Chaos, newness, respite and hope : culturally and linguistically diverse students' experiences of embodied arts learning during COVID-19

This chapter explores diversity in the online learning space as well as the challenges and opportunities that the sharp pivot to online learning presented during COVID-19 disruptions. Western Sydney University has one of the most diverse Schools of Education in Australia. Students come from a wide variety of cultural backgrounds and most students are linguistically diverse. This chapter reports the experiences of culturally and linguistically diverse initial teacher education students engaging in creative arts education for the first time during the COVID-19 pandemic. The challenges of embodied online learning for diverse students are discussed, along with the intersections of diversity with vulnerability and marginalisation. The analysis of creative artefacts that use drama as a medium of expression suggests that online learning creates some limitations for students who have engaged in minimal embodied learning prior to the lockdown, but also suggests that some safe and affirming embodied interactions are possible under certain conditions. The students experienced chaos, newness and unfamiliarity, cultural and intersectional challenges, as well as hope and respite as part of their digital displacement.