Introduction:- How Can Technicians Cross-pollinate their Workshops
My research question was going to be, ‘How can Technicians Decolonise their Workshops.’ But as I do not personally like the word decolonisation, I have called my research question ‘How Can Technicians Cross-pollinate their Workshops’. Being brought up within a dual background of a traditional Hindu family within British culture, it is important for me for to take the best of each background to cross-pollinate and not destroy, ignore, or condemn in representing the person who I am today.
Please look at my mind map for all the questions I have been asking myself.
Engaging with the Pg-Cert has allowed me to think about what research is, how as a technician working on a course which support students in the field of art-craftsmanship of creating through our hands. How does culture, heritage, tribe, disability, religion, sexuality, and neuro diversity play a part in education and decolonizing our work environment?
As someone who is a gay man, first generation British born of Indian heritage, who has worked in industry for over 25 years and now entered academia/education for six years, has given me a new lens in which to look through. Thinking about my own education 35 years ago and the education today, many things were not considered, like decolonising the curriculum let alone neuro diversity. It was this approach which left my dyslexia unrecognised at the time, so I developed skills creating through my hands and went on to a highly successful career in the process through being able to visualise in 3D.
Working with a large and diverse community of students and staff at UAL has allowed me to think; what is fashion? where does it come from? are we allowing students and staff to be expressive enough? can they be activists in their research? or have we just created new boundaries and playing lip service to certain policies within the education system.
Entering the maze of ‘Participatory Action Research and Social Justice’ left my head in a spin! Yes, it sounds crazy for a technician or anyone, as it rightly creates more questions than answers, How would I get through this, do I need to turn left or right, who will I meet on my journey, will people give me the right information, will I be able to see over the hedge, will they be blocking positions – But the end goal is to come out of this maze as a better educator than when I started, with a smile on my face and the knowledge I’ve gained.
In starting this project, I am using my own personal lens and experiences, and as in any participatory research, I’m hoping to hear voices of others to benefit my research project. As the Caroline Lenette video shows us, it is important to respect and acknowledge others, allowing them to be part of the research process, removing the hierarchical system in research. If we only look through the researchers’ lens, she reminds us about the importance of ethical forms when doing research gaining consent and not assuming that people would want to be a part of the research.
One important thing Caroline talks about is the well-being of the researcher and I really feel this because I am full time technician working I was 9:30 to 5.30 with three hours travelling time each day to work, in the morning allow myself to have 45 minutes of meditation in the form of my morning prayers as a Hindu. The other main responsibility I have, is that I am a carer for my mum on Saturdays so this only allows me to study and research on Sundays for my Pg-cert, but hopefully I can say to myself, I have done the best I can at the end.
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Video
Caroline Lenette PAR Aug24
My name is Associate Professor Caroline Lenette.
I am in the School of Social Sciences at the University of NSW in Australia, and I am also the Deputy Director of the Big Anxiety Research Centre.