Observational sketching as a pedagogical tool and a research method

This chapter reports on a visual arts-based strategy used in performative language workshops whereby an artist worked alongside facilitators doing observational sketches as the workshops were in progress. The artist captured key moments and turning points in the workshops through gesture drawings which filled multiple purposes. As the workshops were in progress, the presence of the artist and the artworks being produced had pedagogical benefit during the workshops, as participants became engaged in the experience of being drawn and actively reflected on the artworks that were produced. The research team also found that the gesture drawings provided an additional lens through which the workshops could be analysed as they showed some key moments and turning points represented as a still image. This chapter outlines the rationale for the use of observational sketching in the performative language learning environment, and describes the process used by the artist and the research team. A semi-structured interview with the artist provided data that enabled the uses of observational sketching to be investigated.