Between the Lines: Auto-Ethnographic Accounts of Facilitation in Addressing Sexual Violence in Postsecondary Institutions

• In Event: 45.058 - Studying the Use of Arts-Based Tool Kits in Anti-Oppression Training to Address Campus-Based Sexual Violence

Abstract

Objectives: This paper asks the question: how can autoethnographic accounts of facilitating arts driven workshops to address campus-based sexual violence help to deepen an understanding of the pedagogical and transformative potential of arts-based toolkits?
Theoretical Framework: The study is framed within reflexivity and autoethnography. Building on the work of Akesson et al’s (2014) idea of ‘stepping back’ the study is informed by what Pillay, Pithouse-Morgan and Naicker (2015) refer to as academic autoethnographies. Autoethnographies have largely focused on teaching and research in the academy and less on extra-curricular activities (e.g. arts-based workshops) in which students, staff and instructors are involved.
Methods/Data Sources: The author-participants have each facilitated numerous arts-based workshops (cellphilms, photovoice, digital storytelling) addressing sexual violence in post-secondary settings in a variety of contexts and with intergenerational and international groups. Drawing on reflexive engagement and collaborative arts-based inquiry strategies, the authors have produced narratives in response to the broad question ‘what’s facilitation got to do with it?’ and the sub-question ‘what’s between the lines?’ when we facilitate arts-based workshops on addressing sexual violence? The work focuses on content (the prompts, the steps, ethics, and the artistic productions).Data includes: (1) reflexive narratives; (2) fieldnotes; (3) and participatory analysis notes.
Findings: Our analysis on retrospective memory-work accounts around critical moments in facilitation note that: (1) New facilitators can benefit from the “see one, try one, teach one” approach that disrupts pre-conceived ideas of what will be produced and confront challenges of group dynamics in the collaborative production process. (2) Creating safe environments to debrief the facilitation process allow facilitators to explore ways in which they can support participants to work together in making their artistic visions a reality. (3) This work can be fraught, with participants and facilitators having difficult and uncomfortable conversations, yet rich discussions in between and around the production, making sense of, and during the exhibition of their work. Recognizing these discomforts, working through and strategizing to engage with them, can deepen the meaning and impact of the work. We focus on facilitators to answer the question, "what does facilitation have to do with it" as they often decide the overarching themes, shape the groups decision-making strategies, and advocate spaces where participants’ productions can be exhibited, therefore playing a large role in shaping the outcomes and outputs of this work.
Significance: Current focus on arts-based toolkits by campus-based organizations and national and international NGOs seeking to address sexual violence calls for ‘stepping back’ and considering facilitation, especially what happens ‘between the lines’ of a guide or toolkit as knowledge production.

References
Akesson, B., D'Amico, M., Denov, M., Khan, F., Linds, W., & Mitchell, C. (2014). 'Stepping Back'as Researchers: Addressing Ethics in Arts-Based Approaches to Working with War-Affected Children in School and Community Settings. Education Research for Social Change, 3(1), 75-89.
Pillay, D. Naicker, I. &Pithouse-Morgan, K (Eds.), Academic autoethnographies: Inside teaching in higher education (pp. 175-190). Rotterdam, Netherlands: Sense.

Authors

• Milka Nyariro, McGill University

• Claudia Mitchell, McGill University

• Katie MacEntee, University of Toronto

• Jennifer Thompson