Ways of knowing
Ways of knowing is a shared course dictionary that contains multiple ways of knowing that work to re/define socially engaged art from a decolonial and inclusive perspective. The dictionary would work to hold different understandings of what social practice can be and is for people on the course. It will be used in consecutive cohorts, building over time and acting as a future resource for each new year.
It will be made using a simple word doc format to make the words searchable and not require additional tech knowledge for entries. Links can be added to performances and visual/audio entries. We can add lists of related words/entries under each term.
The intervention aims to :-
- decentre western modes of knowledge concerning socially engaged practice.
- create a shared space of belonging.
- promote inclusion and discussion of different ways of knowing.
- embed connections between academic and lived knowledge.
Below are two ways this could be used within a course/unit
1. At the start
A reflective practice to be used at the start of the course to build a sense of belonging and community.
- Choose a word from your own preferred language (regional, queer slang, colloquial, formal, patois, private, technical) that resonates with your approach to socially engaged practice.
- Add it to the course dictionary and explain its significance within your SEA work.
2. Within Units
Students are invited to examine key words in the unit description at the start of most units. They are then encouraged to explore their own understandings of these terms, thinking about their intersectional positionality, in part, through offering words from their dominant or preferred language that resonate with these terms.
- Identify where repeated or key terms in the unit brief come from (which authors use them, which lineages they draw on, and places they may have encountered them).
- Think about related words/understandings in your dominant language and write (or create a piece of practice) to act as an entry in the dictionary that explores how these ways of knowing resonate with your socio-cultural, political, or spiritual lived experience and inform your practice.
This task can be used to generate discussion about the forms of knowledge foregrounded within the unit, inviting multiple ways of knowing that challenge and enrich these understandings.
3. At the end
Mwala Káa – Nevermind in Newa language.
I hear this expression frequently in my community. When I’m outraged about something or someone and I’m complaining, elders in my family use this word. An act as though to allow boiling water to simmer down. To accept.
Keepa Maskey (MAPS 2022-2024)
Tолока
Tолока refers to a traditional Ukrainian practice where a community comes together to work together without pay, such as building a house, harvesting crops or helping neighbours. It is not just a job, but a way of strengthening ties, where everyone recognises their place in the community, similar to pakikipagkapva. Like bayanihan, toloka emphasises the ability to achieve great things through collaboration. In contemporary Ukraine, the “toloka” is often used for volunteer initiatives, environmental projects, or crisis recovery, making it relevant for socially engaged art.
Mariia Proshkovska (MAPS 2023-2025)
Students would be invited to identify key themes, practices, and ideas that have emerged as significant to their practice over the course. They might use any language that resonates with them, or they might return to the words they chose at the start of the course. Students would either add to their original dictionary entry or create new ones. This would make a useful starting point for their summative final projects, where they bring their work together and reflect on their practice. The two entries above are examples of words students have chosen as they look back on what they have learnt and what is important to their SEA practice at this point.