Nurturing Empathy through Critical Media Literacy and Design Thinking: Partnering Pedagogy to Build Community

Abstract

What counts in critical literacy education today and for learners’ futures? The neoliberal agenda in Canada prioritizes standardization, efficiency, and results- based performance. The social isolation and unrest of the global pandemic are reflected in media headlines and images. This thesis considers narrow views of success in light of critical educational practices that nurture competencies such as critical empathy, collaboration, and communication. This arts-informed multimodal research contemplates how educators can begin addressing what pedagogies work and are important for learners right now. This action research and thesis is framed by design thinking (Ask, Imagine, Design, Build, Evaluate, Refine and Share). Research examined experiences created in a primary classroom where pedagogies were designed to nurture critical empathy (CE) by utilizing design thinking (DT) and critical media literacy (CML). Students worked for a six-month period on an inquiry into family cultures and traditions, which included photographing an important family object, editing, and manipulating these photos (their own and their peers’) and sharing them with audiences. The photographic processes and pedagogies build on Wendy Ewald’s Literacy through Photography work. Data included photographs, journaling, and audio and video recordings were analyzed using my adaptation of Suchar’s (1997) framework. Findings indicated that CE could be nurtured through intentional experiences utilizing DT and CML, reaching both participants and a wider audience who interacted with student work. Specifically, CE was nurtured when students worked towards common goals through opportunities that built upon collaboration, communication, and problem solving over time. CE was nurtured when students had opportunities to become experts, take risks, practice being leaders, and make decisions in a safe and supportive environment. Lastly, CE was nurtured when students had opportunities to build relationships with their peers and consider multiple points of view. Limitations included separating teacher-learner from teacher-researcher roles, and restrictions put into place due to the global pandemic. This research examines and illustrates an alternative to performance-based “best practice” teaching. Utilizing critical literacy, multimodal, photographic pedagogies employed through design thinking, an environment was created where each student could be successful, and competencies were valued over standardized results.