Cultivating the art of safe space

Hunter, Mary Ann

doi:10.1080/13569780701825195

Cited by 65 publications

(37 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…It has been argued that safe space is an overused but undertheorized metaphor in higher education (Boostrom, 1998;Hunter, 2008). Boostrom (1998) notes that educators have institutionalized the safe space metaphor as part of their professional vernacular; interestingly, however, it has not been a prominent subject of study within the scholarship of teaching and learning.…”

Section: What Is a Safe Space?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…While all four components are acknowledged as central to the learning environment, Hunter (2008) privileges the notion of risk taking (and the successful management of the conditions that promote risk taking) as the essential defining condition of safe space. As such, Hunter constructs safety primarily as a process rather than an outcome:…”

Section: What Is a Safe Space?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In defining safety in the context of drama education, Hunter (2008) notes four components of a safe space. The first refers to physical aspects of safety embedded in the performance environment and the specific qualities of a space that protect a body from harm (e.g., lighting, ventilation).…”

Section: What Is a Safe Space?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The importance of the classroom as a "safe space" has been noted by scholars in disciplines as diverse as earth science (Toynton, 2006), drama (Hunter, 2008), nursing (Rieck & Crouch, 2007), urban and regional planning (Frusciante, 2008), and social work (Cain, 1996;Holley & Steiner, 2005;Hyde & Ruth, 2002). Although the language of safety permeates discussions of teaching and learning in a multitude of subject areas, a critical examination of the definition of safety in the classroom and the implications for teaching and learning of constructing the classroom as a safe space remains largely absent from scholarly discourse.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Is "Safety" Dangerous? A Critical Examination of the Classroom as Safe Space

Barrett

2010

cjsotl-rcacea

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The notion that the classroom can, indeed must, be a safe space to promote student engagement and enhance academic outcomes is pervasive in the teaching and learning literature. Despite the prevalence of this claim, there is a dearth of empirical evidence documenting the effectiveness of safe space classrooms in achieving these goals. The purpose of this essay is to provide a critical examination of the classroom as safe space. I begin by deconstructing the common meanings of safety as presented in the pedagogical literature and provide an overview of the existing research on student perceptions of safe space learning environments. I then problematize the metaphor of the classroom as safe space through an examination of 1) the impact of safety on student intellectual development 2) the impossibility of safety for students in marginalized and oppressed populations 3) the challenges to assessing student learning in safe environments and 4) the ambiguity inherent in defining safety for students. I conclude by arguing that both educators and students are better served by the development of an alternative discourse of classroom safety, one that is predicated on the notion of classroom civility.Dans la littérature sur l’enseignement et l’apprentissage, la notion selon laquelle la classe doit vraiment être un espace sécuritaire pour promouvoir la participation de l’étudiant et améliorer ses résultats scolaires est omniprésente. Malgré la prévalence de cette affirmation, il y a une pénurie de données probantes empiriques venant étayer l’efficacité des classes en tant qu’espace sécuritaire afin d’atteindre ces buts. L’objectif du présent essai est de procéder à un examen critique de la classe en tant qu’espace sécuritaire. Je commence par déconstruire la signification courante de la sécurité telle qu’elle est présentée dans la littérature sur la pédagogie et fournis un aperçu de la recherche existante sur les perceptions des étudiants relativement aux environnements d’apprentissage sécuritaires. Je considère ensuite la métaphore de la classe en tant qu’espace sécuritaire comme un problème et examine : 1) les répercussions de la sécurité sur le développement intellectuel des étudiants; 2) le caractère impossible de la sécurité pour les étudiants qui font partie des populations marginalisées et opprimées; 3) les difficultés liées à l’évaluation de l’apprentissage des étudiants dans des environnements sécuritaires; 4) l’ambiguïté inhérente à la définition de la sécurité des étudiants. Je conclus en expliquant que les éducateurs et les étudiants sont mieux servis par la création d’un autre type de discours sur la sécurité dans la classe, qui est basé sur la notion de civilité en classe

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Section: What Is a Safe Space?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: What Is a Safe Space?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: What Is a Safe Space?mentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Is "Safety" Dangerous? A Critical Examination of the Classroom as Safe Space

Barrett

2010

cjsotl-rcacea

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“…For example, Mamata reflected early on in the program: Doing art requires risk taking, so trust and safety are important aspects of working with the arts and wellness. Engaging in applied theatre with refugee youth in Australia, Hunter (2008) demonstrated that safe space connotes metaphorical safety, where a space that has a specific time or place-much like the after-school art program-instills a sense of comfort and familiarity. The space is just safe enough to take risks in that moment of putting the brush to the canvas or the marker to the paper, and this safety is facilitated by the ambiguity of artwork such that youth can be self-expressive without fully disclosing the contents of their thoughts.…”

Section: Respectful Relationships: Using Art To Create a "Safe Enoughmentioning

confidence: 99%

Kiskenimisowin (self-knowledge): Co-researching Wellbeing With Canadian First Nations Youth Through Participatory Visual Methods

Victor

Linds²,

Episkenew

et al. 2016

IJIH

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Indigenous youth represent one of the most marginalized demographics in Canada. As such they must contend with many barriers to wellness that stem from oppression, including historical and ongoing colonization and racism. Developing effective health programming requires innovation and flexibility, especially important when programs take place in diverse Indigenous communities where local needs and cultural practices vary. This article reports the findings of an after-school program in 2014 that blended a participatory visual method of research with Indigenous knowledge, methodologies, and practices to provide sociocultural health programming for youth in a First Nation in southern Saskatchewan, Canada. Engaging with youth to co-research wellbeing through the arts was conceptualized as both research and health promotion. Participatory arts methods created a safe space for youth to express their views of health and wellness issues while developing self-knowledge about their individual and cultural identities.

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