education classes to help girls learn to critically examine how they were learning to think about their bodies and physical activity (Oliver and Lalik, 2004a). This curriculum strand integrated cultural images, photography, and student-centered inquiry and focused on girlsâ interests in the body and physical activity. Table 1.1 provides an outline of the student-centered inquiry-based tasks we used to help girls name and critique the messages they were receiving about their bodies and physical activity. Each section of the inquiry involved some form of visual pedagogy. The tasks are written in the language that we used with the girls.
We used this curriculum strand not only as a pedagogical opportunity to assist girls in learning to identify and critique forms and processes that influenced how they were learning to think about their bodies and physical activity, but also as a set of research tools that would assist us in better understanding girlsâ perspectives of their bodies and physical activity. Each aspect of the inquiry-based curriculum strand included the use of cultural images (for example, magazines), photography, and/or visual representations of girlsâ knowledge and learning. What became important for us as both researchers and teachers was finding ways to make this curriculum strand interesting, meaningful, and significant to the girlsâ lives. While part of our goal was to help them learn to identify and critique how they were learning to think about their bodies and physical activity we were deliberate in how we tried to remain responsive to the girlsâ needs, not just our own as researchers.
In order to keep the curriculum central to the girlsâ interests, pedagogically we made two specific moves. The first was to use the girlsâ interests and proclivities to support their critique. The second was to prepare the girls to make meaningful choices (for a more elaborate analysis please see Oliver and Lalik, 2004a).
Using girlsâ interests and proclivities to support critique
In order to keep the critique centered on the girlsâ interests we brought in magazines that earlier in the study they indicated liking to read. Using their magazines, we asked them to select and categorize images and articles that captured their attention. âFitness, fashion, shoes, cute boys, hairstyles, food, beauty, body products, articles you read, and people you admire were examples of categories of images that most groups of girls wrote down during the magazine explorationâ (Oliver and Lalik, 2004a: 173).
Table 1.1 Planned curriculum strand: integrating inquiry and visual representations
Cycle | Major task planned |
Cycle 1 | Magazine exploration |
Day 1 September 8 | Individually âgo through magazines and cut out pictures/articles that grab your attention.â Select your favorite 10 and âwrite about why you selected that picture.â |
Day 2 September 9 | In your group âarrange your pictures/articles that go together to form categories.â Write explanations for each category. Discuss why pictures are in categories. Explain one category to class. |
Task of month | In your journal, âdocument the times you feel good about your body.â âDocument the times you feel bad about your body.â |
Cycle 2 Day 1 October 15 | Picture categorization and analysis Individually, using pictures from your category folders, âselect 5 pictures that tell you something about girlsâ bodies.â Write what messages girls receive from each picture. Share pictures with your group creating a list of all the messages girls receive about their bodies. Play class game (identifying media messages that girls receive about their bodies). |
Day 2 October 16 | With your group, select 3â4 pictures that âtell something about girlsâ bodiesâ and make the following judgments in writing: âwho benefits from this picture; how do they benefit; who if anyone is hurt from this picture/how are they hurt?â Use your analysis and pictures to âcreate a poster to show who benefits and whom is hurt.â Present posters to class. |
Task of month | In your journal, âdocument things that send messages to girls about their bodies.â |
Cycle 3 Day 1 December 11 | Journal search: places where girls receive messages about their bodies Part I. Individually, âgo through your journal and read all your entries about places where girls receive messages about their bodies. Make a list of all the places you documented and what the messages are.â Part II. Share information with your group. Brainstorm other places where girls might receive messages about their bodies. Part III. In groups, âcome up with big categories that explain where girls receive messages about their bodies.â Part IV. Take your school category and list all the messages. Share 1â2 ideas with class. Class determines whether messages are positive/negative. |
Day 2 December 12 | Part I. Posters: âMake a school map to reflect where girls receive messages about their bodies, put an X at the locations where these messages take place, and write out what these specific messages are.â Include drawings if desired. Part II. Photograph two places where girls receive positive messages and two places where they receive negative messages about their bodies at school. |
Task of month | No task of the month planned |
Cycle 4 Day 1 January 18 | Inquiry project initiation Individually, create list of spring school/community events that are âinteresting to teens.â Share lists in group discussing how events relate to girlsâ bodies. In groups design a âcalendar of events interesting to teens that relate to girlsâ bodies.â |
Day 2 January 19 | In your groups, select 1 or 2 events that you might be interested in studying further. Develop a couple of interview âquestions to find out how other people would experience this event.â Practice interviewing each other using your questions. |
Task of month | âUsing your questions, interview a variety of people and record their responses in your journals.â |
Cycle 5 Day 1 February 15 | Survey development Select 1 event you want to study and find 3 other people who have selected the same event to work with . . . share interview data from journals. Document common themes in writing. Write learning statements âWhat am I learning about my eventâ and âWhat am I learning about designing interview questions?â Share with class. |
Day 2 February 16 | Design survey: Write 5â7 survey questions. Choose 2 questions from list provided on âhow this event influences how girls experience their bodiesâ and create 3â5 others that reflect information you want to learn about your event. Title your survey. Make plan to photograph your event. |
Task of month | âPhotograph your selected event.â âSurvey 10â15 different types of people.â |
Cycle 6 Day 1 April 30 | Inquiry project conclusion Analyze survey data. Ask 2 questions from survey data: âwhat am I learning about âotherâ people's viewsâ and âwhat am I learning about girlsâ bodies.â |
Day 2 May 1 | Write learning statements based on analysis. Create representation of learning (book, photographic essay, play, poster, song/dance). Include what you learned about other people's views and about girlsâ bodies. Develop 5-minute presentation. |
Day 3 May 2 | Finish project. Give presentations. |
Source: adapted from Oliver and Lalik, 2004a
We also asked the girls to use the images that they found interesting to discuss how these pictures related to girlsâ bodies. One group of ninth-grade White girls used a picture of an African American funk-dance teacher to discuss how fitness related to girlsâ bodies. They wrote, âMany people do funk dance for exercise. This keeps your body in shape. This is a fun way to keep your body in shape because most girls like to dance anyway. Dancing helps women to stay healthy. It is an exciting way to exerciseâ (Oliver and Lalik, 2004a: 173).
Finally, our use of multiple forms of representation allowed the girls to find aspects of the work engaging as well as offered a way to expand the kinds of meanings available to them. While Eisner (1994) claims that image is one way people can make public conceptions that are private, what we have found is that images and visual representations have allowed girls to name and document concepts that they find difficult to explain in words alone. We have also found that the girls enjoy working with more difficult concepts when they have opportunities to engage in visual forms of pedagogies, there is a âfunâ element for them that keeps their attention centered on the academic tasks.
Preparing girls to make meaningful choices
The second strategy we used to keep the girlsâ interests central to the curriculum was to provide them with choices about the foci for their attention. In order to do this we provided them with time to reflect on issues that they thought were important. For example, before beginning the inquiry project, we wanted the girls to take some time to think about what topic was worth the investment of time and effort. Rather than asking them to select a topic quickly, we asked them each to design a calendar to name and illustrate all the events at school and in their communities that were interesting to teens and that related to girlsâ bodies. Some of the events they noted included, softball tryouts, basketball, volleyball tryouts, the âbeauty walk,â cheerleading tryouts and school dances (Oliver and Lalik, 2004a).
To provide further time for them to reflect on the topics, we asked them to write about their experiences (or imagined experiences) with two of the events from their calendars. Additionally, we asked them to create a couple of questions that they could ask others in order to learn more about their event, and then to interview several different types of people and document their responses in their journals. After providing time for the girls to refl...