Being ‘seen’ being ‘heard’: Engaging with students on the margins of education through participatory photography

Abstract

Accessing the perspectives and insights of students with learning difficulties/disabilities and emotional and behavioural difficulties presents methodological challenges, and such students typically have little if any control of where, how and to what ends their perspectives are represented. The students I worked with took and used their own photographs and commentary in school as a means of considering and representing issues of importance to them about their experiences of schooling. I focus my discussion in this chapter on one particular project, which engaged students with learning difficulties in a mainstream secondary school. I will share several of the students' images and commentary to address some of the methodological and ethical issues which may arise in doing such participatory work.