Applying Arts-Based Educational Research Methods for Teaching Estrangement in Higher Education

This chapter draws from arts-based research, which can be described as a process to investigate phenomena using means other than language to conduct inquiry through images, music, or play in order to appreciate expression that would otherwise be undefinable (Barone & Eisner, 2011). It specifically addresses the strategies and considerations that need to be employed when using arts-based educational research methods when teaching estrangement at universities. These methods can be effective in engaging university students and enabling them to relate to such issues, through, for example, the use of storytelling to illustrate personal experiences, and images that convey meaning in a visual way. The book chapter explores the researchers’ personal and lived experience of family estrangement, and the subject of estrangement within higher education. Crucially, it draws upon the importance of using creative pedagogies or arts-based educational research methods to enhance students’ learning and facilitate “collaborative learning” (Gill & Worley, 2010), specifically through the use of photographic images, storytelling and video clips. The chapter highlights the importance of implementing safeguarding policies and procedures to ensure any distress experienced by students during a lecture is managed and appropriately reduced.