Using drawings to understand undergraduates’ perceptions of politics—the US and Ireland

Purpose This article seeks to gain insights from the interpretations of freehand drawings produced by American and Irish students, young voters, in response to the question: “What is American/Irish politics?” Our goal in using freehand drawing is to foster a collaborative and critical learning environment where participants enhance their ability to interpret and engage in self-reflection. Design/methodology/approach Freehand drawing is a visual representation method that can bypass cognitive verbal processing pathways as part of a critical pedagogy. This approach enables participants to create clear, more critical, and inclusive depictions of their understanding of a topic, regardless of their vocabulary. Over a two-hour period, the university students in Denver and Dublin completed their drawings and then discussed these in class. A sample of six drawings was selected for in-depth examination here. Findings Freehand drawing facilitates our ability to see how others understand a topic and highlights the diversity of perspectives and interpretations. The student created drawings, which enabled them to convey visually what can be challenging to articulate verbally. Having to explain politics pictorially obliged the participants to distill what the essence of politics meant to them and provided insights into how they perceived politics and their roles within their polities. Research limitations/implications This was a small study, conducted at a point in time, looking at just two sets of students, in two locations, in two countries. Practical implications This approach can be utilized in any subject area. Students are often reluctant to speak up in class. The approach liberates them and their voices. Through drawings, we find that they express their thoughts with much less inhibition. Social implications It makes the classroom a free space where expression in valued and encouraged. It also makes it a fun environment where students are learning what they themselves understand. Originality/value This study highlights how using freehand drawings, in a collaborative learning experience, enables participating students to reflect on the politics of their country and to express this understanding visually. Freehand drawing constitutes a powerful tool for allowing participants to express their perspectives on a topic.