In this seminar the question was posed: What value/s in Art & Design education?
In our groups we discussed this question, first in a general sense, and later, after a discussion with the wider group, how we might implement these values.
What struck me was the commonality and ubiquity of certain responses as we moved around the room, all in line with the policies surrounding concepts of inclusivity and equality. I believe that these are deeply important societal and institutional structural issues, however the direction of these questions and answers tended to lead to an observation and reaction method of thinking (the teacher observing the student and responding to what they see as the positionality of the individuals before them). I believe this can be counterproductive, particularly for a teacher who is maybe uncomfortable with their own positionality within this issue. Our group discussed extensively the subtleties of the terms used, how problematic certain terms, such as decolonisation, can be. I was reminded of issues raised in readings about metaphysics, and the abstract rabbit-holes they have drawn me into in the past. But also of cases, relayed by students offended by being singled out for their ‘diversity’ and subsequently being treated differently.
In my own practice as a lecturer, I have sometimes feared that examples I share with my students are not ‘inclusive’, and have then considered what this means? The examples I share with students tend to resonate with me and my journey as a practitioner or academic, and I always posit them as such. I have resisted the feeling that I should investigate my students’ backgrounds and come up with examples that resonate with them based on where they are from and what they might mean to mean through a superficial understanding that I would be capable of doing for each of them. Instead, I try to imbue a collaborative approach to this and have been inspired by my experiences in the object-based microteaching sessions where my tutor group shared such a diverse set of objects and approaches to teaching. This is a means of levelling through access to an activity, perhaps first performed by a tutor in presenting to the group and then inviting the students to do the same with their own examples. I feel this approach allows me to maintain authenticity in who I am presenting to my students, which is so important if I want them to respond and learn with me. If I present something that feels inauthentic, or shoehorned, the dynamic of the group can be poisoned by this as it goes in the opposite direction of travel to that which the implementation of certain values wishes us to travel. “…how to pass from ‘limited sympathy’ to an ‘extended generosity’, how to stretch passions and give them an extension they don’t have on their own … how [to] create institutions that force passions to go beyond their partialities and form moral, judicial, political sentiments (for example, the feeling of justice).” (Deleuze – Pure Immanence)
However, working together to unpack these terms (we opted for “generosity” in place of “inclusivity”, as this put the emphasis on the teacher rather than on the student) we can help to understand what we do in trying to interpret values more generally, and what it might mean to try to enforce implementation of a value at all.
We ended up with a short amount of time to explore ‘sustainability” in this way. While this was limited, I feel it was a successful example of the many different interpretations of various terminology, and how the specific and general must be explored fully and continuously if we are truly to engage with the underlying concepts. The most interesting anecdotal experiences I have had recently regarding “sustainability” have been in interviewing students on a couple of different BA courses. One had clearly received a superficial guidance in how to incorporate “sustainability” into their projects, into their business model, which unfortunately came across as ‘greenwashing’ to me. The other examples on another course seemed to have had no direct schooling in this term, yet had all, in one way or another, thought deeply about their future career paths and what the market in which they would be situated might look like in the next ten years. The latter were truly inspiring conversations with students who had clearly come to certain understandings on their own through very close attention to their disciplines and where they are situated.