Employing a visual representation technique to understand undergraduates’ perceptions of civic engagement across countries
Journal of International Education in Business
ISSN: 2046-469X
Article publication date: 21 May 2020
Issue publication date: 15 September 2020
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to present an interpretation of freehand drawings produced by a sample of final year degree level learners in response to the question: “What is civic engagement”? The aim in using this approach, with final year degree learners from different countries, but pursuing the same degree, was to compare and contrast their understanding of civic engagement.
Design/methodology/approach
Learners completed their drawings and then discussed their drawings in small groups. All of their drawings were initially examined quantitatively before a sample of six drawings were selected for in-depth qualitative examination.
Findings
Using learner-generated drawings enables learners convey visually what can be challenging to verbalise. After the exercise, some learners discovered that they had a good basic appreciation of civic engagement.
Research limitations/implications
Describing civic engagement pictorially forced participants to think about what the essence of civic engagement was for them.
Originality/value
This study shows how a collaborative learning experience, rather than a competitive comparison of performance, facilitates learners readily demonstrating their level of understanding and appreciation for civic engagement.
Keywords
Citation
Feeney, S. and Hogan, J. (2020), "Employing a visual representation technique to understand undergraduates’ perceptions of civic engagement across countries", Journal of International Education in Business, Vol. 13 No. 2, pp. 163-182. https://doi.org/10.1108/JIEB-11-2019-0049
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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