Engaging the curriculum in visual communication design : a critical citizenship education perspective

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The importance of global and local change and transformation is emphasised through initiativessuchastheUnitedNationsMillenniumDevelopmentGoals(2012)andthe Earth Charter Initiatives (2011) for constructing a just, sustainable and peaceful global society. In South Africa, the need for transformation has been underlined by the South African Department of Education in the Education White Paper of 1997 (DOE 1997). At Stellenbosch University, the Pedagogy of Hope (US) project aims to find concrete ways to reflecton historicalinfluencesand currentSA society.Tremendousprogresshas been made in transformation regarding legislative policies, but personal transformation within people is proving to be slow. As a response to these realities, a module called Critical Citizenship was introduced for first-­‐ to third-­‐year Visual CommunicationDesign students at the Visual Arts Department at Stellenbosch University. The aim of this research project was to explore the perceptions and attitudes of students, learners and lecturers regarding personal transformation through teaching and learning in the Critical Citizenship module. As a framework for the study, I emphasised the importance of giving consideration to the emotional dimensions of learning (Illeris 2007), meaning considering the learning being (Barnett 2009) as a thinking, feeling and acting person (Jarvis 2006). The objectives of the study were to identify such emotional reactions to the Critical Citizenship module and to establish what the emotional reactions revealed about the immediate and broader context of the teaching and learning context in which students, learners and lecturers learn and teach.I followed an interpretative approach and a case study research design that aimed at exploring and providing an in-­‐depthinvestigationof the Critical Citizenship module was used. The themesthat surfacedfrom reflectionswrittenby studentsand learnersand from group interviews, comprised feeling unprepared for this type of project; feelings of guilt and shame; resistance to this type of project; asymmetry and assimilation, but also feelings of hope. Other responses, suggesting feelings of empathy, privilege, humility, re-­‐ evaluationof prioritiesandvalues,samenessanddifference,feelingoutof a comfort zone and reflecting on blackness and whiteness were also interweaved with the main themes. The results of the research included that taking into consideration the emotional aspects in critical citizenship education is important because we are thinking, feeling and acting beings, but moving beyond emotional reactions toward rational actions is crucial. Criticalcitizenshipcannotbe taughtin isolationbecausethe contextin whichit exists playsavitalroleandaninclusivecriticalcitizenship curriculum withincommunity interactions for the wider society is suggested.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University